Vetgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review tracheal collapse. Tracheal collapse is found in smaller breed dogs, especially Yorkshire terriers, miniature poodles and Pugs and presents as airway obstruction with the classic “goose honking” cough. Possible contributing factors include:

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast sponsored by Aventix, Dr. Shelby Reinstein discusses why it is not just "bull" that brachycephalic dogs have more challenging eye conditions!

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the use of enoxaparin, a low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) in dogs with primary immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA). Do you see a lot of dogs with primary IMHA in your practice? Do you have an anticoagulation protocol that you like to use in treating them? Does it involve aspirin? Clopidogrel? Unfractionated heparin? What about LMWH?

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Dr. Karen Bradley, who is one of the founders and former President of the Women’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative (WVLDI). Their goal? To support women in seeking and achieving leadership, policy, and decision-making positions within all areas of professional veterinary activity. Check out some of their great resources here. For more information, check out their website here and their Facebook group here.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss treatment for immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (ITP) in dogs. Have you treated a patient with primary ITP? Did you use steroids alone, or did you try combination therapy with vincristine or human intravenous immunoglobulin (hIVIG)? Well, while treatment with immunosuppressive doses of glucocorticoids is the initial treatment of choice, and most patients will have platelet recovery within 1-15 days of starting treatment, adding treatment with vincristine or hIVIG has been shown to shorten platelet recovery time. In some peer-reviewed, scientific veterinary prospective studies, dogs with severe ITP treated with prednisone alone versus prednisone and vincristine, or prednisone alone versus prednisone and hIVIG, both combination therapies resulted in faster increases in platelet numbers and shorter durations of hospitalization. To date, though, there haven’t been any studies looking at the efficacy of vincristine versus hIVIG as adjunct

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss the appropriate use of antibiotics for dogs with septic peritonitis. In patients with sepsis, early antimicrobial therapy is one of the cornerstones of treatment, along with resuscitation and source control. In human medicine, a landmark study of patients with septic shock revealed that for every one hour delay in antibiotic administration for the first six hours after presentation, mortality increased by 7.6%!(1) In critically ill, septic patients, antibiotics should be started before culture and sensitivity results are generally available, right? Well, the questions remain in both human and veterinary medicine about how we should choose those antibiotics, and whether or not our choices matter.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Do you see cats with DKA in your practice? Does DKA really stand for "Diabetes Kills Animals?" (No.) What do you usually tell owners about their prognosis and what do you base that information on? While we know that DKA is a complicated form of diabetes mellitus (DM) and we often tell owners that it usually happens due to some other complicating concurrent disease or condition, we don’t actually know a lot about those diseases or conditions, and whether or not they contribute to the patient's outcome.

Thank you for visiting this VETgirl podcast page! While our veterinary podcasts are available to everyone for free, only VETgirl ELITE members can get CE credit for listening, plus access to the transcript of the podcast (where applicable). VETgirl ELITE members also receive 100+ hours of RACE-approved, online veterinary CE/year in the form of webinars (including small animal, large animal, veterinary technician, and leadership), "how to" videos and Real Life Rounds when you have time. VETgirl ELITE members also have access to our VETgirl forum where you can interact with colleagues and specialists and get clinical support and tips!Sponsored By: Merck Animal Health

Have a dog presenting to you with abdominal pain and vomiting? In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss the diagnostic accuracy of canine pancreatitis tests. Specific tests that are often used to test for canine pancreatitis are the Spec cPL and the SNAP cPL test; however, these tests must be interpreted carefully.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Dr. Nyssa Reine-Salz, DACVIM, a board-certified veterinary specialist in internal medicine. She is an internal medicine consultant for Merck Animal Health, and an endocrinologist who consults on complicated diabetes mellitus cases. In this podcast, we review the common mistakes to avoid in management of diabetes mellitus in your canine and feline patients.Sponsored By: Merck Animal Health

This was a cross-sectional study, and 43 dogs with CVHD were categorized according to the ACVIM Consensus Statement into specific stages (e.g., B1, B2, C, or D). The dogs in stage C and D were combined as one heart failure group. Stage B1 had 14 dogs, B2 had 17 dogs, and the heart failure C/D group had 12 dogs overall. Several of these dogs were on medications at the time of diagnosis. In the B1 group, 2 dogs were on ACEI; in the B2 group, 7 dogs were on ACEI, while 2 dogs were on spironolactone; and in the C/D group, a wide variety of CHF medications were used including ACEI, pimobendan, loop diuretics, spironolactone, digoxin, nitrates, and beta-blockers. All of these dogs had an echocardiogram performed and serum samples drawn on the same day. Serum BUN, creatinine, phosphorus, and total calcium were measured in addition to 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations. Exclusion criteria included any systemic disease that might impact vitamin D metabolism, or any other form of documented heart disease.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss clinical findings and survival in cats with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV). Is it a death sentence?

