Zoetis strengthens equine portfolio with acquisitionJuly 25, 2019Zoetis Inc., has entered into an agreement to purchase Platinum Performance. The acquisition aims to strengthen Zoetis’s nutritional offerings, particularly within the equine market.
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Are vegan or vegetarian diets good for pets?June 24, 2019Pet owners frequently project their beliefs about human health onto their companion animals. Anxieties about purported harms from vaccines in children, for example, have spurred an anti-vaccination movement among veterinarians and pet owners.
Ultrasound and telemedicineMay 27, 2019Don't just send him an ultrasound image and think he'll do business with you. "I will not read ultrasound images unless I've taught the person through doing the ultrasound," said Anthony J. Fischetti, DVM, MS, DACVR, department head of diagnostic imaging at the Animal Medical Center in New York, and president of Veterinary Ultrasound Society of the American College of Veterinary Radiologists (ACVR). "If I'm just reading still images from someone I haven't trained, I won't read them. I won't take their money, I won't try to make a diagnosis, and I kind of wish my colleagues would do the same," Dr. Fischetti said. Why? There's just too much to get wrong, he said. "You can make so many things look abnormal with ultrasound if you don't know the orientation of the probe or how the image was made," Fischetti said. In human medicine, often a relationship is already developed between those performing the ultrasound and the radiologist, so there's a level of trust and comfort. "We're just not there with veterinary medicine yet, and I'm personally against most telemedicine ultrasound," Fischetti said. Building relationships to improve trust and communication is also of utmost importance for Nathan C. Nelson, …
Gathering vital patient information with ultrasoundMay 27, 2019Anthony J. Fischetti, DVM, MS, DACVR, department head of diagnostic imaging at the Animal Medical Center in New York, had just finished his shift. It had been an odd day; two dogs that had turned yellow had been brought into the clinic. The first patient, an older dog, had a tumor at the entrance of the gall bladder into the intestines—a common bile duct obstruction. The second patient had collapsed, experiencing diarrhea and vomiting. "I used the ultrasound to diagnose that it wasn't the liver," said Dr. Fischetti. "It turned out the dog was hemolyzing." An old, corroded coin in the dog's stomach was causing zinc toxicity. Thanks to the ultrasound images, the endoscopist retrieved the coin and the dog improved. Fischetti, who also is president of Veterinary Ultrasound Society of the American College of Veterinary Radiologists (ACVR), as well as other experts, say ultrasound is a safe and simple way to get more information on ailing patients. "I think the real value of ultrasound is its noninvasive nature," said Nathan C. Nelson, DVM, MS, DACVR, a clinical associate professor of radiology at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Why use ultrasound? Key considerations for adding …
Is fear driving the anti-vaccine movement?May 22, 2019Vaccines are one of the most effective means for preventing disease ever developed and one of the great triumphs of scientific medicine. Widespread vaccination of children has dramatically reduced—and in some cases eliminated—infectious diseases that have plagued humanity for thousands of years. There is less research evidence for the impact of vaccination in companion animals, but there is ample reason to believe vaccines have been equally successful in dogs and cats.3–7 Any veterinarian old enough to remember the emergence of canine parvovirus (CPV) in the U.S. in the late 1970s, for example, would probably testify to the efficacy of vaccination in reducing the incidence of this disease.5–7 There also is compelling evidence showing the reduction of both canine and human rabies cases due to vaccination programs aimed at dogs.8–12 And similar to smallpox, the veterinary disease rinderpest was eradicated largely due to the use of an effective vaccine.13 Vaccines and autism Despite the evident success of vaccination in reducing morbidity and mortality, there has always been controversy about the practice.14 The introduction of widespread vaccination in children was initially met with resistance and legal challenges. There was fear about the safety of vaccines, as well as resistance rooted in …
Is cranberry effective for treating UTIs?April 29, 2019Like most herbal remedies, cranberry has traditionally been employed for a wide variety of unrelated problems, ranging from diseases of the liver and stomach to blood disorders and even cancer.1 These days, however, it is pretty firmly established in the minds of pet owners—and many veterinary professionals—as useful for urinary tract infections (UTIs). It may be surprising, then, to learn there is little convincing evidence to support the effectiveness of cranberry in preventing or treating UTI. The question of whether cranberries, in some form, have value in treating or preventing UTIs is a pretty old one. In addition to historical claims among herbal medicine practitioners, there are scientific references on the subject going back to the 1960s.2 An early theoretical rationale for using cranberry to treat UTIs was it inhibited bacterial growth by acidifying the urine.3,4 However, later research has not substantiated this theory, and this rationale is no longer commonly used to explain the purported benefits of cranberry in preventing or treating a UTI.1,5 The more popular theory today is compounds in cranberry juice, particularly a group called proanthocyanidins, interfere with the attachment of some bacteria to the bladder mucosa, reducing colonization and the establishment of infection.6,7 This …
