UC Davis creates 3D printed mask for dog with fractured skullDecember 6, 2017Loca, a 4-month-old female Staffordshire bull terrier, was bitten by another dog so severely that her right zygomatic arch (cheekbone) and mandible (jawbone) were fractured, and her temporomandibular joint (TMJ) suffered extensive damage. In addition, there were multiple puncture wounds on her face and neck. University of California, Davis, veterinary hospital Dentistry and Oral Surgery Service (DOSS) faculty members Frank Verstraete, BVSc, DrMedVet, MMedVet, and Boaz Arzi, DVM, DAVDC, DEVDC, and resident Colleen Geisbush, DVM, saw promising aspects to this challenging case. First, Loca was young, which meant there was a good chance that the damage to the TMJ could correct itself with natural bone regrowth. Second, this case offered them the opportunity to utilize a new face mask they developed with biomedical engineering students. Designed to be used as a cast for a fractured skull while it heals, the mask was the result of a long-standing collaboration between the oral surgeons and the UC Davis College of Engineering. To assist with surgery preparation, DOSS has used COE's Biomedical Engineering (BME) Department many times over the years to 3D print skull models in BME's Translating Engineering Advances to Medicine (TEAM) Laboratory. Recently, DOSS has been working with BME …
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PetPace smartcollar aids first human-canine 12,500-mile All-In Trek teamNovember 16, 2017Breanna Cornell and her 4-year-old husky-rottweiler mix, Sophie, are scheduled to set out on completing the nation's longest and most rigorous mega-hike expedition on Sept. 4, 2018, with help from PetPace, a provider of health monitoring technology for pets. Cornell and Sophie will attempt to be the first female and human-canine team to complete the All-In Trek. The mega-hike requires a continuous, self-supported hike through the top four hiking trails in the nation. The duo will start their journey on the North County Trail, followed by the Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Coast trail, and the Continental Divide, traveling by air to each start point. Besides facing a mix of rough terrain, adverse weather conditions, and the unexpected, and the pair also will battle the physical drain of hiking roughly 35 miles per day. In order to better safeguard Sophie's health, Cornell will receive a special travel pack for Sophie from the company. The travel pack will provide full connectivity between Cornell's PetPace smartphone app and Sophie's PetPace health monitoring smartcollar. This will allow Cornell to closely monitor her pet's caloric expenditure, activity levels, and vital signs. Sophie's smartcollar also can send …
Cornell, Tufts scientists receive $2.5M from NIH for cancer studyNovember 14, 2017Cornell and Tufts University scientists have received a five-year, $2.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to use dogs as a model for studying cancer immunotherapies. The dogs used in the study are treated with similar care as human patients, with the potential of being cured of lymphoma. Kristy Richards, Ph.D., MD, associate professor of Biomedical Sciences at the College of Veterinary Medicine with a joint appointment at the Division of Hematology/Medical Oncology at Weill Cornell Medicine is co-principal investigator on the grant, along with Cheryl London, DVM, Ph.D., DACVIM, a research professor at Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. The grant will investigate whether combinations of PD1 inhibitors and other targeted therapies may increase effectiveness of cancer treatment in dogs, thereby setting up the possibility for human trials. Clinical trials in dogs should begin in the next six months, at which time, the researchers will reach out to referring veterinarians for candidate canine patients with lymphoma. Veterinary oncologists at the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine and at Cornell University Veterinary Specialists in Stamford, Conn., will enroll and treat patients during the trials. Patients also will be enrolled at the …
Biomarkers shed light on future healthNovember 9, 2017As the biomarker frontier continues to grow, experts say the next big step is for veterinary practitioners to embrace genetic testing. Kathryn Meurs, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), Ph.D., was the investigator on two new tests for cardiomyopathy predisposition in Dobermans and boxers.
