22 Nov 2021
Vets at Eye Vet in Sutton Weaver used hyaluronic acid to successfully treat upper eyelid agenesis.
Joshua Silverwood
Job Title
Oreo before the treatment at Eye Vet in Sutton Weaver.
A cat’s sight has been saved by vets at a Cheshire practice after lip filler was used to keep its eyelids from doing permanent damage.
Two-year-old Oreo had been in pain and discomfort since being born with abnormally formed eyelids, which meant his eyelashes were turned inwards and irritating both his eyes, when he was brought into Eye Vet in Sutton Weaver.
The condition is often remedied using reconstructive surgery to reshape the eyelids using skin grafts taken from the lips, but veterinary ophthalmologist Natasha Carr-Sycheva opted to use hyaluronic acid filler injections.
Mrs Carr-Sycheva said: “Oreo underwent a detailed ophthalmic examination using a slit-lamp biomicroscope, which found the outer aspect of his upper eyelids had not formed.
“The diagnosis was bilateral upper eyelid agenesis – a congenital condition where the hairs from the upper eyelids rub against the surface of the eyes, causing irritation and discomfort.
“After discussing surgical options, the owner opted to pursue our alternative solution of using hyaluronic acid filler injections.
“These fillers are actually used in human aesthetic lip enhancement, but we were confident they could also be used in this different way to help Oreo.”
The benefits of using hyaluronic acid filler injections was judged to be that it would be faster than alternate methods, and would lead to a shorter and less painful recovery period.
It was also considered to be much less invasive, only requiring the use of sedative, not a general anaesthetic.
Mrs Carr-Sycheva said: “It certainly worked well for Oreo. He was sedated and we used surgical operating loupes to magnify his eyelids to ensure the filler was injected into the correct position to direct the hairs away from the surface of the eyes.”
