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  Discussion on Superficial Keratitis
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Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Saturday, Aug 5, 2006 - 11:45 am:

My daughter's horse, "John," had some clouding and visible spots in his right eye when she purchased him. The Veterinarian who did the Vet. check said they were not important -- just old scars. Before too long John began having a problem with the eye and was taken to the University of Florida where the diagnosis -- Superficial Keratitis -- was made. They prescribed eye ointment (I don't see the name of it in the articles, -- which are very good -- on the site) and there was vast improvement, so use of the ointment was cut back to less frequent use. John has been rechecked a number of times and she is supposed to take him back for a recheck whenever the problem worsens, which she has done. The condition has recently worsened, and when just rechecked there was some "bubbling" or building up of water. Now he has to have the ointment twice daily for two weeks, and will be rechecked then. Does anyone have any experiences to share about this problem? This 11-year old warmblood (Holsteiner) gelding was imported from Germany. One of the Vets told my daughter those are the horses (imported warmbloods) they see who have this problem, which is very curious. If anyone has any insights or information to share, I would appreciate it. He is a very nice horse (my daughter loves him) and an excellent jumper who has won some Grand Prix events. The Vets at UF seemed to feel the problem will never entirely go away, and that it could be "managed," but I don't know if that thinking will change if the condition is worsening.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Aug 7, 2006 - 10:19 am:

Hello Vicki,
Since you posted in an article that is not about your problem Vicki you may not have seen our information or what I prefer to call "Recurrent Uveitis" which is what it sounds like U of Fl is diagnosing. For more on this see, Diseases of Horses » Eye Diseases » Anterior Uveitis, Recurrent Uveitis, Periodic Opthalmia, and Moonblindness.
DrO
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Monday, Aug 7, 2006 - 1:14 pm:

Thanks, Dr. O -- U of F stated the problem is "Superficial Keratitis" so I naturally gravitated to where I found Keratitis mentioned, and "Superficial Keratitis" was mentioned in the area where I posted though that didn't totally seem to fit the whole picture. Going, however, to the other site you recommended and reading it, the drug Cyclosporin IS what is being used, and that is the drug mentioned in the Uveitis treatment. To me this is very worrisome, because I know Uveitis is a very serious problem, and the eventual outcome could be very bad. That is not the way John's problem was described so far, but I guess that could change. U of F explained the condition to be autoimmune, as is in Uveitis. Why would they call a case of Uveitis "Superficial Keratitis?" By the way, clicking on the section "Info on Lepto." -- there is a section that seems to be written partly in English and partly in a foreign language -- looks like some kind of malfunction. I have studied up on Lepto and Uveitis in the past am VERY concerned if Uveitis is John's problem.
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Monday, Aug 7, 2006 - 2:33 pm:

Warmbloods imported from Europe having eye problem --Talked to my daughter again and U of F is saying this is NOT uveitis but "Superficial Keratitis" due to autoimmune causes .. peculiar, and if they are only seeing it in imported warmblood horses, perhaps some of the European members would have some insights? Or other owners of imported warmloods? And thanks, Dr. O, for anything you can add.
Member:
Erika

Posted on Tuesday, Aug 8, 2006 - 7:58 am:

Small statistic, but my former boarder with a domestically bred (European bloodlines) warmblood has uveitis.
Erika
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 9, 2006 - 7:53 am:

Hmmm since recurrent uveitis is also a autoimmune disease that causes a keratitis I am uncertain as to what the differences are Vicki, but perhaps they have identified a disease of "just the cornea" that does not effect the rest of the uvea? I am not aware of any common condition like this however since etiology is the same, treatment should be very similar. Hopefully the prognosis for your condition is better as the name suggests it does not effect deeper structures.
DrO
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 9, 2006 - 3:11 pm:

Thanks Dr. O and Erika. I think what you say is the case, Dr. O -- I will let you know what happens after the follow-up appointment. There IS cloudiness on the cornea along with some scarring.
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Friday, Aug 18, 2006 - 9:50 pm:

Today John went back to be rechecked after two weeks of twice daily Cyclosporin. He has improved, but is not as good as he has been after treatments in the past. He will be rechecked in another 3 weeks after continuing with twice daily treatment.
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