American Heartworm Society releases 2018 Canine Heartworm GuidelinesSeptember 17, 2018 The American Heartworm Society (AHS) has released 2018 Canine Heartworm Guidelines, which focus on reducing heartworm transmission, clarifying testing recommendations, and avoiding shortcuts in treatment. The 2018 guidelines reflect the following updates to the AHS' recommendations: Prevention Given the highly preventable nature of heartworms, prevention practices are the cornerstone of any practice's heartworm management program, said Chris Rehm, DVM, president of the AHS. "Unfortunately, the latest AHS survey found that incidence has been trending up rather than down, with the number of infected dogs per clinic rising by 21 percent in the U.S. and its territories between 2013 and 2016." Environmental and climatic changes, as well as the relocation of microfilaremic dogs and the expansion of microfilaremic wild canid territories are considered to be contributing factors to both incidence numbers and the spread of heartworms to areas once considered nonendemic, according to the AHS. "For these reasons, we continue to stress the importance of year-round administration of macrocyclic lactone preventives, along with practical steps to reduce mosquito exposure, such as eliminating standing water on the property and keeping pets indoors during peak mosquito times," said Dr. Rehm. "Year-round prevention is the single most important step …
SPONSORED CONTENTFast Itch Relief for Canine PatientsA treatment for allergic and atopic dermatitis, given just once a day. Visibly improves itch fast. + Learn More Now
Strategies for equine dewormingSeptember 14, 2018Horse owners and veterinarians have focused on control of equine internal parasites using chemical deworming strategies for decades, especially with the advent of readily available, easily administered oral paste deworming agents. However, due at least in part to rather constant deworming, parasite resistance to deworming agents is now recognized as a significant problem. Thus, it is increasingly important veterinarians work with their clients to develop effective deworming strategies.
WSAVA provides continuing education in Latin AmericaSeptember 11, 2018The World Small Animal Veterinary Association Vaccination Guidelines Group (VGG) held a series of meetings and continuing education sessions in Mexico as part of a first step in WSAVA's three-year project aimed at enhancing levels of understanding of infectious diseases among veterinarians across Latin America. WSAVA committee members, including Michael Day, VGG chairman, emeritus professor, met with veterinary association leaders, academics, first-opinion practitioners, and government regulators in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. They delivered three evening CE sessions and live-streamed the Mexico City session to share with registrants for 30 days after the presentation. Prior to the visit, the VGG conducted an online questionnaire to collect data on veterinary demographics, infectious disease occurrence, and vaccination protocols, and presented the results during the CE events. "Mexican veterinarians are accustomed to the principle of annual revaccination of dogs and cats with multicomponent products, but those we spoke to were excited by the new concepts of less frequent and individualized vaccination, incorporated into a preventive healthcare package for pets," said Day. "Vaccine-preventable infectious diseases such as canine distemper and parvovirus infections, remain highly prevalent in Mexico. Increasing herd immunity by improving vaccination coverage is clearly an important goal for …
AAEP announces 2018 convention keynote speakerSeptember 10, 2018Abraham Verghese, MD, educator and best-selling author, will share his keynote lecture, "A Doctor's Touch," at the American Association of Equine Practitioners' (AAEP) 2018 Convention in San Francisco. In his presentation, scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 2, Dr. Verghese will align equine medicine with human medicine and explain his vision of humanistic medicine—care-grounded medicine and the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship. Verghese is the Linda R. Meier and Joan F. Lane Provostial Professor and Vice Chair for the Theory and Practice of Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine as well as a critically acclaimed author whose memoirs and novels have sold millions of copies, topped best-seller lists, and earned movie deals. In 2015, he received the National Humanities Medal from former U.S. president Barack Obama, "for reminding us that the patient is the center of the medical enterprise." To view the educational program and register for the AAEP's 64th Annual Convention, visit convention.aaep.org. The AAEP keynote address is sponsored by Merck Animal Health.
