23/06/2026
✂️ **Neville's surgery under the spotlight** ✂️
**Ventral Bulla Osteotomy (VBO) & Nasopharyngeal Polyp Removal**
Neville came to us as a 6-month-old kitten with very noisy breathing and a bothersome ear. He seemed happy in himself, but we knew something wasn't quite right!
Together with his owner, we decided the best plan was to take some X-rays and examine the back of his throat and ear under sedation with vet Yana.
This revealed a large mass (polyp) at the back of his throat, which was pushing his soft palate down into his airway and causing the noisy breathing. The X-rays also showed that his bulla (middle ear) on the painful side was filled with fluid and soft tissue rather than air. Cats can have nasophyaryngeal and middle ear polyps through congenital malformation or through chronic Inflammation of the area. In Nevilles case it appears to be a developmental malformation.
After discussing the options with his dedicated owner, we decided that surgery would give Neville the best chance of avoiding future problems. A ventral bulla osteotomy offers the best success rate in preventing the recurrence of aural polyps in cats.
Surgery was performed at Stanley House with Yana and Patrick to remove the mass from the back of his throat and to open the bone into his middle ear so that all the abnormal material could be removed.
Neville made a speedy recovery and was back cuddling his brother, Nigel, the very same day! 🥰
Following this type of surgery, we often expect to see Horner's syndrome, where the third eyelid partially covers the eye for the first few weeks. Thankfully, this has now completely resolved for Neville.
His breathing is now quiet and smooth, and we'll be keeping our fingers crossed that the polyps don't return. 🤞🐾
