A collaboration that allowed Flash to see again

Ophthalmic and veterinary surgeons operate on Dobermann’s eyes

It took a collaborative effort by ophthalmic and veterinary surgeons to operate on Flash, a four-year-old Dobermann, to surgically correct vitreous haemorrhage and retinal detachments in both his eyes.

Flash, who kept bumping into objects and tripping over stairs, is now on the road to recovery.

“When Flash was brought to me about six weeks ago, he was completely blind. His veterinary doctor diagnosed him with Rickettsial fever, and as a result, there was a drop in his platelet count. This led to bleeding eyes, and retinal detachment due to the inflammation,” said Mohan Rajan, chairman and medical director of Rajan Eye Care Hospital.

Flash’s owner, Rajashekar, a liver transplant surgeon, had noticed that he was sluggish in his movements. On discovering that he kept bumping into objects, he contacted Dr. Rajan and brought the dog in for a check-up.

Challenging surgery

Dr. Rajan and his vitreoretinal surgeon, Supriya Dabir-Gautam, detected vitreous haemorrhage and bleeds in both eyes. He was treated with steroids and antibiotics. Once he was systemically stable, a surgery was scheduled at the operation theatre of the Madras Veterinary College.

The surgery in itself was a challenge. “Giving anaesthesia to a Dobermann is no easy task. It took two hours to induce anaesthesia. The surgery took seven to eight hours,” he added.