Blind Dog Sees Again

Author: Hilary

Monday, May 12th, 2008 @ 6:53 pm

First Veterinary Corneal Transplant is a Success!

Dixie, a 7 year old Mountain Cur dog who had been losing her vision for some time is the first ever United States recipient of a veterinary corneal implant. Dixie’s quality of life was dramatically affected by her loss of vision, having gained significant weight and becoming fearful of activities she used to enjoy.

Dixie’s vision was restored using a two-step surgical procedure. The first step involved the cutting into the eye to remove the cloudy cornea. The second portion of the procedure involved the insertion of a plastic cornea, which is stitched into place. The entire eye is then bandaged to help the eye heal from surgery. After several weeks of healing, Dixie’s bandages were removed and a small hole was cut into the new tissue, exposing the new, plastic cornea.

Since regaining her sight, Dixie has lost several pounds and is once again romping happily. She hasn’t regained any peripheral vision, but the benefits certainly are plentiful!

Why plastic corneal implants? There is an extremely low success rate when using live corneal tissue transplants from other dogs. This procedure has been performed on humans for several years, but this marks the first occasion this surgery has been done in America and only a handful of these operations have been done worldwide.

The plastic corneas are being developed by a company called Acrivet, based in Germany. When the Iowa State Veterinary professor who performed the operation met a company representative, he became interested in performing the procedure on his furry patients. The implants are currently prototypes and are not yet commercially available.

Cup of Dog wishes Dixie all the best and is thrilled she has made such a fantastic recovery. Here is hoping that the continued implementation of experimental procedures that promote well being for pups the world over!

Image of Dixie, post-surgery via Iowa State University

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