Cat Cataracts
Causes and Treatments
 Cat
cataracts are not a common problem with cats, but there are
conditions which promote the growth of a cataract. Its
important to catch the problem early because as the cataract
ages, it becomes tougher to reverse and leave your cat blind.
Your cat's eye cells regenerate just like
your skin cells, expect they don't flake off of the eye like you
skins old cells do. Instead they start to accumulate in
the center of his eye and turn a cloudy blue-grey like in the
drawing above.
Most common causes of cat cataracts:
-
Certain cat breeds
-
Diabetes
-
Uveitis
-
Trauma to the eye
Causes
You can't imagine her gorgeous peek-a-boo eyes clouded with a
grey ulcer.
Check for changes in your cat's eye color and clarity; for a cloud
cat eye or a change in
pupil size.
If you have a Birman, Himalayan, Persian or
British Shorthair cat be extra sensitive to eye disorders.
These breeds have a higher incidence or cat cataracts.
Just like in humans, diabetic cats are prone to
cataracts. Also, if you cat has a leukemia virus,
toxoplasmosis, feline immunodeficiency virus or feline infectious
peritonitis, his eyesight may be compromised by the inflammatory
disease, uveitis.
Symptoms of uveitis are a change in the eye
color, a rough surface to the eye and the pupil gets smaller.
This is very painful to your cat and you may notice him squinting,
have water eyes or eyelid spasms.
Treatment
Just because a cataract is present, it
doesn't necessarily mean surgery. The size and location of the
cataract are factors in treatment. If the cataract is small,
your cat can see around the cataract. However, he may have a
harder time seeing in a brightly lit room or if he is outdoors
on a particularly bright day. If he can get around safely,
then surgery isn't necessary.
If the
cataract is large or very dense, then complications can be controlled
with medications. It is completely reasonable to expect your cat to
have a good life even if he becomes blind. Keeping him indoors helps
protect him as well as keeping things in the same place so he can learn
the paths to his toys, litter box, food and favorite areas. Keep the
lights dim helps him see better with what eyesight he has left.
Surgery
A puncture to the eye lens or larger congenital cat cataracts are
candidates for surgery. Some cat owners forego cataract surgery that
is caused by uveitis. Uveitis already causes inflammation to the
eye, so surgery can just lead to more inflammation, complications
and pain.
The retina, the tissue in the back of the eye that receives
light, must be functioning in order for your pet to benefit from
surgery. The retina is like the film in a camera. If it's not there,
then there won't be a picture. Therefore, assessment of the retinal
function is necessary.
There isn't any sense in performing surgery on an eye that won't
recover vision. The biggest risk in cataract surgery is the first four to six hours after surgery. This is usually
minimized with medication. The long-term vision risk is retinal
detachment and that happens to about 5% of post-surgery patients.
Surgery
may or may not include lens implants. Humans rely on their close-up
vision for reading, sewing, and seeing the speedometer, so human cataract
surgery usually includes lens implants to normalize our vision. Your
cat won't be reading or driving and can get alone without the lens.
He will be left farsighted, so he
can see far well, but close-up is a problem. The mice will
cheer! ;> Of course, including
a lens implant increases the cost of the surgery. The pre-op analysis,
surgery and post-surgery checkups run from $1,500 to $3,000. Then there
is the post-op medication. Opting for a small monthly
cat health
insurance program helps with the financial burden. It certainly reduces
the costs of treating cat cataracts and long-term cat eye care.
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