Pharyngoconjunctival Fever Follow-up

  • Author: Ingrid U Scott, MD, MPH; Chief Editor: Hampton Roy Sr, MD   more...
 
Updated: Mar 29, 2012
 

Further Outpatient Care

  • Patients should return in 1-3 weeks for follow-up care but sooner if the condition worsens.
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Deterrence/Prevention

  • Prevention of transmission, especially in the health care facility, is extremely important.
    • Careful hand washing before seeing every patient, proper cleansing of instruments, and frequent changing of multiuse ophthalmic drops are vital.
    • Using a single infective examination room and educating the staff and the patient are also essential.
    • Patients should be instructed to take contagion and isolation precautions for at least 2 weeks or as long as the eyes are red and weeping.
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Complications

  • Punctate keratitis with subepithelial infiltrates
  • Bacterial superinfection
  • Chronic infection
  • Steroid drop dependence: Many ophthalmologists with this disease who have access to topical steroid samples have become dependent upon steroids and experience a protracted clinical course with prolonged corneal opacification.
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Prognosis

  • Most cases of PCF are acute, benign, and self-limited. The infection usually resolves spontaneously within 2-3 weeks. Subepithelial infiltrates may last for several months (or longer), and, if in the visual axis, they may cause glare or decreased vision. Specific adenovirus serotypes, including 8, 19, 29, and 37, may be associated with keratitis.
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Patient Education

  • To allay patient anxiety, patients should be informed that their symptoms may worsen during the first 4-7 days after onset before they begin to improve, and they may not resolve for 2-3 weeks. The contagiousness of the infection also should be emphasized, and proper isolation from work or school is advisable to prevent epidemics in the office and at school.
  • For patient education resources, see the Eye and Vision Center, as well as Pinkeye.
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Contributor Information and Disclosures
Author

Ingrid U Scott, MD, MPH  Professor, Department of Ophthalmology and Public Health Sciences, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine

Ingrid U Scott, MD, MPH is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Medical Association, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, American Society of Retina Specialists, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Macula Society, Phi Beta Kappa, and Retina Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

John D Sheppard Jr, MD, MMSc  Professor of Ophthalmology, Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Clinical Director, Thomas R Lee Center for Ocular Pharmacology, Ophthalmology Residency Research Program Director, Eastern Virginia Medical School; President, Virginia Eye Consultants

John D Sheppard Jr, MD, MMSc is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Society for Microbiology, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, American Uveitis Society, and Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Simon K Law, MD, PharmD  Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, Jules Stein Eye Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine

Simon K Law, MD, PharmD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Glaucoma Society, and Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Christopher J Rapuano, MD  Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University; Director of the Cornea Service, Co-Director of Refractive Surgery Department, Wills Eye Institute

Christopher J Rapuano, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists, Cornea Society, Eye Bank Association of America, International Society of Refractive Surgery, and Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology

Disclosure: Allergan Honoraria Speaking and teaching; Allergan Consulting fee Consulting; Alcon Honoraria Speaking and teaching; RPS Ownership interest Other; EyeGate Pharma Consulting fee Consulting; Bausch & Lomb Honoraria Speaking and teaching; Bausch & Lomb Consulting; Merck Honoraria Speaking and teaching

Lance L Brown, OD, MD  Ophthalmologist, Affiliated With Freeman Hospital and St John's Hospital, Regional Eye Center, Joplin, Missouri

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Hampton Roy Sr, MD  Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Hampton Roy Sr, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Ophthalmology, American College of Surgeons, and Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

References

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