Preliminary data suggest a role for bacterial superinfection of a viral keratitis after zosteriform spread of herpes simplex virus to the eye of the mouse.

After inoculation of herpes simplex virus (HSV) on the snout of the mouse, spread to the eye occurs via neural pathways. The keratitis which ensued was clinically atypical for a pure herpetic keratitis, leading to a search for other causative agents. Preliminary data suggests that bacteriological super-infection of the viral keratitis occurs frequently, producing a unique experimental model.