My Shih Tzu has pannus and is blind. Can surgery restore her vision?

These are good treatments for pannus and it definitely looks like Sora is afflicted with this condition. Unfortunately, pannus is quite difficult to treat and the eyedrops and sunglasses will help to keep it from getting worse, but may not help it get much better. I have seen a few dogs that responded very well to treatment though and had significant improvement. I would not expect it to ever be completely normal again unless surgery was done to remove the black part. Below is a link to an article that has some more helpful information about this condition. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/pannus-in-dogs I hope that helps and all is well with Sora.

Hello, and thanks for your question. Pannus is typically a bilateral condition (although symptoms can be worse in one eye), and once diagnosed, treatment is for life to minimize the recurrence of further symptoms. I would recommend continuing treatment in both eyes indefinitely unless your vet is directing otherwise. Hope this helps!

Pannus (chronic superficial keratitis) is an inflammatory disease of the cornea, which seems to be related to an autoimmune disease. Treatment is not expensive and it is usually medical, involving eye drops application, usually dexamethasone, prednisolone, or cyclosporine (or similar active molecule).

Currently there are no eye medications that can effectively correct a cataract, the only option to have it cleared is surgery. As you mentioned, some dogs are not good candidates for eye surgery and so they need to be medically managed, which is what you are currently doing. The flurbiprofen is an anti inflammatory and the neomycin is an antibiotic to help prevent infection. Helen may need to be on these medications for the rest of her life. It is also important to have her eye pressure checked at least every 6 months because cataracts can lead to glaucoma (swelling/increased pressure in the eye that can be very painful). Congratulations on your new addition. Best of luck!

Thanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is really difficult to tell from this photo and the one directional view of the shadow in question; however, I would assume this isn’t pannus because there are no other symptoms of pannus (i.e. conjunctivitis, or any vasculariztion (red blood vessels leading to this spot) that I can see and the photo isn’t very convincing. However, I would suggest taking 3 more photos at different angles and not changing anything about the photo or this can lead to distortion,m. The eye in this photo looks almost cartoony and hard to decifer what other possible things this could be. We look forward to your repost and best of luck getting some good shots. If you are having difficulty with this, then a vet visit should be considered to have Bruno’s eye examined with proper instrumentation. Best wishes.

I'm sorry to hear that Cami is having this problem. Unfortunately, the only treatment option for cataracts is surgery - so if this isn't an option for you due to cost, then there's really nothing you can do to make them go away. But, cataracts should not cause any drainage or watering of the eyes, so I would be concerned that Cami has some other eye problem causing this - possibly an eye infection, or allergies. These can often be treated with prescription eye drops from your veterinarian, so I would recommend taking her in for an eye exam to discuss what can be done to make her more comfortable.

I'm sorry that Pluto has cataracts! Unfortunately, there is no medication or eye drop that will do anything to help with this. The only effective treatment for cataracts is surgery to remove the affected lens, and replace it with an artificial lens - the same surgery that is done for humans with cataracts. If you're interested in this as a possibility for Pluto, I would recommend requesting referral to an ophthalmologist. He/she can give you a better idea of whether he would be good candidate for surgery or not, and can also discuss expected costs if you wish.