Dermatology and nutrition: Beyond food allergyApril 29, 2019 When dogs and cats present with skin disorders, the initial approach is to collect a history, do a physical exam, and then perform diagnostic tests to rule in or rule out common conditions. After establishing a tentative diagnosis, most veterinarians will next consider which medications are most appropriate (e.g. antibiotics, antifungals, parasiticides). It is not as common to consider diet and nutrition as part of the workup and treatment for dermatologic disorders, other than performing elimination diet trials for suspected cutaneous adverse food reaction (food allergy). However, the right diets, nutrients, and sometimes nutritional supplements can have a significant benefit in improving or resolving certain skin disorders. This article highlights some of the options for incorporating nutritional science into the management of dermatologic disorders. Cutaneous adverse food reaction The most common presentation for a dog or cat with cutaneous adverse food reaction (CAFR) is nonseasonal pruritus, although other syndromes such as otitis externa and gastrointestinal (GI) upset may occur.1,2 While some companies offer "food allergy testing" using serum, saliva, or even hair clippings, the only valid diagnostic test is an elimination diet trial. There are a number of veterinary therapeutic diets that can be used for diet trials and …
Vital pulp therapy in dogs and catsMarch 29, 2019Last month, we discussed the rationale behind and approach to conventional (orthograde) endodontic therapy. Orthograde root canal therapy removes the entire contents of the pulp chamber in the root canal system. Vital pulp therapy is a different kind of endodontic procedure, performed instead on teeth that have had recent pulp exposure. Determining whether it's best to perform vital pulp therapy or orthograde root canal therapy for an individual tooth is a judgment call. Most dentists gravitate toward orthograde root canal therapy whenever possible, since it involves removing the entire contents of the pulp and minimizes the likelihood of possible future pain and infection by not leaving to chance whether remaining pulp maintains its vitality. However, orthograde root canal therapy may not be an option for young teeth, as they lack a closed apex. In the past, it was a rule of thumb that vital pulp therapy be performed within 48 hours of pulp exposure in dogs older than 18 months of age and within two weeks in dogs younger than 18 months of age. However, the sooner vital pulp therapy is performed after pulp exposure, the better the chance of success. Therefore, even when a patient is younger than 18 …
Asymptomatic bacteriuria—To treat or not to treat?March 28, 2019Veterinarians and pet owners are highly motivated to find discrete, fixable problems when pets are unwell. Owners want the reassurance and sense of control that comes with knowing what the problem is and taking action. Veterinarians want to help our patients, while also satisfying clients. Their expectation is that we offer some clear preventive or therapeutic intervention justifying their time and the expense of coming to see us, as well as reassure them about their pets' condition. Finally, our medical training often emphasizes diagnosis and treatment as the core responsibility for a doctor; the importance of knowing when not to take action is frequently underemphasized.1,2 Such inherent bias toward finding and treating problems creates discomfort and resistance when scientific evidence suggests we should avoid some tests or treatments. Though there is widespread awareness of the risks of overdiagnosis and overtreatment in human medicine, these are relatively new and controversial concepts in the veterinary field.3,4 My own efforts in this column and elsewhere to suggest we might sometimes do better not to run a test (e.g. pre-anesthetic bloodwork)5 or prescribe a treatment (e.g. lysine)6 have generated the kind of pushback often greeting such suggestions. Nevertheless, we have a responsibility to …
Trust, education can build vaccine complianceMarch 18, 2019Can people control their exposure to whatever virus du jour is making the rounds? No—and that's the point veterinarians should stress among vaccine-wary clients, says Tony Rumschlag, DVM, director of consulting veterinarians, companion animal at Elanco Animal Health. "We cannot in all circumstances control our pets' exposure to disease," he says. "We can help prevent disease in our beloved pets by simply following an appropriate vaccination protocol." As in human medicine, some veterinary clients are expressing concern over the necessity and safety of vaccines for companion animals. "Because some of the diseases we vaccinate against are not as prevalent as in the past, both on the human and animal side, people start to lose sight of the value of vaccines," Dr. Rumschlag explains. "When vaccination rates decrease, these diseases tend to reappear. And I understand how pet owners can forget the extent of parvo and distemper cases we saw in the 1980s and early '90s." Rumschlag says that while there is a lot of science backing the safety and value of vaccines, many of the concerns about them are based more on emotions. "Veterinarians who have treated dogs infected with preventable diseases, such as parvo and distemper, need to …
