31 consecutive patients with laboratory proven epithelial herpetic keratitis were included in a prospective, controlled study evaluating combined blunt spatula debridement and trifluridine therapy versus trifluridine alone. A group of 20 patients treated by the combined method was compared in sequence with a group of 11 patients treated by trifluridine alone. Epithelial healing time was significantly shorter in the combined treatment group and treatment failures were less frequent. Blunt spatula debridement was well tolerated. Our findings tend to support the concept that comuined treatment of herpetic epithelial keratitis by debridement and antiviral therapy is beneficial by shortening the course of epithelial lesions.