An Early Adopter Of Class IV Laser TherapyApril 27, 2012Dan Core, DVM, of Airline Animal Health and Surgery Center in Bossier City, La., was an early adopter of Class IV laser therapy. Tell us about yourself, your background and how you became interested in laser therapy. I graduated from the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1981, started my own practice in 1985 and started another practice, my current one, in 2005. Our clinic is state of the art. It is 12,000 square feet, full service and I have two associate veterinarians and a staff of 15. I became interested in CO2 laser surgery and purchased my first unit in 2000. Shortly after I opened my current clinic, the first therapy lasers became available in 2006. It was very interesting to see the research being done in laser therapy. It was being done on cell and tissue cultures, so it made sense to me that to treat, let’s say, a big dog’s hip, that I’d need a higher powered therapy laser. I bought my first therapy laser in March 2006. It quickly became an integral part of our practice. Describe the training supplied for you and your staff. The company provided the training, a four-hour …
SPONSORED CONTENTTherapeutic skin support at every ageHill’s Prescription Diet Derm Complete is formulated to support the skin barrier against environmental irritants, year round. + Tell Me More
Acupuncture Wars: Folklore Vs. ScienceApril 25, 2012 Acupuncture has had its ups and downs. As author Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. noted, predictable cycles in culture and politics occur about every 30 years.1 Reviewing cycles of the past and gauging their impact on future directions can be crucial. In 1905, philosopher George Santayana wrote, “Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. ... [W]hen experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”2 And so it behooves us to consider the history of Chinese medicine, especially as we see the battles between folklore and science continuing today in veterinary medicine. 1920s: Science and Chinese Medicine Meet After the Republic of China replaced dynastic rule,3,4 the government set higher standards for medicine, following the introduction of Western practices to China by missionaries in the 1800s. Those in charge of education argued, “The curriculum adopted for medical schools ... contains chemistry, anatomy and other scientific subjects. ... The object is not to impose unfair restrictions on the old-style practitioners but to raise the standard of medical education so as to …
Vet Tech Starts Epilepsy SurveyApril 10, 2012 A veterinary technician at North Carolina State University developed an online survey that will be completed by owners of epileptic pets. Julie Nettifee-Osborne, RVT, BS, VTS (Neurology), created the survey under the direction of Karen Munana, DVM, MS, with the intention of shedding more light on the disorder. The 59-question survey collects owner comments on the types and frequency of seizures their animals experience, the cause, any medications used to control seizures and the treatment costs. A quality of life assessment for the treated animal is included. The survey may be found online here. The survey was scheduled to be posted until April 15.
CVPM Exam Goes ElectronicApril 10, 2012 The Veterinary Hospital Managers Association planned to replace the paper and pencil Certified Veterinary Practice Manager examination with an electronic version in March. The 20-year-old paper and pencil examinations were labor intensive, requiring several proctors and, in some cases, extensive travel for candidates to sit for the test in designated locations. The electronic standard will increase the cost to take the test, but will allow it to be offered at a greater number of locations without compromising test security, according to Christine Shupe, C.A.E., executive director of the VHMA. <HOME>
When Considering Supplements, Just Focus On FactsApril 9, 2012 Giving supplements to heavily-worked, high-performance or older horses is similar to following a vitamin and mineral regimen in a human. Many people take nutritional supplements to improve their health, so trying to improve an animal’s performance is a natural step. For the most part, the supplement industry is self-regulated, so it is up to consumers and their veterinarians to research and choose products that match their needs. Veterinarians are being taught more about nutrition than in years past, so they are in a better position to help clients, says Phil Brown, DVM. “Look at supplements as fine-tuning a horse’s health,” says Dr. Brown, senior vice president of research and development at Nutri-Vet LLC of Boise, Idaho. He says most supplements go beyond multivitamins and are condition-specific. Joint dysfunctions, as well as performance conditioning, can be helped by supplements, he says. “Supplements, or nutraceuticals,” he says, “can help prevent problems, though they can’t treat a disease. “I would tell veterinarians to tell horse owners to do their homework when choosing supplements,” Brown says. “Science-based research is imperative.” Equine practitioner David Pugh, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACT and ACVN, agrees. “Equine supplement products may be very good, …
