New Drug Shows Promise In Heart PatientsJune 4, 2012 The fundamentals of treating congestive heart failure in dogs and cats have not changed appreciably over the years, but one fairly new drug along with fairly new diagnostic tests have given veterinarians additional tools for patient care. Pimobendan, marketed under the trade name Vetmedin by Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica of St. Joseph, Mo., is used in dogs with congestive heart failure secondary to dilated cardiomyopathy, chronic mitral valve insufficiency and degenerative mitral valve disease. The drug increases heart muscle contractions and dilates the blood vessels, so as to strengthen the heart’s ability to pump and allow easier blood flow. The Cardiocare test, manufactured by Idexx Laboratories of Westbrook, Maine, helps determine whether an animal’s labored breathing is caused by primary respiratory disease or congestive heart failure. The test measures a hormone released in the bloodstream in response to increased stretch or strain of heart muscle. A similar test was developed by Antech Diagnostics of Irvine, Calif. Helpful Care The standard of care for canine congestive heart failure treatment, written by a committee of American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine cardiology diplomates, calls for triple therapy including furosemide, an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, and pimobendan, noted …
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LSU Chooses Vet Tech To Head Nursing At HospitalJune 4, 2012 The Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine in April promoted veterinary technician Lee Ann Eddleman to director of nursing at the school’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Eddleman joined the school as a veterinary technician in 1997 and went on to serve as supervisor of the Small Animal intensive Care Unit. She received the school’s Technical Management Award in 2005 for her technical service. All veterinary technicians and technician supervisors at the school’s teaching hospital now report to Eddleman, who will report to the hospital director. <HOME> 6/4/2012 3:36 PM
Webster Plans June EquiHealth LaunchJune 1, 2012 Webster Veterinary, a unit of St. Paul, Minn.-based Patterson Companies Inc., expects to fully launch its EquiHealth equine practice communications platform later this month. The platform, which can be directly integrated in the practice’s website, will be available to a limited number of veterinary practices before the full launch. The program provides veterinarians with a secure Internet portal to allow their clients access to equine medical information, resources, and 3D educational materials, Webster reported. Client services included within the platform include online medical records, integrated Coggin’s certificates and access to Webster’s VetSource home delivery program. Equine veterinarians will also be able to log onto the portal to send clients appointment and healthcare reminders and use other e-marketing tools, including online surveys, newsletters and personalized updates, Webster reported. “EquiHealth provides a powerful connection between veterinarians and horse owners that will help grow business, strengthen relationships and facilitate optimal care,” said Derrick Drinnon, Webster’s equine sales director. <HOME>http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/images/article-images/equinehealth-site-300px.jpg6/1/2012 4:05 PM
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 …
Cerenia Vomiting Med Approved For Use In Cats, Younger DogsMay 31, 2012 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a label update for Cerenia (maropitant citrate) Injectable Solution, a veterinary antiemetic drug, to include the treatment of vomiting in cats older than 16 weeks, according to Pfizer Animal Health, the drug’s maker. In addition, the new label lowers the recommended age of use in dogs from 16 weeks to 8 weeks for the prevention and treatment of acute vomiting in dogs for both the injectable and tablet form of Cerenia, which was first approved in the United States in 2007. The injectable solution is generally uses to treat vomiting at the practice while the tablets are designed for home use. Cerenia tablets are also approved for the use of prevention of vomited due to motion sickness in dogs older than 16 weeks. “Because of the positive results of Cerenia and its importance among veterinary professionals and pet owners, Pfizer Animal Health was committed to providing the science to support this label update so that cats and younger puppies may also be effectively treated for vomiting,” said J. Michael McFarland, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, group director of veterinary operations for the companion animal division of Pfizer Animal Health. …
