Ophthalmology

Overview

Our consultant in ophthalmology, Keri-Lee Dobbie, completed three years of exclusive training in ophthalmology (in addition to her seven years of undergraduate veterinary training, followed by six years in veterinary practice), in her home country of South Africa.

Common clinical signs of ophthalmic disease include:

• squinting
• tearing
• redness
• opacity/loss of transparency
• rubbing of the eyes 

Eye disease is common in dogs and cats, the eyes can often serve as windows into the body and give an indication of wider disease. Our ophthalmologist works closely with our internal medicine and neurology teams to diagnose and treat ocular manifestations of systemic disease. Surgically, there is often overlap with eyes and the rest of the head, so our ophthalmologist may team up with our dental (maxillofacial) and soft tissue surgeons to provide the very best care for our patients. 

Diagnosis

All patients undergo a full examination of both eyes, this includes: 

• Schirmer tear test 
• Tonometry (measurement of intraocular pressure) 
• Neuro-ophthalmic examination 
• Slit lamp biomicroscopy 
• Indirect ophthalmoscopy 
• Fluorescein staining 

The examination is relatively non-invasive and well tolerated by most patients, with sedation rarely required. Initial consultations are seen in our dedicated ophthalmology consulting room, the consultation is one hour long, and clients must be present. Cats are examined in our dedicated feline unit to reduce stress, enhance welfare and allow us to cater to the specific needs of our feline patients. 

Further diagnostics may be performed, these include: 

• Gonioscopy (assessment of the drainage angle) 
• Ocular ultrasonography 
• Electroretinography (test of retinal function) 
• Blood work 
• Blood pressure measurement 
• Advanced imaging – CT and MRI (in conjunction with our specialist Diagnostic Imaging team) 

Treatment

Treatment of eye (ophthalmic) disease may be medical (a combination of eye drops and systemic medications) or surgical, depending on the diagnosis, prognosis and patient-client considerations. Our friendly and approachable team commits to discussing all available treatment options with the client and formulating a bespoke treatment plan for each individual patient. Surgery for routine cases will be scheduled on a different day to that of the initial consultation. Emergency surgery may occur on the same day, or within 48 hours of presentation, depending on what degree of stabilisation is needed. 

Surgery is performed in our dedicated theatre, which is fully equipped with an operating microscope and specialised micro-instruments. Surgery is performed under general anaesthesia, which is facilitated by our specialist anaesthesia team. Patients undergoing surgery of the eyelids will generally be discharged the same day, while those undergoing corneal or intraocular surgery will often be hospitalised overnight, under the care of our highly experienced wards team.