The Japanese Society of Comparative and Veterinary Ophthalmology, JSCVO, was established in the afternoon of March 23^rd, 1981, by Prof. K. SUGIURA and some veterinary researchers and clinicians.

On February 21^st, 1982, the official magazine of the JSCVO, “Animal Eye Research”, was published, and since then it has been published periodically and constantly. The magazine has been open to all overseas comparative ophthalmologists.

Now, we have two Overseas Editorial Advisors, Prof. K. N. GELATT for the New World and Oceanic countries, and Prof. B. CLERC for Eurasian (except East Asia) and African countries.

On July 29^th of 1988, the Japanese College of Veterinary and Comparative Ophthalmologists, JCVCO, was started. It conbines two sub-colleges, the Japanese College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists and the Japanese College of Comparative Ophthalmologists. The first is for veterinarians and the other is for non-veterinarian comparative ophthalmologists having a Ph. D degree.

The Society has a totally of three Honorary Members in the U.S. and a long-resident American professor in Japan. The College also has nine Overseas Honorary Diplomates in North America and the EU.

The object of the research or clinical work of the JSCVO and JCVCO is not only the eye troubles of companion animals, but the overall ocular conditions of vertebrates in general, i.e. Mammals, Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians, and Fishes^{17, 18, 27, 28)}.

This paper describes the history of both organizations, the JSCVO and JCVCO, from March 23^rd 1981 to July 14^th, 1999.

Cataract surgery in dogs has become highly successful in restoring vision, and is the most frequent intraocular surgery performed in the dog by veterinary ophthalmologists. Significant advances in canine cataract surgery have paralleled those in man and gradually evolved from the intracapsular cataract extraction (1950s), the extracapsular cataract procedure (1970s), to currently the phacoemulsification techniques. Cataract surgery in dogs differs from that in man because the canine lens is larger and the postoperative anterior uveitis more intense. By many comparisons, cataract surgery in children is quite similar to that in the dog. Modifications of cataract surgery have changed the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative aspects and start with the selection of the patient, preoperative treatment and control of the lens-induced anterior uveitis, and routine evaluation by flash electroretinography (for generalized retinal degeneration) and ultrasonography (for vitreal degenerations and retinal detachments). The intraoperative advancements have been most significant and included the operating microscope, smaller and well designed surgical instruments, one-handed phacoemulsification units, prevention of fibrin formation and maintenance of mydriasis with intraocular heparin and epinephrine respectively, and smaller absorbable sutures. Canine intraocular lenses (IOLs) have been developed to provide emmetropia for dogs postoperatively. Postoperative advancements have concentrated on the medical control and resolution of the lens-in-duced uveitis. Challenges such as preventing capsular fibrosis, and successfully resolving postoperative aphakic glaucoma and retinal detachments remain. The success of cataract surgery varies by the time evaluated postoperatively but realistically appears to be about 90% within the first six months and then a slight decline to perhaps 80% in dogs with three year follow-ups.

点眼療法による治癒が見込めない角膜潰瘍や糜爛病変をもつサラブレッド種競走馬13例に対し、治療用ソフトコンタクトレンズ(TSCL)を応用した。TSCLの装着は第3-41病日において鎮静処置、耳介眼瞼神経ブロック、点眼麻酔および鼻捻子保定下で実施したが、処置は極めて容易であった。また、レンズの定着も良好であった。装用期間は2-114日であり、装用直後より眼痛は改善し、フルオレセイン染色試験は9-30日後に陰性に転じた。また、いずれの症例においても装用下でのトレーニングが可能であり、1例は競馬に出走した。これらのことから、TSCLの応用は競走馬の角膜潰瘍に対する治療法として、高い臨床的有用性を有することが明らかとなった。

The first series of the survey on canine ocular disorders was carried out during the period from mid-summer of 1996 to early summer of 1999.

The eyes of 262 dogs of 30 breeds were examined in the three main islands of Japan, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

The majority of dogs examined were newly acquired. The second series of the survey by JCVO-diplomate was started in September of 1999, supported by excellent general practitioners, serious breeders, and owners in various districts of the country.

Since mid-summer of 1996, this project has been carried out as a part of a worldwide survey on canine ocular disorders proposed by Prof. Peter G. C. Bedford at the World Veterinary Congress held in early autumn of 1995 in Yokohama, Japan, when he was President of the World Small Animal Veterinary Association.

11歳のゴールデン・レトリーバーで毛様体腺腫瘍に遭遇した。右眼の2時から4時の方向の虹彩縁から突出した肉様の腫瘤が認められた。強膜切開から部分的虹彩切除を含む腫瘤の切除を行った。切除組織片の病理組織検査で腫瘤は毛様体腺腫と診断された。切除手術後15週の隅角鏡検査結果で、腫瘍の再発は認められなかった。

脊椎動物視細胞は、光信号を視覚に変換するために高度に分化した生物感覚器である。その機能として、1)光刺激を電気信号に変換する（視興奮）2)次の光刺激に備えて視興奮を直ちに停止する（視興奮の停止）および3)外部の光環境に応じて視興奮の感度を調節する（順応）の3つがある。これら3つの異なる生物機能は、外節の光受容体であるロドプシン（桿体）を中心とする種々の視興奮関連蛋白質からなるネットワークにより統制されている。我々は、その中で可逆反応である燐酸化および脱燐酸化がロドプシンの異なった部位で起こることにより視興奮の停止機構と順応を制御していることを明らかとした。また、遺伝性の網膜変性疾患である網膜色素変性の病因の1つとしてロドプシンのmutationが考えられているが、その中でレチナールを結合できないmutantではロドプシンは燐酸化されないこと、逆にC末端領域のmutationでは燐酸化の増強されることが判明し、これら燐酸化の異常が網膜変性の分子病態に深く係わることが示唆された。

最近、イヌ乾性角結膜炎に対してシクロスポリン(CsA)の点眼が治療効果を上げてきたことから、イヌ・ネコの眼疾患の点眼療法に際して免疫抑制薬が注目されている¹⁾。獣医臨床領域で免疫抑制薬がどのような適応症と用法に対して臨床効果を示すかは、いままでにない関心事である。そこで、今回の「内科学的アプローチで治療する眼疾患」では、現在、市販されていないが将来の適応が期待されるCsAの点眼療法について取り上げ、薬剤の作用機序、調剤の特性、臨床適用症例と効果判定について報告し、「内科学的アプローチで治療する眼疾患」の治療上の留意点について考察した。