white spot on eye

[Sahabo]

My betta has one white spot on each eye. Been there about a week, unchanged. The spots are opaque and on the lower half of the eye. His eyes are not cloudy and the spots are defined, looking like they are sitting on top of the lens of his eye. The spot on the left eye is smaller than the one on the right. He does not show any sign of distress. His eyes are not popping out. He's eating normal, normal behavior, normal eyesight it seems. Water parameters are all good, ammonia 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 5. Last PWC 20% on Sunday.

Any thoughts??

[An t-iasg]

Do you think it looks like ich? But then it would be strange to only have two spots. Are the otos ok - no spots on them? Do you think it looks like another kind of parasite? I was thinking that it wouldn't hurt to increase the temperature like you would with ich and see what happens. It may not be ich but if it's another parasite the heat treatment might help. Or you could continue to watch and wait. Keep us posted.

[Sahabo]

no, it doesn't look like ich. the ottos are completely fine, no white spots. i'm not sure if it's a parasite...would a parasite only affect one spot on each eye? i was wondering if it could be some sort of bacterial infection? if so, would turning up the heat make it worse??

[An t-iasg]

It would be strange to have just two parasites, especially if the otos are ok. How big are the spots - are they getting any bigger? Do they look like they are moving around? I would think that a bacteria infection would look swollen, red, or slimy. If Corwin isn't bothered by them I would just wait and see or do some extra water changes even though your parameters are good (nitrates are a little low for a planted tank).

[Sahabo]

The spots have not changed since their first appearance over a week ago. There's nothing moving, no swelling or redness. I guess I'll just keep an eye on them. Fish don't get cataracts do they? Does this look like the beginning of blindness? Maybe there's too much light in the tank? Anyway, here are some pics.

[An t-iasg]

If there's no movement of the spots or any change in them, I wouldn't suspect a parasite. You would think that the parasite would move or grow bigger. But I found a link that suggests it may be a parasite (fourth question down): Fish Eye Disorders. I've seen the med they suggest at DrFosterSmith.com.

You said the spots are on the eye and this question said "inside the eye" but it's the closest matching symptom I could find. In another link: Common Eye Problems of Pet Fish, it says fish can have cataracts and corneal problems.

[Sahabo]

so I decided to email the folks at wetwebmedia. Here's the response:

Now, do fish get cataracts? If we simply mean, can the clear parts of the eye get damaged or turn opaque, then the answer is yes. There are two main reasons. The first is physical damage. If a fish bumps into something, or repeatedly jumps out and hits the hood, is handled in a rough net, or is molested by some other fish in the aquarium, the front of the eye can get damaged, and the net result is the equivalent of scarring. Dead white tissue forms a lump at the front, obscuring vision. The second reason is infection, where the damage is caused by bacteria or a parasite (e.g., Eye Fluke). More often than not, this follows on from chronically poor water conditions, with bacteria getting into the fish and causing harm because the fish's immune system has been weakened. Now, I don't think that's the issue here because your tank sounds very good. Otocinclus are much more sensitive to water quality than air-breathing Bettas, so if the Otocinclus are fine, the Betta should be too. There are some less common reasons eyes become cloudy. One is malnutrition, specifically a lack of Vitamin A. Again, I don't think that's the issue, since the diet you're offering sounds excellent. Another possibility is chlorine, which will cause this symptom among others if not removed from the water. Assuming you're using a dechlorinator, then this isn't likely. This leaves two possibilities we can't do anything about: genetics and senility. Bettas *are* inbred and genetically quite weak, and there are lots of problems that they get that aren't obvious when young but become more serious as they age. As for senility, wild Bettas are basically annual fish. Since the fancy Bettas sold in shops are about six months of age, your fish may well be a year-and-a-half old already, if not more, if it was sitting in the aquarium shop for a while. So it could be just plain old. Sure, Bettas can live in aquaria for 2, 3 or more years, but anything over a year from purchase and your fish is well past its prime. Can anything be done? Not really; just as in humans, damage to the eye doesn't usually heal without surgical or pharmaceutical intervention, and that's not really viable here. Since fish don't rely on their eyes to anything like the degree humans do, if its vision is impaired, it will manage just fine using its other senses, particularly its "built-in radar" system, its lateral line.
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So I guess I'll just monitor him. Thanks, as usual, Deb for your support! Hopefully Corwin has a lot of life left in him!

[An t-iasg]

You're welcome! Yes, the people at WWM are great!

Even with that link I gave you, I thought the possibility of a parasite was slim. If the otos didn't bring any parasites in, then I know your water/tank maintenance is excellent. I hope the little guy is ok and gets better! You'll have to keep us posted - this is a new symptom for me too.