Patient Care

Surgery – Our Philosophy

We treat cases medically wherever possible and often this is adequate to treat an eye problem. In some instances however surgery may be the best way to correct a problem. Surgery may also be indicated where medical treatment alone is judged as unlikely to resolve the issue either completely or in a reasonable period of time.

We may recommend surgery when the eye disease is causing significant pain which we know will not respond to medical therapy. We also may advise surgery in cases where failure to treat surgically may result in a loss of vision. After all, our goal as ophthalmologists is to maintain vision wherever possible. At all times we are concerned to preserve vision and keep your pet comfortable in order to allow the pet to enjoy a good quality of life.

We do understand that many factors must be considered in deciding on surgical therapy, including the risks to the patient (and associated fears of the pet owner), the likelihood of a successful outcome and, not least, the cost of the procedure.

From many years experience treating animal eye diseases we know there are often alternatives to surgery and will recommend them if we feel that there is a reasonable chance of a successful outcome.

We will always try and present various options for therapy and let you make the choice as to which you feel comfortable pursuing. Often we are asked what we would do if this were our animal and are always happy to step into your shoes and help with the decision. Sometimes this is easy for us and sometimes the issue as to whether surgery is the best course of action is more complicated. Please ensure that we explain all of the pros and cons of surgery (or any other treatment).

If you have any questions or feel that we have not explained what we recommend adequately PLEASE ask us to go over it again.