Fungal Keratitis: Causes, Risks, and What You Need to Know

When a fungal keratitis, a serious infection of the cornea caused by fungi, often from plant material or contaminated contact lenses. Also known as fungal eye infection, it doesn’t go away with regular antibiotic drops and can blind you if ignored. This isn’t just a minor irritation—it’s a medical emergency that mostly hits people who work outdoors, wear contacts, or have had eye injuries.

Fungal keratitis often follows a scratch or cut on the cornea, especially after contact with soil, plants, or wood. Farmers, gardeners, and construction workers are at higher risk. But it’s not just about accidents—using contaminated contact lens solution or sleeping in lenses can also trigger it. The infection starts with redness, pain, and blurred vision, then gets worse fast. Unlike bacterial infections, it doesn’t respond to common eye drops. That’s why misdiagnosis is common, and delays cost vision.

Treatment usually means strong antifungal eye drops, sometimes taken for weeks. In severe cases, surgery is needed to remove damaged tissue or even replace the cornea. The good news? Early detection works. The bad news? Many wait too long because they think it’s just an allergy or dry eye. If you’ve had an eye injury and your eye still hurts after a few days, don’t wait. Get it checked. A specialist can spot the signs with a slit-lamp exam and a scraping test to confirm fungus.

People with weakened immune systems, diabetes, or those on long-term steroid eye drops are more vulnerable. Even then, healthy people get it too. It’s not rare in warm, humid climates—and it’s on the rise as contact lens use grows. You can reduce your risk by cleaning lenses properly, avoiding tap water near your eyes, and never ignoring eye pain after trauma.

What you’ll find below are real, practical guides on how fungal keratitis connects to broader topics: how antifungal drugs work, why some treatments fail, how to prevent eye infections after injury, and what to do when standard care doesn’t help. These aren’t theory pieces—they’re written by people who’ve seen this in clinics, handled complications, and helped patients recover. Whether you’re a patient, caregiver, or just trying to understand why your eye won’t get better, this collection gives you what you need to act—fast.