Emergency And Critical Care Medicine Grows Rapidly: Filling The Demand For Specialists Proves Difficult.April 17, 2009 With just a couple hours of sleep, Dr. Boyce will spend all day at her practice before she goes home for a good night’s sleep. At least that’s what she hopes will happen. She’s on call again tonight, and one emergency call could mean another day of working 24 hours straight. Boyce said she loves being a veterinarian, but providing emergency care has taken its toll. Working in the only veterinary practice in the entire county of Crawford and wanting to ensure 24-hour emergency care for animals, she and her two co-workers, also veterinarians, have little choice but to alternate being on call every third week. Quality of Life “Emergency duty probably has the most negative impact on my quality of life as a vet,” Boyce said. Veterinarians who work alone or in small practices burn out quickly when they try to provide around-the-clock emergency care, said James Ross, DVM, Dipl. ACVECC, executive secretary of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care and professor at Tufts University in North Grafton, Mass. “The difficulty working in such a demanding job with so little sleep and so many hours of work is one of …
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Plaque Control Is Key To Controlling Feline GingivostomatitisApril 17, 2009 Feline gingivostomatitis, also known as lymphocytic plasmacytic stomatitis, is one of the most frustrating oral diseases seen in veterinary practice. Affected cats exhibit a variety of clinical signs including partial to complete anorexia (with a predilection for canned vs. dry food), ptyalism, halitosis, weight loss, abnormal swallowing movements and oral pain. Orofacial examination reveals gingivitis, stomatitis and possibly palatitis, glossitis, cheilitis, pharyngitis and mandibular lymphadenopathy. Oral inflammation is often extensive and affected tissues are typically ulcerated, edematous, hyperemic, and proliferative (Figure 1). All breeds can be affected at any age. Etiology The oral lesions associated with feline gingivostomatitis are often mistaken for an oral infection; however, inflammation, rather than infection, is the problem, with infiltrates of plasma cells and lymphocytes. The inflammatory lesions associated with feline gingivostomatitis are thought to be the result of a highly reactive immune system. The specific antigen(s) causing the aberrant immune response are unknown.1,2 Since a specific antigen has not been identified, the etiology may be be multifactorial. Bartonella has received recognition as a possible etiologic agent, but Bartonella positive PCR status does not appear to be correlated with the …
Complementary Medicine: Test Your Organic Pet Food SavvyApril 17, 2009 With the variety of organic pet foods on the rise, veterinary health professionals need to know the facts about the good and the not-so-good aspects of organic food for animals. Take the following true-or-false quiz to assess your organic food know-how. 1. Organic food is a passing fad, like pet rocks. True or False False. Organic food is here to stay. Annual trends in retail sales reported in a 2000 United States Department of Agriculture news release [No. 042500] show that the number of organic farmers is increasing by about 12 percent each year and that organic farming is “one of the fastest growing segments of U.S. agriculture.” Certified-organic cropland more than doubled between 1992 and 1997, and the production of egg and dairy products grew even faster. The total organic food and beverages market in 2001 was $21 billion and is expected to be $80 billion by 2008, with a growth rate of 20 percent per year. 2. The rules governing labeling and organic certification are the same for both human and pet foods. True or False False, and confusing. In 2002, USDA Undersecretary Bill Hawks sent this notification …
How To Treat Osteosarcoma When Surgery Is RefusedApril 17, 2009 Osteosarcoma (OSA) is a common and devastating cancer that plagues many of our canine patients. Standard-of-care therapy continues to include the recommendation for surgical removal of the primary tumor through amputation or through limb-sparing surgery followed by chemotherapy. However, some patients may not be good candidates for amputation or their owners may prefer to pursue non-surgical alternatives. Recent years have brought new radiotherapy techniques as well as new options for pain control. External beam radiation therapy has been studied as a palliative treatment for OSA for many years and is used strictly to impart local pain control. Total radiation doses of 24 to 36 Gy are administered to the tumor site over three to four weekly fractions. Significant pain relief is expected in 74 to 92 percent of dogs for a median of two to three months, although most dogs will still require some pain medications. Skin reactions are mild with this palliative dosing scheme and generally do not affect quality of life. Local tumor control is not expected with this treatment modality and, occasionally, pathologic fracture may occur at the tumor site. This treatment option is available at many universities and specialty practices across the …
