· What is a cataract?
· How do cataracts form?
· How do I know if my dog or cat has cataracts?
· Can cataracts be dissolved?
· How does PetVision® dissolve incipient cataracts?
· How can I determine if my pet is a candidate for using PetVision on its cataract?
· How can I determine if my pet is prone to Cataracts?
Cataracts are opacities on the eye’s lens or its capsule. They are to be differentiated from nuclear (lenticular) sclerosis (this condition, which appears as a slight graying of the lens, usually occurs in both eyes at the same time and shows up in geriatric dogs , cats and equine. With lenticular sclerosis, the loss of transparency occurs due to compression of the linear fibers in the nucleus of the eye’s lens).
Cataracts are usually classified by their age of onset (congenital, juvenile, senile), anatomical location, cause and degree of opacification. (Incipient cataracts are very small, less than 15 percent of the lens. Immature cataracts are greater than 15 percent of the lens, however, a tapetal reflection is still visible. In mature cataracts there is a solid opacity of the entire lens and no tapetal reflection. With Hyper-mature cataracts the lens wrinkles and liquefies).
Cataracts can affect all breeds and ages of dogs, cats and equine.
Our recommendation: Dogs , cats and equine with suspected cataracts should always be referred to a qualified veterinarian for evaluation and determination of the type of cataract your pet may have.
The basic mechanism of cataract formation is thought to be cross-linking of lens proteins, which produces the following biochemical reaction: