Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Episcleral cyclosporine A implants for the management of unilateral keratoconjunctivitis sicca in an 8-year-old mare.
- Journal:
- Veterinary ophthalmology
- Year:
- 2017
- Authors:
- Mackenzie, Catriona J et al.
- Affiliation:
- Philip Leverhulme Equine Hospital · United Kingdom
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
An 8-year-old mare was brought in because she had been squinting, had swollen eyelids, and was producing a lot of discharge from her right eye for about a month. A thorough eye exam showed that she had a very dry eye with no tear production, which is a condition called keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS). Initially, she was treated with eye drops containing cyclosporine A, which helped her symptoms. Five days later, a small implant of cyclosporine A was placed in her eye to provide longer-lasting treatment. When she was checked again nine days after the implant, her tear production had improved, and she showed no further signs of the problem. Follow-up visits over the next year showed that she remained healthy with no return of symptoms, indicating that the treatment was successful.
Abstract
An 8-year-old mare was presented for investigation of a 1-month history of blepharospasm, eyelid swelling, corneal edema, and ocular discharge of the right eye (OD). Ophthalmic examination confirmed mucopurulent ocular discharge, conjunctival hyperemia, and a dry, dull appearance to the cornea OD. Schirmer tear test results confirmed an absence of tear production OD (0 mm/min) consistent with keratoconjunctivitis sicca. Treatment with topical 0.2% cyclosporine A resulted in an improvement in clinical signs. An episcleral cyclosporine A implant was placed under standing sedation 5 days after initial presentation. Re-examination 9 days post-operatively confirmed that the mare's tear production in the right eye had improved and no further clinical signs had been observed. Topical medications were gradually discontinued. Re-examinations performed up to 12 months postsurgery showed no recurrence of clinical signs and no adverse effects of the implant. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the use of a cyclosporine A implant in the management of KCS in a horse and highlights its potential as an effective, alternative therapy in the management of KCS in horses.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26945681/