The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : A lion gets the gift of sight

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Apr 03, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

A lion gets the gift of sight

By Akhila Seetharaman

CHENNAI, APRIL 2. At the ripe old age of 20, Raja had lost its vision completely. The big cat at the Jaipur Zoo had a problem that is common among both people and animals — cataract. Doctors from Chennai's Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANVAS) last week gave it vision once again.

This was the first time that veterinary doctors in the country conducted cataract surgery on a big cat without the help of human ophthalmologists, the veterinarians said.

Raja did not get an intraocular lens (IOL), the swift, painless, economical solution for cataract in humans. A lion-size lens (17 to 18 mm diameter) could cost up to Rs. 6 lakh, according to N. Balaraman, Vice-Chancellor, TANVAS.

Instead, surgeons led by K. Ameerjan removed the cataract in the right eye through a slit in the lens capsule (extra capsular cataract extraction) using a special ophthalmic operating microscope. The result: restoration of over 50 per cent vision in the right eye.

Cataract surgery on humans is a cinch. But on large animals it requires a lot of preparation including careful anaesthetisation. Raja's nails were clipped and paws bound so that he would not irritate its eye as it healed.

Two tigers from the Jaipur Zoo, Suraj and Chandu, were also examined and put on medication for corneal ulcer and opacity and glaucoma respectively.

"If animals are neglected, they become afraid and angry and can develop high blood pressure," explained Prof. Balaraman.

Like people, elderly animals too lose their teeth, hair, nails, vision and suffer osteoporosis-related fractures. "Cataract is common among aged animals, but very few animals are brought to doctors" he says. In the case of animals, economic values often override animals' needs for medical attention.

The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University is focussing on developing speciality centres for eyes and bones. Setting up a super-speciality hospital is the goal.

If all goes well, Tamil Nadu will be a medical destination, not only for people from across the country, but also for their animals.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu