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- May 11, 2021
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Hi there,
I’m brand new to this site and this is my first post. I came across another post here from 2016 about something similar I think I’m going through: Cloudy bubble on eye
My indoor cat Link about to turn 9 years old in June, and he is a pretty sick cat and always has been. As a kitten when I adopted him from the shelter, he had Upper Respiratory Disease and he actually recently got that booster for it in February 2021. After turning about a year old, he developed these neck ulcers/scabs, which we didn’t do a biopsy but we’re sure it’s Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex (EGC). I believe it’s seasonal/dust allergies and probably stress is what causes it. So our decision was to prescribe lifetime prednisolone to him at 5mg/day. He’s been on it for years now. He would still get a small flare up on his neck from time to time but he hasn’t had something like that in a while. He is a lot less stressed living where I currently live now which is great. He also gets Viralys L-Lysine HCL oral gel twice a day. And he’s on Royal Canin Anallergenic vet prescribed food to make sure he doesn’t get urinary crystals (he didn’t like the hydrolyzed protein one) and that his flare ups aren’t caused by a food related allergy. He gets blood work done yearly (just to check things out) and nothing ever stood out except for the fact that he’s slightly anemic. He’s had an ulcerated cornea three times in the past before, but I just assumed it was because he scratched himself in the eye or something.
Fast forward to now, I’ve attached some pictures of a blue/white cloudy-ish looking growth/bulb that’s recently developed on his right eye. Bubbles inside it indicating fluid. I took him to the vet and originally there was no ulcer to be seen with the UV eye stain. So the vet perscribed Tobradex (Tobramycin) eye drops - 1 drop 3x daily. The upper bulb (first photo) then popped, which caused an ulcer and leaking of fluid. He squinted his eye for a few days because it probably hurt. At that time, another bubble was developing, same eye, but at the bottom of the eye this time (other photos). A week later, to treat the ulcer, he was prescribed Ocuflox (Ofloxacin) antibiotic eye drops - 1 drop 3x daily. As well as Optixcare Eye EMS - 1-2 drops every other day. The second developed bulb/growth still hasn’t popped yet. Through all of this, he’s never seemed bothered by it, only when it originally popped. He’s still having a bit of green discharge in the corner of the eye, but the vet didn’t mention anything when I brought it up.
I just took him to the vet yesterday to check how things are going. The ulcer is no more and that larger bulb at the bottom still hasn’t popped.
I’ve done a lot of research and believe it to be Feline Acute Bullous Keratopathy (FABK), or sometimes called Feline Acute Corneal Hydrops. It seems to be fairly rare and there’s not a lot of information on it. But I read everything I could possibly find. Causes, symptoms, pictures, stories, treatment, scholarly/student reports, post-surgery write ups, etc. I think it could be caused by his lifetime use of prednisolone. Or even he’s just more susceptible to it. I know that surgery is what can treat it, but even then it could still come back. I also believe he may have Cushing’s because of his belly, thinning hair and random small patches of fur missing, as I never see him lick or bite/scratch obsessively. And I know that that can be caused by long term steroid use as well. I’m working from home for the time being, so I’ve spent a *lot* of time with him for about 15 months now, so I know all his patterns and mannerisms even more so than before.
So, I asked the vet (a fill in vet for his actual vet this time) if I could try to lower/wean out his prednisolone dosage and give him saline drops to draw out fluid when he gets these bubbles. Muro 128 5% sodium chloride hypertonicity ophthalmic solution to be exact (not the ointment — although maybe that’s a better alternative?). And then if the bubble pops, give him antibiotic drops to treat the ulcer. I’m trying to avoid surgery as much as possible and because it’s just unfortunately not a financial hit I can take.
The vet agreed with my findings and at home remedies. I haven't started the saline drops yet as I have to wait for it to be delivered, but I have started the weaning off process for the prednisolone. I haven’t taken him to an ophthalmologist because of financial reasons. If I have to get him seen by one, that’s not so bad, but I don’t think I can afford surgery.
I apologize for such a long thread, I just want to know, does anyone have any knowledge or experiences about this topic they can share? How many ruptures can the eye take? Maybe it’s not even what I think it is.
I just want to share my experience in case in the future anyone goes through something like this. Thank you for your time.
