Snow leopards at Philly Zoo undergo eye surgery

Shortly after two snow leopard cubs were born at the zoo in Philadelphia in June - a first for the institution - the guards noticed something disturbing.

The male cubs, and Dian Kimti, upper eyelid abnormalities. The center of each edge of the cover was missing, so that their eyes were irritated. One had hair in one eye.

The medical conditiom - coloboma - is known in humans and domestic animals, including cats with short hair and panthers in Florida. And snow leopards.

It can be fixed by surgery.Zoo veterinarian Keith Hinshaw knew that if doctors do not work, the eyes of cats rare "would still be sensitive and vulnerable to infection.

But the risks were great.

It is always risky to operate on wildlife. The physical and emotional stress can be enormous.

New smells could destabilize them. A needle may irritate. Even worse, their mother could reject her young, and even attack them.

The challenge for caregivers came to this: could they do this technical procedure, without bond breaking instinctive animal to another?

In August, the University of Pennsylvania veterinary ophthalmologist Dr. András Komáromy crawled into the cage with the lions of one eye exams more unusual he had never done.

The evaluation team: They needed to operate. "Everyone was in agreement," said Hinshaw.

Originally from the mountains of central Asia, snow leopards are on the World Conservation Union "Red List" of endangered species. Experts estimate that from 3500 to 7000 remain in the wild, threatened by poaching, habitat loss and conflicts with farmers.

There are 142 snow leopards in zoos in North America 55, said Jay Tetzloff, who coordinates the program on the continent of snow leopard breeding and is superintendent of Miller Park Zoo in Bloomington, Illinois

Weeks of preparation culminated Tuesday in the twin processes of Kimti and Dian. The estimated cost of zoo: $ 2,500.

To avoid problems, the zoo staff wanted to bring the little ones with their mother, Maya, as soon as possible.

Iris Coloboma - Causes and Treatments - Eye care - YGoY

The colored part of the eye is known as the iris. The occurrence of black round hole located in or near the iris is called as an iris coloboma. It even looks like a black screen with sturctures variety and depth to the edge of the pupil which gives an irregular shape the student. This condition may even appear to be a split in the iris, which starts from the student on board of the iris. In the case of a smaller coloboma condition (if not attached to the student) a second image is allowed to focus on the back of the eye.This causes small coloboma:

Ghost image blurred vision Decreased visual acuity

These causes can damage the retina, the optic nerve of the eye and the choroid.

What causes iris coloboma? At present, there is no treatment for this condition of the eye. In the early years when medical science was not much more developed, the child used to be regularly checked for the medical examination of the eyes. Later, every 6 months until the age of seven eye tests will be performed. Glasses were prescribed in rare cases such as nearsightedness and farsightedness can be treated as coloboma can not handle.In the subsequent phase, the cosmetic contact lenses may be prescribed.


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Coloboma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Some children with coloboma of the eye also have malformations in other parts of the body. ... There is no treatment for the visual impairment caused by coloboma at present. ...

Coloboma - RNIB
A coloboma is a gap in part of the structures of the eye, caused when a baby's eyes do not develop properly during pregnancy.

Coloboma | Definition and Patient Education | Healthline
Coloboma, also known as keyhole defect of the iris, is a congenital genetic disorder that affects the iris of the eye. Present at birth, coloboma implies the absence ...

Coloboma - Causes, Symptoms, Treatment of Coloboma Eye, Iris ...
Coloboma is an eye problem that can form due to underdevelopment of ... At present, there is no treatment for coloboma eye. During the early years, the child ...

Uveal Coloboma Treatment
Posted on May 25, 2010 in Eye Treatments. Coloboma is a group of eye conditions where normal eye tissue in or around the eyes is missing from birth. ...