26 Jan 2024
Team at Southfields Veterinary Specialists carry out life-changing surgery on feline patient Sypha after air rifle pellet found lodged in her nasopharynx.
Paul Imrie
Job Title
Sypha is now fully recovered from her two-year ordeal.
Veterinary clinicians at Southfields Veterinary Specialists have performed intricate surgery to remove an air rifle pellet lodged in a cat’s nasopharynx two years after the animal was shot.
Vets at Warren House Veterinary Group in Kent spotted a pellet on an x-ray before referring Sypha to fellow Linnaeus-owned Southfields Veterinary Specialists in Basildon.
Sypha’s owner and a previous vet had thought she was scratched and wounded two weeks earlier, but a pellet had been lodged in her head during that time.
Carlos Rubinos, a recognised specialist in small animal surgery, oversaw her case at Southfields and revealed the positioning of the pellet was unique, so needed intricate surgery to remove it.
He said: “Sypha was referred to Southfields as she had been showing increased respiratory noise and occasional episodes of drooling for two years.
“Our investigations, including a CT scan, discovered a pellet lodged in her nasopharynx – a small spot between Sypha’s brain and the nasal cavity.
“Pellet gun injuries are unfortunately common in cats, which should raise social concern about this very worrying issue, but Sypha’s case was far from common.”
Dr Rubinos added: “A metal pellet lodged in the nasopharynx of a cat has never been reported before and we needed to devise a way to safely remove it.
“It was an intricate surgery where we split Sypha’s palate to access and remove the pellet, and then reconstructed her palate – the first time this surgical approach is reported for management of this issue.”
Sypha was allowed home the day after surgery and has gone on to complete a remarkable recovery.
