The Perpetual Fight Against FleasJune 25, 2012 When flea products with fipronil began appearing on retailers’ shelves about a year ago, veterinarians grew concerned about revenue loss and their ability to advise clients on flea products. Veterinarians and industry advisers say retail sales equate to less veterinary control over a veterinary medical product. The conventional wisdom is that being able to buy flea prevention while doing routine shopping is more appealing to the average customer than making a special trip to the vet’s office. But convenience might be hurting efficacy. “In my investigation of more than 1,000 flea-infested homes in Tampa, I found that the No. 1 cause of ongoing infestations was lack of an understanding of how to use the flea control product,” says Michael Dryden, DVM, MS, Ph.D., widely known as Dr. Flea for his pioneering efforts in flea research. He is the Distinguished Professor of Veterinary Parasitology at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan. “The lack of education for how to apply, frequency of use, etc., will continue to grow when veterinarians aren’t part of the conversation.” Besides contributing to flea infestations through potential misapplication, Dr. Dryden says, fipronil products—given their current high efficacy and reliability—could experience resistance …
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America & RabiesJune 1, 2012Fewer than five cases of human rabies are reported annually in the United States, thanks to animal control and vaccination programs, according to the president of the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians. But despite hard-won control of the virus in people and domestic animals, authorities continue to battle rabies in wild animal populations, said Kristy K. Bradley, DVM, MPH, who is Oklahoma’s state epidemiologist. During the past century, human deaths from rabies in the U.S. have declined from 100 or more each year to an average of two or three, federal statistics show. “But there’s a vast difference in North America compared to Asia and Africa,” noted Dr. Bradley, adding that 30,000 to 50,000 people around the globe die from rabies infection each year. Who to Look For While domestic dogs are no longer considered a rabies reservoir in the United States, exposure to rabid dogs accounts for more than 90 percent of human exposures to rabies and more than 99 percent of human deaths worldwide, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Bats have caused rabies in at least 35 humans in the United States during the past 16 years. Rabies control …
Understand Inappropriate Elimination, Then Treat ItMay 29, 2012 By Gary D. Norsworthy, DVM, Dipl. ABVP Inappropriate elimination, the most common feline behavioral problem, can cause pet owners to take drastic measures: ban the cat to the outdoors, abandon it, surrender it to a shelter or euthanize it. It is important that a simple cookbook answer not be used for these cats as illustrated by the approach I use. Underlying Causes Though many cats present with behavior-driven IE, the behavior may originate with one of several physical abnormalities. Address these before proceeding to behavior modification techniques. History is sufficient for some; specific tests are needed for others. Cystitis Bladder inflammation, whether sterile or bacterial cystitis, frequently results in inappropriate urination. These cats typically have one or more clinical signs of dysuria, pollakiuria, increased frequency of urination and hematuria. However, these may be present and missed by owners. Urinalysis usually reveals bacturia, hematuria and crystalluria, though some affected cats will have a normal urinalysis. A urine culture is the most sensitive way of detecting bacturia. Bladder ultrasound can detect chronic cystitis—thickened, irregular bladder walls—as well as uroliths.
Feline Diabetes: Five Principles Breed SuccessMay 3, 2012 Diabetic cats and the challenges associated with their management intrigue me, which is why I have about 75 diabetic patients in my practice at any given time. Successful management of a diabetic cat requires a multifaceted approach that begins with five principles: • Tight control is not essential and probably not even desirable. Cats tolerate hyperglycemia without significant consequences better than humans or dogs do. • Hyperglycemia is always better than hypoglycemia. The latter can be fatal. • As long as the cat is not ketoacidotic, it is not critically ill. You do not have to get the cat regulated in the first week, or even in the first month, after diagnosis. • Consistency is extremely important in maintaining regulation. The more things you can keep the same—diet, exercise, stress—the easier it is to regulate the diabetic cat. • Monitoring clinical signs is vital in achieving and maintaining regulation. With few exceptions, if the clinical signs and the blood-glucose level conflict, believe the clinical signs. What Can Be Done Based on these five principles, here are four treatment steps: • Client education. You are the coach on the sidelines. Your job is to instruct the quarterback so …
They Ate What? 2011 X-ray Contest WinnersApril 25, 2012They Ate What? 2011 X-ray Contest WinnersThey Ate What? 2011 X-ray Contest WinnersCheck out this year's best radiographs. Veterinary Practice News would like to thank everyone who sent radiographs in for this year's competition. cover stories, smlanimalCheck out this year's best radiographs. Posted: September 20, 2011 Veterinary Practice News would like to thank everyone who sent radiographs in for this year's competition. Each year we're amazed at the images and stories that come in. We would also like to thank the judge, Matt Wright, DVM, Dipl. ACVR, who had the tough task of selecting a winner. This year's winner, Vanessa Hawkins, DVM, will receive a digital single-lens reflex camera courtesy of contest sponsor Sound-Eklin of Carlsbad, Calif. The runners-up will receive a point-and-shoot camera. Grand Prize Winner Vanessa Hawksin, DVMBayshore Animal HospitalWarrenton, Ore. The dog was presented for lameness in a hind leg, and while taking radiographs looking for musculoskeletal abnormalities, nine handballs were discovered as an incidental finding. Runners Up Lisa Anne Attanasi, DVMEaglewood Cliffs VeterinaryEaglewood Cliffs, N.J. Wailen, a 12-year-old beagle, …
