A post from Vectis Equine Vets:
We are continually grateful to Liphook Equine Hospital for the support they give to enable our clients to have world class treatments here on the Isle of Wight. We may live on an island but rest assured the care you are receiving would not be available in most of the rest of the UK!!
Jet had a nasty corneal ulceration on his right eye which presented 2 weeks ago. Normal treatments with antibiotics drops and intra-ocular plasma had failed to make an improvement. The ulcer was getting deeper and threatening to perforate which would mean the eye would have to be removed.
Andy used a piece of equine placenta that had been specially prepared and then stored frozen at Liphook Equine Hospital. This “amnion graft” was then used as a biological bandage to cover the ulcer. The surgery was pioneered by Dennis Brooks at the university of Florida and has been performed in the states and at Liphook Equine Hospital. Normally the surgery would require a general anaesthetic so the graft could be sutured directly to the cornea. Alternatively the graft can be sutured to the margins of the eye (the conjunctiva) so the whole surface of the eye is covered by the graft. This is less fiddly and so can be performed in a sedated animal. So far this technique has been used twice on horses at Liphook Equine Hospital but as far as we are aware Jet is the first pony in the UK to have the procedure done under sedation. After the graft is in place the eyelids are then sutured closed over the graft to protect it.
We will open Jet’s eye in 7 days to see how we’ll it is progressing but it is likely the graft will stay in place for at least 2 weeks. We’ll keep you updated on his progress! “
