Antimicrobial Stewardship in Veterinary Ophthalmology: Making Antimicrobial Resistance Visible.

Implement aggregated antibiograms to guide empirical antimicrobial therapy in veterinary ophthalmology.

This viewpoint article addresses the growing concern of antimicrobial resistance in veterinary ophthalmology, a problem that often goes unrecognized in routine clinical practice. Despite worldwide reports of resistant ocular pathogens, veterinarians frequently make antimicrobial prescribing decisions without access to local resistance data. The author proposes aggregated antibiograms as a practical, immediately implementable tool to improve awareness of local resistance patterns and support antimicrobial stewardship initiatives. While acknowledging that antibiograms do not directly quantify reductions in resistance, the author argues that systematic collection and review of resistance data can provide valuable contextual information to guide empirical treatment decisions and promote more thoughtful prescribing habits. The article uses perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis in cataract surgery as a case example to demonstrate how routine ophthalmic practices could benefit from evidence-based re-evaluation. The author concludes that making resistance patterns visible through aggregated antibiograms represents a feasible, actionable first step toward more responsible antimicrobial use with implications for both individual clinical practice and broader One Health initiatives.

This summary was distilled by AI and may occasionally misinterpret data. Confirm critical details with the primary literature before clinical application.