Antiviral therapy for ocular viral disease

Ophthalmic manifestations of viral disease are commonly encountered in veterinary practice. Although the number of antiviral agents is rapidly increasing, the efficacy of many of these drugs against animal viral pathogens may not be known. Furthermore, some of these newer medications may, in fact. be toxic to animal patients. Continued research on the efficacy of these medications in treating viral diseases of veterinary importance is warranted.A thorough review of the ever-growing body of literature is imperative before instituting any new or unknown antiviral therapy. At this time, feline HSV-1 infections remain the most well understood of the ocular viral infections that veterinary practitioners may be called on to treat. Ironically, the number of antiviral agents proven to be effective in naturally occurring clinical cases of FHV-I remains quite limited. With new medications being investigated, this paucity of information on efficacious antiviral therapeutic agents will hopefully improve.