Surgical management of ocular setariasis in a goat: A case report

A 3-year-old male goat was presented to the Large Animal Section, Department of Surgery and Radiology, Veterinary College, Hebbal, Bengaluru, with a history of cloudiness and excessive lacrimation in the left eye for the past 3 days. Ophthalmic examination revealed the presence of a motile, white, thread-like structure in the anterior chamber, suggestive of an eyeworm. The worm was successfully removed after sedating the animal with diazepam, followed by an auriculopalpebral nerve block. A corneal stab incision was made using a 2.8 mm keratome slit blade at the 4 o’clock position, and the worm was extracted. The recovered worm was submitted to the Department of Parasitology and identified as Setaria digitata. Postoperatively, broad-spectrum antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs, and topical antibiotics were administered. The animal showed an uneventful recovery.