Post traumatic keratouveitis in horses.

This research explores the effect of treatments on traumatic keratouveitis in horses and suggests that locally administered corticosteroids potentially slow down the healing process of the condition.

Understanding Traumatic Keratouveitis

• Traumatic Keratouveitis is a condition that affects horses where there is inflammation of the cornea (keratitis) and the uvea (uveitis) prompted by a trauma.
• The condition is usually characterized by keratitis that’s accompanied by vascularisation (the formation of new blood vessels), which occurs on one side (unilateral), and severe to moderate uveitis.
• It is noteworthy that the condition is aseptic, which means it does not typically result from a microbial infection.

Research Treatment and Outcomes

• The study followed 9 cases of horses with post-traumatic keratouveitis.
• Treatment involved use of nonsteroidal drugs and atropine, which were administered both topically and systemically to control anterior uveitis and allow spontaneous cornea healing.
• Of these cases, 6 affected eyes had been previously treated with local corticosteroids.
• The researchers found out that the healing process took considerably longer in these 6 eyes when compared to 3 eyes that had not been treated with corticosteroids.

Findings and Conclusion

• The findings indicated that applying corticosteroids locally might inhibit the healing of the damaged corneal stroma.
• Furthermore, corticosteroids were associated with prolonging keratitis, thus perpetuating concurrent anterior uveitis.
• Based on these observations, the researchers concluded that for horses suffering from post-traumatic keratouveitis, the use of locally administered corticosteroids can hamper the healing process.
• In essence, this research advises against the use of locally administered corticosteroids in treating traumatic keratouveitis, offering valuable insights that could potentially change the way the condition is treated.