Pathologist Offers More Best-Practice Tips, Part 4April 6, 2012 We wrap up our conversation with pathologist Ken Mero, BS, MS, DVM, Ph.D., of VetPath Services in Stone Ridge, N.Y., by debunking a few myths and preventing a few frustrating situations. How can veterinary practices avoid losing biopsy samples? Few things in life are as frustrating for the practitioner and the pet owner as a lost sample. These suggestions may seem obvious, but make sure: 1. The formalin container is labeled with the client’s and pet’s names as well as the anatomical site of origin. 2. The formalin container lid is tightly closed. 3. The laboratory’s address is on a separate piece of paper inside the shipping box in case the outside label is destroyed. 4. You request cassettes and sponges for small endoscopic specimens so they don’t fragment into tiny particles too small to recover from the formalin container. 5. You use plastic rather than glass containers for shipment. Plastic containers are less likely to break in transit. 6. If your specimen is especially large, save part of it at your practice in case more tissue is needed by the pathologist. This is especially true for large splenic masses. …
Stem Cell Therapy Attracts ConvertsApril 5, 2012 It’s easy to spot Brian Voynick, DVM, CVA, at a lecture or conference–especially one of the holistic veterinary meetings he regularly attends. “I’m the kind of student,” he said, “who is a pain in the neck.” What he means is he asks a lot of questions, during and after the presentation. He can’t help it if he has an inquisitive nature and he wants to explore all options in providing leading-edge care for his patients and clients. So when Dr. Voynick, owner and director of American Animal Hospital in Randolph, N.J., attended a lecture on veterinary stem cell therapy in 2005, he went into full brain-picking mode. “I was really intrigued,” he said. “I love the science of it. I don’t practice all that I look into, because some of it is not yet science based. But this seemed to be.” Voynick became an early convert, and seven years later he remains an ardent advocate of stem cell therapy. These days he sees more benefits than ever in a procedure he says can often bring a big boost to quality of life for patients suffering from painful joint ailments. The latest stem cell …
Secrets Of Fluid Therapy RevealedMarch 22, 2012 Fluid therapy is beset by many misconceptions, so I talked to Dr. Sean Smarick, a board-certified criticalist at AVETS in Monroeville, Pa., to clarify them. What is the true maintenance fluid rate? Maintenance fluids represent the amount of fluids needed to meet the metabolic requirements of a patient. Therefore, deficits from dehydration or anticipation of ongoing losses are typically not included in this amount. Metabolic demands can vary between caged vs. active patients, as well as healthy vs. sick patients. We often tend to use simple formulas or universal recipes such as 1 ml/lb/hour or 40 ml/kg/day, yet they don’t work for all patients. It is important to realize that these linear formulas tend to underdose small patients and overdose large patients. This becomes especially significant when the kidneys aren’t functioning properly (fortunately, they often correct for our inaccurate fluid plans) or when there is an increased risk of volume overload, e.g. in patients with heart failure. If we use multiples of maintenance rates (“twice maintenance,” “three times maintenance,” etc.) to address deficits due to dehydration or anticipated ongoing losses, such errors will be multiplied by the same factor. For patients under 5 kg …
Secrets Of Fluid Therapy Revealed, Part 2March 22, 2012 There are many misconceptions in the fluid therapy world. We continue our conversation from last month with Dr. Sean Smarick, a board-certified criticalist at AVETS in Monroeville, Pa., to clarify them. When should you use LRS vs. saline vs. Normosol-R? There is no question that this is a controversial topic. Ultimately, what matters most is probably how much we give rather than what we give. What also matters is knowing what we are trying to achieve. One could argue that if giving a shock dose to restore effective circulating volume, Normosol-R is not ideal as resuscitation fluids, because the acetate buffer, as well as the magnesium it contains, reportedly can cause vasodilatation and therefore hypotension. If we have a patient in the hospital for days on maintenance (or some multiple thereof), LRS may be of benefit since it contains less sodium. Saline is the highest in sodium and not buffered, so I don’t find myself reaching for it very often. Is it appropriate to deny IV fluids to a cat or a dog with urinary blockage? No, it is not. Fluids are critical to dilute potassium, …
Stimulating Micro-Circulation With Laser TherapyMarch 20, 2012 The target for an effective laser therapy treatment is not any particular pathology itself, but rather stimulation of appropriate cell components that enhance the body’s natural repair mechanisms. These natural functions are not only extremely numerous, ranging from protein synthesis to enzyme secretion, from cell signaling to physical movement, but also highly cell-type dependent. Any attempt to directly target one of these specific enzymes is difficult and fundamentally unnecessary. If instead cellular metabolism, specifically the cell’s ability to use oxygen to create energy, can be stimulated, the functionality of all its natural processes will be enhanced. To do so, we have to introduce more oxygen, the principal fuel for aerobic organisms. The only way to get oxygen and nutrients to the cells for processing and waste products like lactic acid and carbon dioxide away from the cells is through the blood. Generating local circulation, both input and output of blood, is one of the primary mechanisms of laser therapy. Blood pressure determines the rate at which blood flows throughout the body. Obviously, it would help if the animal got up and ran around the office to increase its heart rate and blood flow, but for …
