Phacoemulsification in the Boston Terrier Breed: A Pilot Study Comparing Success Rates of Intentional Aphakia to...

To compare visual outcomes of Boston Terriers following phacoemulsification and intraocular lens placement over a 5-year period.

Twenty-five Boston Terriers.

Retrospective medical record review was conducted on Boston Terriers that underwent phacoemulsification with intraocular lens placement or intentional aphakia between January 2013 and December 2018. All surgeries were performed by the same board-certified ophthalmologist. Information collected included signalment, surgical parameters, postoperative complications, concurrent use of an endolaser and/or anterior vitrectomy, and duration of follow-up. A minimum of 6 months of ophthalmic evaluation after surgery was required for inclusion. Multivariate Firth logistic models were used to determine the association between predictor surgical variables and the primary outcome (visual/blind at last follow up).

Fourteen of 14 of aphakic Boston Terrier eyes were still visual while only 12/26 (42.3%) of the pseudophakic eyes remained visual. Average follow-up time was 20.2 months. Commonly reported postoperative complications in the pseudophakic eyes included fibrin accumulation 15/26 (58%), glaucoma 12/26 (46%), and retinal detachment 2/26 (7%). At final evaluation, 7/12 (58%) of the eyes in which endolaser cycloablation was used were blind versus 8/28 (29%) of the eyes in which laser was not used.

Intraocular lens placement in Boston Terriers undergoing phacoemulsification resulted in an approximately 40x increase in odds of blindness as an outcome even after control for vitrectomy and use of endolaser.