A veterinarian doesn't need to be a professional photographer to incorporate a digital camera into his or her practice for eye treatment assistance, suggested Ann E. Dwyer, DVM, of Genesee Valley Equine Clinic, in Scottsville, N.Y. Dwyer presented on using digital photographs to assist in treating eye problems in horses at the 2010 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held Dec. 4-8 in Baltimore, Md.

"Radiographic and ultrasonographic equipment for imaging the axial skeleton and reproductive and internal organs have been widely adopted by equine practitioners throughout the industry; however, imaging equipment and procedures for the equine eye have not been similarly implemented," said Dwyer.

She noted that even the most basic point-and-shoot digital camera is an "invaluable tool for documenting and following a variety of ophthalmic problems such as those affecting the orbit, eyelids, cornea, iris, and lens of the equine eye."

Such conditions include corneal ulcers or trauma, cataracts and lens-position abnormalities, and tumors such as squamous cell carcinomas or sarcoids of the eyelids, among others