Ophthalmology

The Ralph Veterinary Ophthalmology Service

Ophthalmology is an area of medicine that deals with diagnosing, treating, and preventing diseases of the eye and the rest of the visual system. So much of what we do in our lives depends on being able to see. Without vision, we lose a significant part of living. The same is true for non-human animals.

We aim to treat your pet’s eye problem as we would for our own pets – to relieve pain, and to maintain, or restore, the best possible vision.

Our Ophthalmology service offers standard and advanced diagnostic tests in conjunction with routine, complex and emergency care for a wide range of ocular conditions, including:

  • Cataract and lens luxation surgery
  • Entropion/ectropion – routine and complex
  • Third eyelid surgery, including “cherry eye”
  • Abnormal eyelashes (cryosurgery, electrolysis)
  • Corneal disease – medical and surgical management, including a range of grafting techniques for complex corneal ulcers
  • Surgical management of refractory “dry eye”
  • Glaucoma
  • Management of ocular tumours
  • Management of ocular trauma
  • Sudden onset of blindness
  • Neuro-ophthalmic disease
  • BVA/KC/ISDS hereditary eye disease clinics

This is facilitated by an extensive range of specialist equipment – including a Zeiss operating microscope with a camera and video recording facilities, and our “Whitestar Signature Pro” phacoemulsification unit for cataract surgery.

Our 24-7-365 Ophthalmology service is provided by Heidi Featherstone, Eva Vlachomitrou, Lizzie Stevens, Angelie Shukla and Azzurra Massidda. Supported by our Ophthalmology Residents, Melissa Lee and Tyler Willard. The team are supported by dedicated interns, and Ophthalmology Nurses, Natalie Hubbard and Emilia Panzeri. We are very happy to discuss cases and specific problems with referring vets. Please send emails to [email protected].