20-plus clinics to participate in expanded osteosarcoma vaccine clinical trialSeptember 6, 2018Initial results of a pilot study for canine osteosarcoma vaccine are promising, prompting a larger study to test its safety and efficacy. Pharmaceutical company Aratana Therapeutics, which received conditional licensure for Live Listeria Vector (AT-014), has expanded its clinical trial to include more than two dozen veterinary oncology practice groups across the U.S. in order to receive full licensure. Conducted by the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, the pilot study tested the immunotherapy treatment in 18 dogs. Those that received the vaccine lived more than twice as long as the historical, matched control group, with median survival times of 956 days compared to 423 days. The expanded clinical trial is designed to collect additional safety data for the vaccine in dogs that have undergone amputation of the affected limb and have already completed chemotherapy. If the treatment is found to be as safe and effective as it appeared in the initial clinical trial, Aratana will be given full licensure, allowing it to make the drug commercially available. Live Listeria Vector (AT-014) is created by removing harmful genes from the Listeria bacteria and then attaching markers of osteosarcoma cells. It is designed to supplement standard osteosarcoma treatment of amputation …
Keep the pain at bayAugust 31, 2018Providing appropriate pain medications and keeping animals warm and comfortable during and after surgery are important, but ensuring they come into the clinic relaxed is a new and critical component of presurgical prep. Even for minor procedures, it’s vital to survival and normal healing and recovery.
Claw counselingAugust 31, 2018Declawing is banned in more than 20 countries worldwide. As bans start to take effect in municipalities and regions throughout North America, veterinarians will need to shift their focus to living with clawed cats and without partial digital amputation (PDA). Developing a thorough understanding of feline scratching behavior is the first step.
Torigen Pharma wins 2018 KC Animal Health Corridor Innovation AwardAugust 30, 2018Torigen Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Farmington, Conn., company that provides personalized cancer immunotherapies to the veterinary market, has won the Innovation Award at the KC Animal Health Corridor Investment Forum in Kansas City, Mo. Torigen presented its autologous immunotherapeutic cancer vaccine, VVax-001, for dogs during the forum. The company was honored with the award and a check for $10,000. Torigen was among 12 emerging animal health companies from three countries who competed for investments in a "Shark Tank" format with more than 400 venture capital funds, investment firms, and potential partners at the 10th annual KC Animal Health Investment Forum on Aug. 21. Each company was given 10 minutes to present their ideas followed by a five-minute Q&A. Presenting companies were seeking anywhere from $500,000 to $20 million in funding and had revenue projections of $20 million within five to seven years. A national committee of agricultural and animal health experts selected the finalists. The Investment Forum in Kansas City is one of the world's only opportunities for early-and mid-stage animal health entrepreneurs to present their business plans and provide an inside look at the newest technology and innovations to potential investors. "The Global Animal Health Investment Forum is the …
Assessing claims of vaccine-induced ITP, IMHAAugust 29, 2018The use of any medical interventions involves balancing risks and benefits. A treatment that has zero risks almost certainly does nothing meaningful. In the case of vaccination, the benefits are well established and often taken for granted. Many serious, even life-threatening, diseases can be prevented through vaccination. In humans, childhood vaccination is recognized as the No. 1 public health achievement of the 20th century,1 and the benefits continue to grow in the 21st.2 Although less data is available in veterinary medicine, there is no question that vaccines have been enormously effective in reducing illness and death in veterinary species as well.3-4
OSU enrolling dogs with mammary cancer for clinical trialAugust 29, 2018Oregon State University's Lois Bates Acheson Veterinary Teaching Hospital is now enrolling dogs with mammary cancer in a new clinical trial. Dog owners considering standard tumor removal surgery may be able to choose a new surgical procedure involving an intravenous injection of a cancer cell-illuminating nanoparticle compound that highlights exactly which tissue needs to be removed. After the mammary tumor is removed, the surrounding tissue is irradiated with an infrared laser that causes the nanoparticle compound to heat up, killing any remaining cancer cells. The compound, developed by researchers in the Oregon State University College of Pharmacy, has been found to effectively cure cancer in mice. The new procedure eventually may be most beneficial for treating tumors in challenging anatomic areas, such as the brain and spine, according to Milan Milovancev, DVM, DACVS-SA, an OSU associate professor of small animal surgery participating in the study. The Oregon State University Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine is a member of a national consortium of veterinary oncology centers, managed by the National Institutes of Health, with a focus on translational veterinary medicine. Owners who believe their pets may be good trial candidates can ask their veterinarian …
