I was asked to examine the eyes of a dog today with a weird history of lethargy and breathlessness. Can you see anything unusual about this retina? What might it suggest to you?
Those retinal veins have a very wide calibre don’t you think? Look at the other eye with an area of bullous retinal detachment very similar to cats with hypertension. In fact this dog is polycythaemic, probably as a result of respiratory compromise – its P02 is only 30mmHg! The increased PCV (70 in this dog!)gives those dilated venules while hyperviscocity gives the bullous detachments. This just shows how valuable it is looking at the retina if you want a detailed examination of a vascular bed.