Canine Distemper Outbreak In Los AngelesApril 17, 2009 Los Angeles Animal Services reported a canine distemper outbreak in the city, and officials are urging pet owners to get their dogs vaccinated, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. The outbreak was declared after approximately six dogs with the disease were brought into city shelters, reported the paper. The shelters typically see one dog with the disease every two weeks. Canine distemper is a highly contagious airborne virus that attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous system of dogs and puppies, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Symptoms include fever, eye inflammation and discharge, nasal discharge, reduced appetite, vomiting, diarrhea and lack of energy. According to the AVMA, the best protection against the disease is vaccination. The disease itself is treatable, but not curable according to the AVMA. <HOME>
Titers Join Debate On Vaccine FrequencyApril 17, 2009 For clients, vaccines are part of routine pet care and for the most part, veterinarians can expect owners to comply with vaccine reminders and schedule an appointment. While the visit serves as an opportunity to examine the pet for other maladies, one thing is certain: The pet will be vaccinated before it leaves. Some veterinarians maintain that administering core vaccines every three years or even annually is outdated and isn’t practicing good medicine. While practitioners argue that liability or a patient contracting a virus outweighs the risk of a potential vaccine reaction, critics interject the titer argument. “Few veterinarians are proactive about discussing the options clients have in protecting their pets against disease,” says W. Jean Dodds, DVM, founder of Hemopet, a non-profit veterinary blood bank in Garden Grove, Calif. “The industry promotes more vaccines and veterinarians feel comfortable telling clients they’re necessary. Often, technicians have vaccines prepared before the doctor even examines the animal. Many vets don’t know how to handle titers or don’t want to bother with them.” Vaccine experts liken the three-year protocol to that of children’s vaccine regimens, which have come under public scrutiny after accusations that they cause autism. Although …
Senior Wellness Programs Bolster CareApril 17, 2009 You've probably had a scenario similar to this in your practice: A senior cat is presented for routine examination for the first time in 2 1/2 years. The owners report he has trouble eating, excess salivation, and sure enough, a monster tumor is identified, well seated in and under the tongue. Though these can carry a poor prognosis at any stage, we can't help thinking that it might have been salvageable if picked up at a very early stage. Other times the story has a happy ending for seniors, such as when a routine visit identifies a renal condition that stabilizes with therapy. The human population is undergoing a tremendous shift as baby boomers age; average lifespan tops 78 years. Our pet population has benefited from modern veterinary care and changes in lifestyle and nutrition, and is now also living a much longer average lifespan. Clients expect high quality care for their senior pet once they understand opportunities for preventive intervention, and because of the progressively greater proportion of our patients (~25%) in the senior life phase, it behooves us to develop a sensible senior wellness program. Many practices do not currently offer a …
How To Treat The Rare And Deadly Nasal Cancer In Dogs And CatsNovember 1, 2004Nasal passage cancer generally develops very insidiously in older pets. It is rare in cats and not common in dogs. It composes about 1 percent of feline tumors and up to 2.5 percent of canine tumors. Long-nosed breeds (dolichocephalic) and senior dogs are at higher risk. Clinical Signs Of Nasal Passage The early signs of nasal cancer in dogs or cats are: Unilateral nasal and/or ocular discharge Epistaxis Stridor Loss of smell Loose teeth Sometimes pawing at the face Late-stage signs may include a facial deformity along the dorsal aspect of the maxillary bones or over the paranasal and frontal sinuses. Some cases develop a raised or pitting facial bone deformity. Some cases may exhibit a firm or soft focal, raised mass protruding around or between the eyes. Some cases may have a palatine deformity from the softening and bowing out of the hard palate due to demineralization of the palatine bone and growth of the mass. In every case of facial deformity, there is bone lysis and tumor invasion at that site. If the lesions extend into the brain, seizures and behavior changes are often exhibited. A complication of nasal cancer is the over production of mucus. It …
