Interpret The Signs Of FLUTD In Feline PatientsMay 6, 2014 Are your feline patients trying to tell you something? When they visit the clinic with their owners, who bring them in with complaints about their pets' irritable moods and poor litter box habits, the cats may be presenting with a one of several medical conditions associated with feline lower urinary tract disease, or FLUTD, says Jacqueline Neilson, DVM, Dipl. ACVB, of Animal Behavior Clinic LLC in Portland, Ore. "FLUTD is a catch-all term to describe any disorder affecting the urinary bladder or urethra," she explains. "It's quite common. In fact, for years some kind of lower urinary tract disease sign has been the most common medical reason policy holders of pet insurance take their cat to the vet." Dru Forrester, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM, associate director, scientific affairs and technical information services for Hill?s Pet Nutrition in Topeka, Kan., adds that for veterinarians, the signs associated with FLUTD can be linked to a number of underlying issues—and that makes pinpointing the cause and treating it a challenge. "No matter the cause, they often have the same signs, and that's the frustrating part about [FLUTD]," Dr. Forrester says. "Any disease that affects the lower …
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Moist Food, Environmental Enrichment Can Fight FIC In Your Cat PatientsMay 6, 2014 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. For cat-owning clients, caring for a pet with feline idiopathic cystitis (FIC) can be frustrating. As one type of feline lower urinary tract disease, FIC causes a range of aggravating clinical signs in cats, signs that often lead to trips to the veterinary office—or to the local shelter. "FIC is an unfortunate disease," says Kara Burns, MS, MEd, LVT, of Wamego, Kan., president of the Academy of Veterinary Nutrition Technicians. "Owners don't quite understand what's happening when their pets [eliminate] outside the litter box. It ends up being one of the top reasons owners bring their cats to the veterinarian, and then why they relinquish them to shelters." Besides describing signs like urinating outside the litter box, clients with FIC-afflicted pets may also report frequency or straining when their cats urinate, vocalizing or perceived pain when they urinate, or blood in the urine, says Claudia Kirk, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, Dipl. ACVN, head of the department of small animal clinical sciences at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Veterinarians and their health care teams can help, Burns says. "We in the profession can help …
Cats And FIC: Discover The Signs And Some SolutionsMay 6, 2014 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. Cats with feline idiopathic cystitis (FIC) are believed to have an abnormal response to environmental stressors, which may contribute to development of lower urinary tract signs including urinating outside the litter box, frequent attempts to urinate and blood in the urine. "The signs of stress in cats may be subtle and include hiding from people or other cats, conflict with another cat in the home, exaggerated startle response to sudden or loud noises, and fearful behavior," said S. Dru Forrester, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM, director of Global Scientific Affairs at Hill's Pet Nutrition of Topeka, Kan. "When a cat perceives environmental stress, it stimulates the brain and activates the stress response system." This "flight or fight" response enhances a cat's sympathetic nervous input down the spinal cord to the urinary bladder. In normal cats, the adrenal glands release cortisol, which dampens the sympathetic response. In contrast, cats with FIC have a blunted cortisol response, which fails to adequately restrain sympathetic input to the bladder. "Increased sympathetic input to the urinary bladder causes neurogenic inflammation and increased permeability of the bladder," Dr. Forrester …
Lasers Promote Faster, Stronger Wound ClosureMay 21, 2013 Wounds and dermatology issues represent perhaps the widest variety of ailments in veterinary practice, both in origin and complication. From an acute burn to a chronic lick granuloma, from an ischemic ulcer to a dehiscent surgical site, no two wounds will be alike. Compound this variation with different histologies and enzyme over/under-expressions; then throw bacterial or fungal infections on top of all that; now plan for a dog gnawing at it constantly or a horse sleeping in a dirty stable. Snake Bite This is a snake bite case handled by someone who was skeptical about therapeutic lasers. The dog was bitten in the hind limb and after three days, the entire belly was necrotic. Veterinarians did a full surgical debridement on Day 5 and one day later, the necrotic tissue returned to the entire area. At this point on Day 6 they applied the laser, but in the interest of science and skepticism, they left a control section, lasering two-thirds of the belly and leaving one-third untouched, above right. Two days and two treatments later, the effects on each section are clear. At …
Examples Of Laser Therapy Success, Inside And OutOctober 10, 2012 All year we at K-Laser USA have presented you with scientific evidence of laser therapy, from fundamental biochemistry to the physics of laser penetration. You have heard from the experts in this field, but the most important story-tellers are the owners of the pets whose lives have been forever changed. Below are two polar opposite examples (one superficial and the other deep-seated) to illustrate the enormous diversity of Class IV laser therapy applications. Monte Carlo Dosimetry Simulation Bryan J. Stephens, Ph.D., is the director of research and development for K-Laser USA. He is an expert in radiation’s interaction with biological matter, specifically in radiation dosimetry and photobiology. Treating From the Inside Out Laika, 3-year-old, 15-pound female intact French bulldog February-March 2011: Laika developed a chronic head tilt and became unstable on her feet going upstairs and around the home. Following treatment a total ear canal ablation (TECA) was performed. Final CT showing marked improvement in para-aural and tympanic bulla with no evidence of abcessation. CT scans provided by Clerkenwell Veterinary Hospital in London—Dosimetry Calculations by Dr. Stephens On April 28, 2011, a CT scan was made of …
