Re: Another uveitis post

[Leigh331@aol.com]

In a message dated 10/20/98 7:22:40 AM EST, Leigh331 writes:

<< 
 
 << Cyclosporin is the main drug used to prevent rejection of transplants in
  people.  It is EXTREMELY suppressive to the immune system.  No white blood
  cell of any type is allowed to function in its wake.  Uveitis is a chronic
  immune-mediated disease of the eye.  Maybe it would be a better choice to
  identify the source of the trauma to the immune system and try to set it
  right, rather than just suppress the whole darn thing.  >>
 
 I may be the ODD one out here, but, when faced with the choice of try
cyclosporin or take out the eye........well, I'll suppress the immune response
in the eye. The horse I have posted about was on cyclosporin eye ointment, not
systemic cyclosporin! It would be better to figure out the source of uveitis,
but as of now, the medical community has not be able to give us any hope, real
hope when our horses are diagnosed with this. In this case alone, I say you
are living in a fanciful world.
 Leigh Preddy SE
  >>

The above post has bothered me for several days. I really don't have anything
against alternative medicine. I have used several forms myself. I have a very
good friend that believes that all can be cured by herbs and such. This is OK
with me, BUT. When real cures are not available, I really was upset by the
gist of this post. It sounded like someone should not use cyclosporin because
it upsets the immune response in the eye, and that is not good. Well, maybe
true.....to a point. Uveitis is the body acting as if the eye is a foreign
material. The immune system tries to kill the invader. Cyclosporin heads off
this process. There are many blind horses in this world because of this
terrible syndrome. If all I needed to do was to put cyclosporin eye ointment
in the eye twice a week to save my horse's eye, I would do it in a minute. I
posted the information about cyclo originally so that all you ridecampers
could file it away in your mental filing cabinet. I hope I did this.
Leigh