| Complaint: | Complaint 21-143 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Amanda Liesse |
| Premises: | AZPetVet Las Sendas Animal Hospital |
The complainant tells us her dog was misdiagnosed with with conjunctivitis; she doesn't have exact dates but are as accurate as she can recall. She tells us that her dog had previously had eye surgery for benign growths as well as repeated cancer surgery; most of this had been handled at previous visits to Las Sendas. She was diagnosed with conjunctivitis and given eye drops. She tells us that the dog was subsequently diagnosed with glaucoma after she noticed her dog was walking into walls and furniture. She was referred to Eye Care for Animals where a veterinary ophthamologist recommended cutting out both eyes; the complainant says that she couldn't bring herself to have her dog's eyeballs cut out so she went back to Las Sendas for eye medication and painkillers instead. On follow-up visits she was confronted with a new "hospital charge" for dropping off her dog even though she had been doing that for months. She says that she wished she'd switched veterinarians earlier but didn't because of the cost in repeating all the testing and trying to get a different veterinarian familiar with the case.
Liesse says that the dog first presented for eye problems. She says she was told the dog's eyes had been red for four days but the dog hadn't been scratching at them; this is apparently the first eye problems she's aware of regarding the dog. She performed an eye stain and measured the eye pressure. She says that she diagnosed conjunctivitis and sent the dog home with some medications; she also claims she told the complainant to bring the dog back if the condition worsened but was instead told the dog was doing better and the complainant skipped a recommended follow-up visit. She says that she reexamined the dog during a scheduled wellness visit and found some redness and slight discharge in both eyes; at that time she says that the complainant agreed to refill the existing medications. All further care was provided by other veterinarians at the clinic.
The Investigative Committee said that performing the full complement of diagnostics is helpful and that the dog responded well to the initial therapy; they point out the complainant was told to come back if there was no improvement. (One possibility not mentioned by the complainant or discussed by the Committee is that the glaucoma could have resulted from the prescribed steroids; references to steroid-induced glaucoma are easy to find in the literature, and there's no mention that the dog's intraocular pressure was being regularly monitored once the steroids were prescribed. One wonders if the veterinarians on the Committee are aware of this despite it being known for several decades; a recent paper on the subject is "Steroid Induced Glaucoma" by Feroze and Khazaeni.)
| Source: | November 11, 2021 AM Investigative Committee Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| Amanda Liesse | Respondent |
| David Stoll | Respondent Attorney |
| Roll Call: | |
| Carolyn Ratajack | Aye |
| Christina Tran | Absent |
| Jarrod Butler | Aye |
| Robert Kritsberg | Aye |
| Steve Seiler | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
| Source: | December 12, 2021 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| W Reed Campbell | Respondent Attorney |
| Proposed By: | Nikki Frost |
| Seconded By: | Jane Soloman |
| Roll Call: | |
| Craig Nausley | Aye |
| Darren Wright | Aye |
| J Greg Byrne | Aye |
| Jane Soloman | Aye |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Melissa Thompson | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Aye |
| Robyn Jaynes | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
The primary source for the above summary was obtained as a public record from the Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. You are welcome to review the original records and board meeting minutes by clicking the relevant links. While we endeavor to provide an accurate summary of the complaint, response, investigative reports and board actions, we encourage you to review the primary sources and come to your own conclusions. In some cases we have also been able to reach out to individuals with knowledge of specific complaints, and where possible that information will be included here.