Reconnecting with our ophthalmologist

08/10/11 - Today, I emailed Dr C., our ophtho who diagnosed Reo's SARDS.  Originally, he had asked me to keep in touch as we pursued treatment for Reo, but I hadn't heard back from him after a couple of updates, so I wasn't sure he was interested.  However, after having 3 separate vets confirm that Reo has some functional vision, I thought it would be worth reaching out again.

I sent the cotton ball videos, and said I thought if we can confirm some vision and activity on Reo's ERG, it sounds like he might have a nice publishing opportunity on his hands!  Certainly my curiosity about the ERG was piqued.

This is part of Dr. C's response to me:

In the discussions I had with a few other ophthos out there, no one had seen any measurable improvements beyond normal adaptive changes.  As a matter of fact, many ophthalmologists are not recommending the "Living with Blind Dogs" book any longer due to that controversial chapter.
That being said, I am very happy that Reo is getting back into her routine and doing well.  I am more than happy to see her again.  I think PLRs, menace response, and dazzle reflex would be good first tests as well as cotton ball tracking, etc.  I would def. like to do an ERG and I will discount that heavily since I am using it for "research".  And, you are absolutely correct, if we are able to detect a change in ERG waveform amplitude then that could be data that could be used for a research paper in the future.

I was a little disappointed to hear that some ophthos are no longer recommending Caroline's book due to "controversy", but it is so hard to know exactly what parts of the protocol people undertake before deeming it a "failure".  Was every part of the protocol implemented?  How soon after SARDS diagnosis?  There are a lot of variables.  Nonetheless, the book is a terrific resource for anyone who has a blind dog (regardless of cause) - there is so much information on training, etc. that it is sad to hear that some are no longer recommending it.  SARDS dog owners need more resources, not less!

I printed out a few things to take with me when we see Dr. C again (we have an appointment in October, at about the 7-month mark of Reo's treatment).  I would like to discuss MANY things with him during this time (I hope he is prepared!  ;) ) 

One thing I have heard from SARDS dog owners, Caroline, and my research, is that PLRs in SARDS dogs are often "normal", meaning, the pupil does respond to "normal" light.  Indeed, Reo's are excellent in natural lighting (sometimes they behave strangely in fluorescent lighting - I'm not sure why).