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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Cat with sudden corneal swelling and possible eye membrane tear

By Schlesener, Brittany N et al.·Published in Veterinary ophthalmology·2018·Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: An unusual case of feline acute corneal hydrops: atypical disease presentation and possible in vivo detection of Descemet's membrane detachment in the cat's unaffected eye.

Species:
cat

Plain-English summary

A 1-year-old female domestic shorthair cat was brought in because she was squinting and having trouble with her right eye. The vet found a corneal ulcer and swelling in that eye, which quickly worsened into a serious condition called feline acute corneal hydrops (FACH). To treat her, the vet performed surgery that included a graft and other procedures to help the eye heal. Thankfully, her pain and swelling improved within 24 days, but the cat was lost to follow-up, so the vet couldn't check how her left eye was doing after the treatment.

People also search for: cat eye problems · feline acute corneal hydrops treatment · cat squinting right eye

Abstract

A 1-year-old, female spayed, domestic shorthair cat presented for blepharospasm of the right eye. Slit-lamp biomicroscopic examination showed focal corneal ulceration and presumptive keratomalacia of the right eye. Examination of the left eye was normal apart from a focal endothelial opacity. Within the first 24 h of medical management, the right eye developed marked corneal edema and globular anterior protrusion of the corneal surface consistent with feline acute corneal hydrops (FACH). Surgical management consisted of a bridge conjunctival graft, nictitating membrane flap, and temporary tarsorrhaphy. Resolution of corneal edema and pain occurred in the right eye within 24 days. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) of the anterior segment was performed in both eyes. Conjunctival tissue from the bridge graft precluded examination of deeper corneal structures in the right eye. The left eye displayed a focal separation of the corneal endothelium and Descemet's membrane from the overlying stroma. These SD-OCT findings are similar to the analogous syndrome found in humans and represent a potential etiology for FACH of the right eye in the case presented here. Unfortunately, the cat was lost to follow-up and the progression of this lesion to FACH in the left eye could not be determined.

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29111586/