922 
DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY. 
DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY. 
By L. A. and E. Meriuuat, 
Chicago Veterinary College , 25j7-39 State Street , Chicago , III. 
SURGERY OF THE EYE, EAR AND UPPER AIR PASSAGES. 
(1 Continued .) 
Iridectomy.— The object of the operation is two-fold : 1. 
To make an artificial opening for the passage of light; 2. To 
relieve and cure inflammatory conditions of the eyeball. In 
human surgery, more importance is paid to the former than in 
veterinary surgery; but the latter is about of equal importance 
in either branch of surgery. The loss of sight in domestic ani¬ 
mals is not so serious a sequel as in man ; the conditions required 
for favorable results from delicate ocular operations are not as 
encouraging in lower animals as in human beings ; and the value 
of veterinary patients does not always warrant the expense incur¬ 
red by such operations, and the trouble required to properly and 
successfully nurse such cases ; therefore the value of such oper¬ 
ations is much less in veterinary than human surgery. 
The conditions that may be considered indications for iridec¬ 
tomy are : 
1. Dislocation of lens. 
2. Glaucoma. 
3. Cataract. 
4. Prolapse of iris. 
5. Iritis. 
6. Foreign bodies and tumors. 
7. Preliminary operation. 
1. Dislocation of Lens .—This condition may be caused by 
injuries, such as blows, bumps or concussions, and may be dis¬ 
located in various directions. In some dislocations it is found 
in the anterior chamber, while in other cases it does not go 
beyond the posterior chamber. When the dislocation is into 
the vitreous chamber the condition is serious, and its extraction 
is followed by loss of vitreous humor. When the sclera ruptures 
and allows the lens to pass under the conjunctiva, it is easily 
extracted. Dislocations are always very serious conditions even 
when the lens can be reduced ; the complications that follow 
and the sequelae resulting from the condition, are generally very 
unsatisfactory. 
In any of the above conditions, iridectomy is only a pre- 
