Managing elevated intraocular pressure in cats — prevention and treatment of a painful blinding condition.
Feline ocular hypertension and glaucoma cause significant welfare impairment through pain and vision loss. Unlike dogs, cats often do not show the dramatic acute presentation of glaucoma — the condition may cause more insidious pain that is easily missed by owners. Behavioural signs — reduced activity, altered grooming, reluctance to be touched near the head — may be the only indicators of chronic ocular pain.
The underlying cause in most feline glaucoma cases is uveitis — inflammation of the uveal tract. The inflammation causes protein accumulation in the aqueous humour, obstructing its drainage and elevating pressure. Treating the uveitis while also controlling intraocular pressure is essential for welfare. Many cats with uveitis-associated glaucoma have underlying systemic diseases (FIP, hypertension, neoplasia) that require their own welfare management.
In cats where vision is already lost and pressure cannot be controlled, enucleation is a welfare-positive intervention. Owners sometimes resist removal of an eye, but a pain-free blind cat has significantly better welfare than a blind cat with uncontrolled ocular hypertension.