Surveying veterinary ophthalmologists to assess the advice given to owners of pets with irreversible blindness.

Vet Rec. August 2020;187(4):e30.

André Tavares Somma¹, Fabiano Montiani-Ferreira², Ana Isabella Schafaschek³, Luisa Gatti⁴, Heidi Featherstone⁵

¹ Department of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil.; ² Department of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil montiani@ufpr.br.; ³ Department of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil.; ⁴ Department of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil.; ⁵ Ophthalmology, The Ralph Veterinary Referral Centre, Marlow, UK.

© British Veterinary Association 2020. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:The primary purpose of this survey was to determine how veterinary ophthalmologists manage cases of irreversible blindness and to report the most common causes of blindness.

METHODS:Respondents completed a questionnaire sent by email with the cooperation of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists, the European College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists and the Latin American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists. The questionnaire was developed containing 12 questions with both open and closed multiple-choice response options.

RESULTS:One hundred and eight veterinary ophthalmologists answered the questionnaire. Of the respondents, 83 per cent had graduated for more than 10 years. Glaucoma (63.56 per cent) was the main cited cause of blindness, followed by progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) (17.80 per cent) and retinal detachment (6.78 per cent). The major concerns of owners refer to the impact of blindness on quality-of-life, (39.31 per cent), followed by depression and anxiety (20 per cent), and environment adaptation (11.72 per cent). General recommendations include avoidance of changes in the domestic environment (18.45 per cent), use of auditory stimulation (14.09 per cent) and avoidance of dangerous areas (12.75 per cent). Almost 31 per cent of professionals do not recommend the use of literature on how to deal with blind pets.

CONCLUSIONS:The survey determined glaucoma and PRA as the most common causes of irreversible blindness in pets. Several recommendations that are frequently given to owners of blind pets are presented.

Keywords

QoL; blind; eyes; ophthalmology; survey; veterinarian;

Article Tools:

Medline

Email to me

Archives Highlights:

Effects of intranasal maropitant on clinical signs of naturally acquired upper respiratory disease in shelter cats.
There was no significant difference in clinical improvement score between the maropitant treatment and control groups for conjunctivitis, blepharospasm, ocular discharge, nasal discharge, or total disease severity after 7 days.

Clinical characterization of a novel episodic ataxia in young working Cocker Spaniels.
The mean age at clinical onset was 4 months. Signs were acute and included episodic body swaying, titubation, cerebellar ataxia, wide-base stance, and hypermetria, all while mentation remained unaltered. Duration of episodes ranged from 30 minutes up to 24 hours, and their frequency varied from weekly to once every 5 months.

Performing an Avian Physical Examination in Practice
As with mammalian physical examinations, it is important to develop a consistent order for the avian examination to thoroughly evaluate each body system. Some components of the physical examination differ between avian species. For example, cloacal palpation is performed in chickens, but not in parrots.

Feline blood donation: Description and adverse reactions from 29 201 donation events between 2019 and 2023.
Adverse reactions were uncommon (0.29%, 2.88/1000 donor events) and most commonly were cardiorespiratory (0.08%, 0.75/1000 donor events) or behavioral (0.06%, 0.62/1000 donor events). The only risk factor significantly associated with adverse reactions was conscious donation, with conscious donors 4.4 times more likely to have an adverse reaction.

Efficacy, safety and interval from end of treatment to estrus in cats treated with an ultra-low dose megestrol acetate protocol for suppression of reproductive activity.
Twenty-eight queens were treated orally with 11.5 µg/kg/day of megestrol acetate (MA) for one to six months. MA suppressed reproductive function effectively in 27/28 queens. Transient mammary and uterine hyperplasia were detected in four (14 %) and three (11 %) queens, respectively, treated for more than four months, without associated clinical signs. Significant but reversible weight gain was observed in 85 % of the animals. The resumption of cyclicity occurred on average 6 weeks after the end of treatment but was influenced by the duration of treatment and seasonality.