UPDATED: seeking advice/info re: in-grown hairs in horse's eye

[devvie]

Does anyone have any experiences to share regarding eye irritation due to hairs around the eye being ingrown / making contact with the inside of the eye?

Vet examined the eye in late summer 2015 but didn’t give treatment plan aside from flushing with boric acid, and issue is not resolving.

The horse is not mine and I am not responsible for requesting veterinary treatment of the horse, and wasn’t there when the vet examined the eye. I hope that, armed with further information, I can have a constructive conversation about the eye with the horse owner, with whom I have a good relationship and good communication about horse’s health issues: agreement there is basically an on-farm lease, I am horse’s rider.

Eye is constantly mildly irritated with mild discharge. It’s pretty obvious that it’s due to some hairs irritating the eye just at the corner of it where some hairs are growing on the inner of the eyelids’ edge/lip.

My concerns are the contstant irritation/discomfort and the potential for longer term harm to the eye.

A search of the internet and this forum didn’t yield a lot of info, so much appreciated if anyone could point me in the right direction.

Thank you!

[McVillesMom]

They’re called distichiae, and are not super common in horses (compared to dogs. Is the horse a Friesian, by chance?) Best treatment is permanent removal with surgery or cryotherapy - you can pluck them, but they grow back. You are right to be concerned - the chronic irritation can cause corneal ulcers, which very often become complicated in the horse. Your best course of action, if the owner is on board, would be to consult a veterinary ophthalmologist.

[devvie]

Thanks. Correct terminology will go a long way in finding out more. The horse is not Friesian, TB with a bit of WB.

[merrygoround]

I agree that you need a veterinary ophthalmologist. Your state university should be able to supply you with some names.

Better sooner than later.

[Calamber]

Trichiasis, ectopic cilia and distichiasis all involve eyelash disorders usually seen in dogs. Distichiasis is a disorder of extra eyelashes while trichiasis is a disorder of ingrown eyelashes. They cannot be just treated with an eyewash since the hair in contact with the eye can cause pretty serious infection and damage as McVille’s Mom said. I think they all are treated with varying types of surgery depending on the actual condition.

[devvie]

I believe it’s Distichiasis. Thanks again for your response. I’ll update this threads. Hopefully I’ll be able to update this thread at some point with good news regarding treatment.

[beau159]

@devvie;8479085

Eye is constantly mildly irritated with mild discharge. It’s pretty obvious that it’s due to some hairs irritating the eye just at the corner of it where some hairs are growing on the inner of the eyelids’ edge/lip.

My concerns are the contstant irritation/discomfort and the potential for longer term harm to the eye.

You are correct to be concerned, and the horse’s owner should be too.

You know what it feels like when you get an eyelash or something in your own eye, right? Now imagine having the feeling there all. of. the. time. Very aggravating and can cause permanent damage (ulceration, scarring, etc).

Without seeing it, could be trichiasis, entropion, distichiae, or a few other possibilities. But yes, I agree it needs to be treated. For temporary fix, you can pluck the offending eyelashes out but they will grow back. Better if you can surgically remove them or treat them so that they are gone permanently.

I’m not a vet but I am an optometrist. I’ve got quite a few patients that I see like clockwork every 3 months to pull out a few eyelashes, for those that don’t want to go the surgical route.

[devvie]

Thanks for your reply beau159, much appreciated. I can’t help but wonder why the vet was so unconcerned.

[stargzng386]

Vets don’t always know much about eyes. My horse was suddenly spooky and having issues with light/dark areas so I suspected some vision loss. My vet said he had something that needed to be surgically removed a few states away. I had an ophthalmologist out for about $100 (less than the vet) and she was fantastic. It turned out to be a small cataracts that had formed that could not be surgically removed. She took before pictures so we could track growth and tips on helping him adjust. Bottom line it won’t be that expensive, eyes can be very painful I would look up the info for an ophthalmologist for her to have out.

[devvie]

Update: It turns out that the diagnosis for the eye is ocular squamous cell carcinoma of the third eyelid. Surgery has been scheduled for later this month.

[Puddin_Pie]

Jingles for your leased horse!! I am glad there is a diagnosis and a plan finally.

[devvie]

[QUOTE=Puddin Pie;8525098]
Jingles for your leased horse!! I am glad there is a diagnosis and a plan finally.[/QUOTE]

Me too! Thanks, Puddin.

[devvie]

And the surgery was successful. The mass removed is about the size of a grape, but much less shapely.