Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Rabbit with eye bulge and abscess treated by surgery
By Martínez-Jiménez, David et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2007·Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Endosurgical treatment of a retrobulbar abscess in a rabbit.
- Species:
- rabbit
Plain-English summary
A 1-year-old female Netherland dwarf rabbit was brought to the vet because she had been lethargic, eating less, and had a bulging left eye for three weeks. The vet found that she had severe dental disease and a retrobulbar abscess (an infection behind the eye). To treat her, the vet performed dental trimming, removed some teeth, and cleaned out the abscess, followed by antibiotic treatment. Two months later, the rabbit showed significant improvement with only a slight bulge remaining in her eye, and no other health issues were detected.
People also search for: rabbit eye bulging treatment · rabbit dental disease symptoms · rabbit lethargy and decreased appetite
Abstract
CASE DESCRIPTION: A 1-year-old sexually intact female Netherland dwarf rabbit was examined because of a 3-week history of signs of lethargy, decreased appetite, left unilateral exophthalmia, a previous draining sinus from a left maxillary facial abscess, and bilateral nasal discharge. CLINICAL FINDINGS: The rabbit weighed 1.0 kg (2.2 lb) and had a body condition score of 1.5/5. Physical examination revealed generalized muscle atrophy, bilateral mucopurulent nasal discharge, and severe left-sided exophthalmia. Diagnostic investigation revealed anemia, neutrophilia, severe dental disease, a superficial corneal ulcer of the left eye, and a retrobulbar abscess. TREATMENT AND OUTCOME: Stomatoscopy-aided dental trimming, tooth removal, and abscess debridement were performed. Antimicrobials were flushed into the tooth abscess cavity, and antimicrobial treatment was initiated on the basis of cytologic findings and results of bacterial culture and susceptibility testing. Two months after the initial surgery, minimal exophthalmia was evident and no further physical, radiographic, or ultrasonographic changes were evident. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Stomatoscopy is a valuable technique that can facilitate diagnosis, treatment, and serial reevaluation of rabbits with dental disease.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17362161/