Report Urges Action To Nurture Public, Food And Research VetsMay 31, 2012 With more than half of veterinary students seeking training in companion animal medicine, many veterinary sectors, including academia, industry, food animal and public service, face potential shortages of qualified veterinarians that could have significant effects on public health, according to a National Research Council of the National Academies of Science report released yesterday. The report, written by the Committee to Assess the Current and Future Workforce Needs in Veterinary Medicine, warned that without immediate action, the academic veterinary community may not successfully prepare future generations of veterinarians for faculty teaching and research positions, jobs in state diagnostic laboratories and federal research and regulatory agencies, and the pharmaceutical and biologics industry. This potential shortage could be exacerbated by a strengthening economy that could create many new jobs in industry, according to committee member Fred Quimby, retired vice president and senior director of the Laboratory Animal Research Center at Rockefeller University in New York. The rising cost of veterinary education contributes to the situation, as costs could deter some veterinarians from pursuing advanced degrees and others from applying for lower paying positions, including government jobs in food safety, epidemiology and wildlife management. Moreover, the report found that a …
Veterinarian David Schwarz: Dedicated To AnimalsMay 31, 2012 The word “veterinarian” often elicits a sense of dedicated service, as in dedicated to the care of animals and to the veterinary profession itself. Many veterinarians attest that their love for animals began at a young age. They work hard to get into—and pay for—vet school and then spend a lifetime of long hours and dedicated care helping the very animals they once fell in love with. David Schwarz, DVM, is one such example. He’s been in practice for 36 years, and although Dr. Schwarz knew he wanted to be a veterinarian at 8 years old, he didn’t foresee becoming a practice owner. “Circumstances just worked out that way,” says Schwarz, who has owned and operated the Ashland Animal Hospital in Ashland, Mass., since 1977. Some of the challenges of being a veterinary practice owner are continually trying to provide the best care to patients, educating clients and maintaining a state-of-the-art animal hospital employing highly qualified staff, according to Schwarz. “It is an endless work in progress,” he says. Yet, he doesn’t stop there. Schwarz has kept busy over the years by getting involved with various industry groups and organizations. For instance, …
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.
NC Vet To Headline Oxbow Exotic SymposiumMay 29, 2012 Dan Johnson, DVM, of Avian and Exotic Animal Care in Raleigh, N.C., will deliver the keynote address at the Oxbow Exotic Companion Mammal Symposium, to be hosted by exotic animal food and support care product supplier Oxbow Animal Health on June 24, 2012, at the Homestead Animal Hospital in Centennial, Colo. Jerry Labonde, DVM, of Homestead and Michal Kohles, DVM, M.P.A., director of veterinary services with Oxbow, will also lecture at the symposium. Scheduled lecture topics include: • Herbivore gastrointestinal function and nutrition; • Gastrointestinal stasis in small herbivores; • Rabbit calcium metabolism, bladder sludge and urolithiasis; • Ferret gastrointestinal function and nutrition; • Ferret endocrine disease; • Practical reptile medicine; • Zoonotic diseases of exotic pets; and • Endotracheal intubation and post-surgical care. The symposium, which qualifies for seven continuing education credits, will conclude with a round table discussion. Potential attendees can register at www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/vets. <HOME>
Animal Advocate Bills Move To Rhode Island GovernorMay 29, 2012Companion legislation in Rhode Island that would allow representatives of the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to act in court as animal advocates in cruelty and neglect cases has passed both houses of the Rhode Island legislature and awaits action by Governor Lincoln Chafee. The Washington, D.C.-based Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council alerted the industry of the pending legislation today, noting its opposition to “the establishment of a non-governmental third party to serve as a legal advocate for ‘custodial’ rights for animals. Legal designation of an entity for assuring proper care and disposition of animals should rest with an appropriate governmental agency for which proper accountability and oversight exists.” The legislation would also allow the state’s Department of Environmental Management’s director to appoint one or more veterinarians employed by the department to serve as an animal advocate in cases in which “the custody or well-being of an animal is at issue.” The legislation also ensures that a licensed veterinarian from the Department of Environmental Management is “made available to the Rhode Island society for the prevention of cruelty to animals at the request of the state police for the purpose of examining any animal which …