What a dental exam of a 4-year-old coonhound revealedNovember 2, 2017Back in the day, when I was a resident at the University of Pennsylvania, Tanya, a second-year veterinary student, brought her black and tan coonhound to my office. Chester was 4 years old, and Tanya was concerned that she found an oral tumor in his mouth.
Raising greyhound health awarenessOctober 13, 2017When veterinary oncologist Guillermo Couto, DVM, first noticed the medical idiosyncrasies of greyhounds, he was serving as a professor at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine.
Former veterinary military surgeon shares his experiencesOctober 12, 2017The keynote speaker at the American College of Veterinary Surgeons conference in October 2016 was board-certified veterinary surgeon Jim Giles, DVM, MS, DACVS-SA.
Canine rabies vaccination promises unexpected benefitsSeptember 28, 2017 New research funded by Morris Animal Foundation shows the rabies vaccine may have a positive impact on overall canine health and is associated with a decrease in death from all causes. Darryn Knobel, BVSc MSc MRCVS PhD, associate professor of epidemiology and population health at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine recently published his research results in the journal Vaccine. What the findings show The study found that vaccination reduces the risk of death from any cause by 56 percent in dogs 0 to 3 months of age. While all dogs had decreased mortality, the percentage decrease was highest in young dogs, with the effect diminishing over time. Dr. Knobel's study area incorporates an impoverished region of South Africa, where infectious diseases, including rabies, are an ever-present threat to humans and dogs. The research team concluded that the decrease in mortality couldn't be explained by a reduction in deaths due to rabies alone. "This led us to propose that the vaccine may have a non-specific protective effect in dogs, perhaps through boosting the immune system to provide enhanced defense against other, unrelated diseases," said Knobel. "A similar phenomenon has been observed in children, although …
Dental product earns veterinary oral health council sealSeptember 28, 2017Two clinical studies show that SwedencareUSA's ProDen PlaqueOff Dental Bites for dogs significantly reduce the formation of plaque and tartar. As a result, the bites earned the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC) health claim seal "helps control plaque and tartar." Jerzy Gawor, DVM, Ph.D., president of Federation of European Companion Animal Veterinary Associations and president elect of the European Veterinary Dental College, performed the studies. "VOHC acceptance is an important indicator in the efficacy of pet dental health products," said Martin Shimko, president of SwedencareUSA in Poulsbo, Wash. "Pets love them, and now … there is science behind the product." Study methods Two groups of dogs, one group with small dogs, and one with small and medium size dogs, participated in the studies. Between two subgroups, one received ProDen PlaqueOff Dental Bites and one received a placebo without the bites' active ingredient, Ascophyllum nodosum. All dogs were examined and had their teeth cleaned prior to the study. Study results After 30 days, researchers measured for plaque and tartar. Groups receiving ProDen PlaqueOff Dental Bites had significantly less plaque and …
Michigan specialty veterinary care center seeks dogs for cancer studySeptember 19, 2017 Oakland Veterinary Referral Services (OVRS) specialty veterinary care center is conducting a nationwide study on dogs with canine splenic hemangiosarcoma (HSA) and the benefits of using traditional Chinese herbal medicine (TCHM) as treatment to significantly extend life expectancy. Erin Bannink, DVM, DACVIM, VCHM, CVA, is leading the study, according to Lucy Henney, DVM, DACVS, owner of Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based OVRS. Most dogs diagnosed with HSA are treated by removal of the spleen after the tumor has ruptured and bled, causing life-threatening blood loss; most dogs living only two months after surgery due to the spread of cancer to other organs, according to Dr. Bannink. Because of HSA's aggressive nature, chemotherapy is usually recommended after surgery in the hope of prolonging life, but it only modestly prolongs survival, and most dogs still die of cancer spread within three to four months of diagnosis, she said. "The purpose of this study is to determine if treatment with a specific herbal therapy regimen is helpful in prolonging survival time after surgery in dogs with HSA and no evidence of cancer spread," said Bannink. "We hypothesize that dogs treated with this standardized protocol after splenectomy will have …