Uptick In TicksApril 5, 2012 An unseasonably warm U.S. winter not only has meant non-stop tick-sightings, it could mean a boom in the parasite population this spring—or sooner, parasitologists say. This correlates with a higher prevalence of tick-borne diseases in dogs and humans. While dogs present with different symptoms based on the type of tick-borne disease they’ve contracted, one common presentation is fever. Experts say the variety of symptoms makes a diagnosis difficult, especially because co-infections are the norm in dogs. “When dogs are exposed to more than one tick-borne pathogen, they’re at an increased risk of clinical disease,” says Melissa Beall, DVM, Ph.D., medical affairs manager at Idexx in Westbrook, Maine. “We conducted research in Minnesota that showed dogs with co-infections had more severe disease presentations. Having more than one condition impacts the animals’ ability to manage disease.” Edward Breitschwerdt, DVM, a professor at North Carolina State University and adjunct professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center, played a major role in orchestrating the seventh International Conference on Bartonella as Animal and Human Pathogens (April 25-28). He warns that ticks carry at least 15 known pathogens that can be transmitted to a dog. “We’re finding more and more …
AHS Revises Heartworm GuidelinesApril 2, 2012The American Heartworm Society has updated its canine and feline heartworm guidelines and unveiled an initiative to help practices implement the guidelines’ recommendations. The American Heartworm Society added the following new points: Diagnostics: AHS recommends annual antigen testing for all dogs. Antigen-positive dogs should be tested for microfilariae presence. Year-round prevention: AHS recommends that all dogs and cats receive chemoprophylactic drugs throughout the year to prevent heartworm disease, enhance compliance and control pathogenic and/or zoonotic parasites. Veterinary care providers must work together to increase the number of dogs receiving chemoprophylaxis and provide reminder systems to help pet owners purchase and administer products on time all year. Lack of efficacy: The vast majority of suspected heartworm preventive failures result from inadequate prevention and testing. Macrocyclic lactones are still the best and only option for preventing heartworm infection. Adulticide therapy: AHS recommends a multi-modal approach for heartworm treatment. Pretreat dogs with a monthly preventive in combination with doxycycline prior to melarsomine administration. Use a three-dose regimen of melarsomine (2.5 mg/kg body weight) for either symptomatic or asymptomatic dogs. The regimen should include an initial dose, followed at least one month later by two injections 24 hours apart. Methods using only macrocyclic as …
The Value Of FDA-approved DrugsFebruary 6, 2012 They walk into your exam room—the fourth veterinarian to see Mugsy about his ears—in the hope that somehow you will have the magic concoction to make it all go away without costing as much as the other three veterinarians wanted to charge. Or, during a “strictly vaccination” clinic, the client asks what can be done for Bella’s green-encrusted eyes. Her regular vet told her they needed a very expensive ointment that must be used daily to prevent them from getting that way. For any given scenario, you might luck out with a compounded home remedy. But there’s a substantial case to be made for advocating the treatments bearing the government label.Looking at the patient, knowing there’s a way to fix the problem, and knowing the client isn’t going to spend the money to fix it is a hard reality of veterinary practice. No wonder some veterinarians want to believe there’s a cheaper way to achieve the desired result promised by federal Food and Drug Administration-approved veterinary drugs. “What’s happening in our profession is that veterinarians are compounding as a way to get a cheaper product,” said Dawn Merton Boothe, DVM, MS, Ph.D., …
Practice Group VPP Makes First AcquisitionJanuary 11, 2012 Veterinary practice management company Veterinary Practice Partners entered its second phase of development with its first acquisition and has two more potential deals in the works, including one likely to close during the first quarter. The Bryn Mawr, Pa., company acquired Sangaree Animal Hospital of Summerville, S.C., in September, and according to CEO Rich Lester, the transition has been relatively smooth. “In many acquisitions, there is a lot of uncertainty among staff,” Lester said. “Our approach is to try to quell that.” The staff at Sangaree remains unchanged, and former owner Kevin McGinn, DVM, is a part owner. Most of the changes have taken place behind the scenes, including changes to bill paying, creating financial statements and getting vendor contracts in place The next step will involve rolling out new marketing initiatives to grow the top line of the business, Lester said. “We are always learning things, and with each deal, each acquisition or partnership, the transition will get better and better,” Lester said. “This one has gone reasonably well.” Lester said another hospital has signed a letter of intent with VPP. He expects to close the deal in the first quarter of this …
Obtaining A Loan Can Be TrickyJanuary 3, 2012 Bleak evaluations of today’s financial environment often leave veterinarians leery about risks and their ability to obtain a loan to fulfill their professional aspirations. Lenders say that while changes have been made in the lending arena as an effect of ongoing housing market woes, the veterinary industry has maintained a good risk rating. However, veterinarians have not been unscathed by the economy. Just six months ago, a Bayer HealthCare LLC Animal Health Division study showed that 51 percent of veterinarians reported a net decrease in patient visits over the last two years, while 42 percent said that revenues decreased in 2010 as compared to 2009. Devise a Business Plan The study, conducted in co-operation with Brakke Consulting and the former National Commission on Veterinary Economic Issues, measured the gap between veterinary and owner perceptions for the need for pet health care. Lenders closest to the veterinary industry say a major change in veterinarians’ ability to convey value in their services will guide the future of lending. “Veterinarians are starting to prepare themselves, while still in school, to be practice owners,” says Travis York, senior loan officer in the Atlanta office of Live Oak Bank, …
