Sunease's Swollen and Bloodshot Eye

20 June 2004

I received a call from Heidi who had read in the newspaper that one of my trotters, Sunease, had suffered an eye injury. A piece of flapping leather has struck him in the eye and we had been treating him for 3 weeks with eye drops and antibiotics, with no success.

His eye remained swollen and bloodshot and obviously bothers him a great deal, and all the handling made him further upset. With no improvement showing, the eye specialist started talking about possibly removing the eye. This would have effectively ended a good trotter’s racing days.

Heidi suggested using the Bioptron light. I had not heard of it, but just the fact that his head would not have to be handled was appealing. So a bit sceptically but with nothing to lose, I was quite happy for her to try.

We used the purple light to bring down the swelling and draw out the bruising, and the plain light twice a day. He did not seem to mind at all, although he didn't like the sound of the Oxy Spray.

Almost immediately he showed relief and perked up considerably over the next few days. Within two weeks he was objecting to the light being shone in his eye, indicating a better optical response than before.

Over the Xmas period, he missed a few days of treatment, but otherwise, he was treated every day. Then he cut his leg in the paddock and developed a proud flesh wound, which the vet had to cut away. At Heidi's urging, we used the light on that too, and it was healed very well.

He is back in training and the vet report shows no further deterioration with his eye. I am very impressed and grateful that Heidi took it upon herself to telephone me about the Bioptron light.

Derek Balle