Pannus - Page 1

Let's start a new topic on Pannus and talk about the disease here.  I had a dog develop Pannus and when taken to a top eye specialist was told Pannus is most likely  a UV problem.  He stated it's prelevant in dogs in high altitude and artic breeds who have too much sunlight refracted from the snow. That particualar summer my dog had spent many hours outside. He had shade but was exposed way more to sunlight than he normally had been in his life.  He didn't get Pannus til he was almost 9.  With that being said we can find fault with any line.   Research of the health of a bloodline is great, but this particualar disease seems to have alot more  enviromental influences than some other diseases.

Karmen

Karmen,

good Idea for the new thread.

I have a 6 yo spayed GSD.  She has been in Wisconsin and a few trips to out of state all of her life.  She is in an indoor dog. She developed pannus about a year or so ago.  i have been told pannus is an autoimmune issue.....  that is made worse by certain environmental issues - the UV exposure.

Darcy

Hi Darcy,

My Ophthalmologist said the auto immune response was caused by the sunlight's radiation and it caused the body to attack the cornea of his eye.  I have tried doing some more research on it today but pesky work keeps getting in the way :).  My dog was primarily indoors all his life except that summer when he developed the condition and was outside most the day during my work hours. 

okay, i'll jump in, too.  this entry is just for informational purposes and not intended to defame breeders.

gala v haus ventura (matzo v kirschental x xandi v wildsteiger land) born in 1996 and euthanized in 2004.  gala had spent most of her life (1996-2002) either in the house or in a kennel building.  in 2002 we erected some outdoor kennels with igloo dog houses on concrete and moved gala into one of these.  by 2003, she had developed pannus and by 2004 she was completely blind.  our vet told us the same thing; that it was caused by UV rays.  on hot days, she came into the house to be in the airconditioning and on cold days (below zero) she also came in the house.  all the dogs have time outdoors, but come in at night, on hot days as well as cold ones.  i would have to go along with the autoimmune theory on this.  we have/had other dogs who spend far more time outdoors than she did, yet they have not devolped any problems.  i never bred or even attempted to breed this dog so there are no offspring to worry about.

i think some good information could come out of topics like this one.  i'd like to see more of this sort of thing and far less of the acidic discussions.

pjp

Interesting that pannus is thought to be related to UV exposure. Most of my kennels in the Sacramento Valley were outdoors, shaded but still exosed the dogs to a LOT of sunshine. I'm sure 100 dogs passed through those kennels over a 15 yr. period, yet none ever developed pannus. Of course the humidity in that area is extremely low.  I wonder if there are any stats available relating to UV + humidity? I would suspect humidity/moisture might possibly be a mitigating factor in an eye condtition.  Probably comparing apples to oranges here, but since I haved moved to the humid East coast I have had several eye infections, which I'd never had in the past, and I spend less time in the sunshine than I did back home. (there ISN'T as much here!)

Just a few thoughts. Thanks for starting a new post about something I know very little about.

SS

There are 2 types of Pannus, corneal and third eyelid. The former is the more destructive form. I have a dog with 3rd eyelid Pannus and with drops once a day and ointment twice a week she is fine. In fact, now that she is on medication for it you cannot tell that she has it by looking at her. With proper early diagnosis and medication most Pannus dogs will live a normal life without significant eye damage.

Certain breeds, including GSD's are  more susceptible to it than many other breeds and UV light does make the disease more progressive.

He also said the auto immune response was localized in the eye which furthered his belief the over exposure to radiation by sunlight sparks Pannus.  First question he asked me was the dog kept outside.  I told him that was the year the dog had been outside most the day while I was at work.  He then said it's Pannus but then did a full exam to confirm diagnosis.  The dog was then put on Cyclosporine and Predisone drops and it cleared up very nicely.  He was then taught to wear doggles and stayed inside from then on out.  But my theory on long term use of those drugs for Pannus is a whole other thread.....

Karmen

How much does elevation and not just bright sun have to do with UV exposure?

Also, i am using neo poly dex ointment at night and genteal night time drops in the day.  My girl also has deposits on her eyes that are irritating and the dr. siad the ointment helps.  I have never used the more expensive treatment.

Darcy

I have known 3 dogs with Pannus, 2 was father and son, the 3rd was my dog. The only thing common with these 3 dogs pedigree (other than the 2 being father/son) was Eiko v Kirschental 1607402. All 3 dogs were located in different parts of the world.

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/464389.html

hukka, now that is interesting!!!

my gala also had eiko kirschental.  above is a link to her pedigree.

as i said before, it is not my intention to discredit anyone with this

information, but hope that it will be useful to someone and that some

good may come out of it.

pjp