Therapeutic Lasers Are Used In Variety Of Clinical ApplicationsOctober 9, 2012 In the last few years, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of therapeutic lasers in veterinary medicine. Industry leaders estimate that 20 percent of veterinary practices in North America use a therapy laser, and they report that its use is rapidly expanding overseas. Additionally, veterinary distributors uniformly say that therapy lasers are one of their fastest-growing product categories. The therapeutic effect of lasers has been studied for almost 40 years, and most of the work to understand its mechanisms of action has been accomplished with in-vitro research. Thousands of papers have been written on the subject, and there does seem to be consensus that lasers of an appropriate therapeutic wavelength that deliver effective doses of laser energy stimulate a photobiochemical cascade of events at the cellular level which relieves pain, reduces inflammation and increases microcirculation. These three effects result in an accelerated healing. Armed with this understanding, clinicians have treated a growing and remarkable range of conditions; any patients in pain or patients with inflammation benefit from laser therapy. In addition to treating dogs and cats, laser therapists have treated small birds, reptiles and pocket pets. Veterinarians report the laser assists …
Treating And Preventing Dental Disease In Geriatric PetsOctober 2, 2012 We all know that our patients suffer from the same dental problems that we all do. Dogs and cats feel dental pain and discomfort just as we do, and yet it is far more common for them to have significant dental problems because they don’t get regular dental care. The biggest reason that pets often do not receive the dental care they need is because they rarely show obvious signs of pain or problems, which means that they suffer in silence. Oral/dental disease is by far the No. 1 medical problem in dogs and cats. It is estimated that more than 70 percent of dogs and cats have some form of periodontal disease by just two years of age. Research suggests these shocking numbers actually underestimate the incidence of dental disease. To find out if your patient has periodontal disease, lift his/her lip and look for tartar or redness and swelling of the gums (Figures 1). If the breath smells, it is a sure sign of an oral infection. A new method for determining the level of gum disease in animals is provided by a simple technology called Orastrip QuickCheck Canine. This quick …
Introducing Veterinary CO2 Laser Surgery In JapanOctober 2, 2012 I am an owner of a busy small animal veterinary hospital in Nagoya, Japan. One day I encountered a book on CO2 laser surgery and became fascinated with the technology that brings less bleeding, less swelling, less pain and less risk of infection. It goes without saying that less stress during and after surgical treatment is the best for humans and for animals. I decided to learn more about small animal soft tissue laser surgery in the USA, and did so for two years at various private practices and at Louisiana State University. At the same time I studied to become a diplomate of the American Board of Laser Surgery (ABLS). Learning the art of laser surgery from the best veterinary laser surgeons in the U.S. and through ABLS allowed me to select the best surgical laser for my hospital back home. Figure 2 Types of Medical Lasers It is important to select the type of surgical laser by its wavelength and how it interacts with the tissue. Medical lasers can be assigned to one of three categories: WYSIWYG stands for “What you see is what you get.” This type is suitable …
Brave New World Of St. George’s University School Of Veterinary MedicineOctober 1, 2012 The world is rapidly changing, with shifting demographics, fluid borders, widespread travel, new medical advances, new diseases and fewer medical personnel per patient, both human and animal. Worldwide, there is an urgent need for new thinkers and leaders, those who are experts in veterinary medicine but who also have the experience to quickly and accurately apply it in the real world. Our different world demands a different way of learning veterinary medicine, and St George’s University in Grenada, West Indies, is providing it. Trisha Doswell, third-year vet student at St. George’s. “St. George’s not only provides a unique educational experience but unique life experiences,” says Trisha Doswell, a third-year veterinary medical student at St. George’s University. Originally from Melbourne Beach, Fla., Trisha earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida. Trisha doesn’t shy away from raving about the quality of education she’s receiving at St. George’s University. “Our veterinary medical program is challenging and rigorous, but the faculty truly care about us, and when we graduate, we have the opportunity to work all around the world,” Trisha explains. A Global Education Founded in 1999,
Assessing Veterinary Student Loans, Repayment OptionsSeptember 5, 2012 About 2,600 students a year graduate from veterinary school to embark on a career they love, helping animals maintain their health and assisting their owners with managing their care. Veterinarians tirelessly provide an invaluable service. But in spite of this tremendous value, many new veterinarians face an uphill battle with student loan debt. The cost of veterinary school tuition varies from $18,000 to more than $42,000 annually, depending on the institution. The cost of veterinary education has increased consistently at a rate even higher than inflation. The 2011 American Veterinarian Medical Association annual survey reported that debt levels continue to increase. The mean debt for 2011 graduates carrying a student loan balance was $142,613, a 10.3 percent increase from the 2009 mean debt of $129,216. Ninety percent of veterinary students graduate with some amount of debt (/redirect.aspx?location=https://www.avma.org/News/JAVMANews/Pages/120201a.aspx). Veterinary students are eligible to borrow up to $40,500 in federal Stafford loans each year. But as of July 1, 2012, the subsidized Stafford loan for graduate level students was eliminated. Traditionally, up to $8,500 of the $40,500 in federal loans awarded annually to veterinary students could be subsidized Stafford loans.