I’m brand new to this site and this is my first post. I came across another post here from 2016 about something similar I think I’m going through: Cloudy bubble on eye
My indoor cat Link about to turn 9 years old in June, and he is a pretty sick cat and always has been. As a kitten when I adopted him from the shelter, he had Upper Respiratory Disease and he actually recently got that booster for it in February 2021. After turning about a year old, he developed these neck ulcers/scabs, which we didn’t do a biopsy but we’re sure it’s Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex (EGC). I believe it’s seasonal/dust allergies and probably stress is what causes it. So our decision was to prescribe lifetime prednisolone to him at 5mg/day. He’s been on it for years now. He would still get a small flare up on his neck from time to time but he hasn’t had something like that in a while. He is a lot less stressed living where I currently live now which is great. He also gets Viralys L-Lysine HCL oral gel twice a day. And he’s on Royal Canin Anallergenic vet prescribed food to make sure he doesn’t get urinary crystals (he didn’t like the hydrolyzed protein one) and that his flare ups aren’t caused by a food related allergy. He gets blood work done yearly (just to check things out) and nothing ever stood out except for the fact that he’s slightly anemic. He’s had an ulcerated cornea three times in the past before, but I just assumed it was because he scratched himself in the eye or something.
Fast forward to now, I’ve attached some pictures of a blue/white cloudy-ish looking growth/bulb that’s recently developed on his right eye. Bubbles inside it indicating fluid. I took him to the vet and originally there was no ulcer to be seen with the UV eye stain. So the vet perscribed Tobradex (Tobramycin) eye drops - 1 drop 3x daily. The upper bulb (first photo) then popped, which caused an ulcer and leaking of fluid. He squinted his eye for a few days because it probably hurt. At that time, another bubble was developing, same eye, but at the bottom of the eye this time (other photos). A week later, to treat the ulcer, he was prescribed Ocuflox (Ofloxacin) antibiotic eye drops - 1 drop 3x daily. As well as Optixcare Eye EMS - 1-2 drops every other day. The second developed bulb/growth still hasn’t popped yet. Through all of this, he’s never seemed bothered by it, only when it originally popped. He’s still having a bit of green discharge in the corner of the eye, but the vet didn’t mention anything when I brought it up.
I just took him to the vet yesterday to check how things are going. The ulcer is no more and that larger bulb at the bottom still hasn’t popped.
I’ve done a lot of research and believe it to be Feline Acute Bullous Keratopathy (FABK), or sometimes called Feline Acute Corneal Hydrops. It seems to be fairly rare and there’s not a lot of information on it. But I read everything I could possibly find. Causes, symptoms, pictures, stories, treatment, scholarly/student reports, post-surgery write ups, etc. I think it could be caused by his lifetime use of prednisolone. Or even he’s just more susceptible to it. I know that surgery is what can treat it, but even then it could still come back. I also believe he may have Cushing’s because of his belly, thinning hair and random small patches of fur missing, as I never see him lick or bite/scratch obsessively. And I know that that can be caused by long term steroid use as well. I’m working from home for the time being, so I’ve spent a *lot* of time with him for about 15 months now, so I know all his patterns and mannerisms even more so than before.
So, I asked the vet (a fill in vet for his actual vet this time) if I could try to lower/wean out his prednisolone dosage and give him saline drops to draw out fluid when he gets these bubbles. Muro 128 5% sodium chloride hypertonicity ophthalmic solution to be exact (not the ointment — although maybe that’s a better alternative?). And then if the bubble pops, give him antibiotic drops to treat the ulcer. I’m trying to avoid surgery as much as possible and because it’s just unfortunately not a financial hit I can take.
The vet agreed with my findings and at home remedies. I haven't started the saline drops yet as I have to wait for it to be delivered, but I have started the weaning off process for the prednisolone. I haven’t taken him to an ophthalmologist because of financial reasons. If I have to get him seen by one, that’s not so bad, but I don’t think I can afford surgery.
I apologize for such a long thread, I just want to know, does anyone have any knowledge or experiences about this topic they can share? How many ruptures can the eye take? Maybe it’s not even what I think it is.
I just want to share my experience in case in the future anyone goes through something like this. Thank you for your time.