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Heather Prendergast and Ken Yagi, both veterinary technician extraordinaires, on the terminology of "veterinary technician" versus "veterinary nurse." First, what's the difference, and why is there so much push back from the human nursing community on this? Learn all about the current credentialing and standardization (which varies state by state) that is currently being reviewed. NAVTA is currently working with several organizations (such as AVMA) to create an updated national credentialing and standardization. Check out the results of a veterinary technician survey that was originally released by NAVTA here. More importantly, during National Veterinary Technician Week, what better way to support your right-hand-veterinary-technician-extraordinaire-staff by supporting this movement?

In today's VETgirl veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the use of certain sedatives such as dexmedetomidine on cardiac function (based on echocardiography) in dogs. We know that alpha-2 agonist sedatives provide dose-dependent sedation by reducing the central nervous system’s sympathetic outflow. The alpha agonist properties of these drugs also have significant cardiovascular effects - specifically vasoconstriction - which results in an increase in vascular resistance and potential for reflex bradycardia. Dexmedetomidine, a readily available alpha-2 agonist in veterinary medicine, has been documented to cause bradycardia, systemic hypertension, hypothermia, and reduced cardiac output with administration. Given these cardiovascular effects, it is possible that these drugs may significantly alter echocardiographic parameters of cardiac function if used for sedation for echocardiography (thus resulting in artifactual results). So, Kellihan et al out of University of Wisconsin wanted to evaluate th

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss the prevalence of immune-complex glomerulonephritis (ICGN) in dogs. Is it always due to glomerulonephritis? Or is it due to amyloidosis? Why should we care? First, we should care as glomerular injury is common to many renal diseases. Both primary and secondary glomerular disease is commonly seen in dogs. Primary glomerular disease refers to diseases where the glomerulus suffers the initial injury, while secondary glomerular disease refers to those diseases in which the glomerulus is secondarily injured. Based on the ongoing WSAVA Renal Standardization Project, primary glomerular disease in dogs is divided into 3 main groups: immune-complex glomerulonephritis, amyloidosis, and non-immune-complex glomerulonephritis. You can download the guidelines here, btw. Non-immune-complex glomerulonephritis is a diagnosis of exclusion, if neither immune complexes nor amyloid is demonstrated, but primary pathology is noted in the glomerulus.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review whether or not the urine dipstick paddle works to help identify urinary tract infections (UTIs) in dogs and cats. Being that 14% of dogs will develop a UTI at some point in their life, and that UTIs are more prevalent in older (versus younger cats), veterinarians should be well aware of how to treat UTIs. Keep in mind that most UTIs in dogs and cats involve a single bacterial species, with E.coli being the #1 isolated bacteria from the urine of dogs and cats (followed by Staph, Proteus, Klebsiella, Enterococcus, and Strep).

In today's VETgirl veterinary continuing education podcast, we review echocardiographic findings in dogs with hyperadrenocorticism. Hyperadrenocorticism (e.g., "Cushing’s disease") is common in middle to older aged dogs and results in a state of chronic hypercortisolemia. Resultant systemic sequelae of this disease state include renal/urinary disease, diabetes mellitus, pulmonary thrombembolism (due to hypercoagulability), and systemic hypertension, among others. (Hence, one of the reasons why it's so important that we treat this endocrine disease in dogs!). In humans with hyperadrenocorticism, increases in left ventricular wall thickness have been detected echocardiographically. So, Takano et al out of Japan wanted to evaluate myocardial structure and function in dogs with hyperadrenocorticism.

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review a new technique of placing nasojejunal feeding tubes in dogs. In critical care, the pendulum has swung to the side of enteral feeding over parenteral nutrition in both human and veterinary patients. However, when so many of our critical patients are vomiting or regurgitating, and the risks associated with surgical jejunal feeding tube placement may not outweigh the benefits, do any non-invasive options for enteral feeding exist? Or is our only option total or partial parenteral nutrition? The critical care and interventional radiology group at Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine (Beal at al.) developed a novel technique for placing nasojejunal feedings tubes in critically ill dogs using fluoroscopic visualization and wire guidance. Sounds interesting, right?

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review organ dysfunction and mortality risk factors in dogs with severe bite wounds. How frequently do you see dogs with severe bite wounds requiring intensive care in your practice? While many of us see “routine” bite wounds that can be managed with wound care on an out-patient basis pretty frequently, there is another population of canine patients with bite wounds that are much more severely affected. These patients may have much more extensive wounds, and can develop complications such as SIRS, DIC, MODS and sepsis. Unfortunately, little evidence exists on which patients may develop these complications. So, Ateca et al from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine set out to retrospectively evaluate dogs with bite wounds requiring hospitalization in the ICU, to characterize their treatments, complications and outcomes, and to identify any risk factors for mortality.

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the accuracy of a newer test (using immunochromatography) for detecting feline blood types (AB) in a study titled “Evaluation of an immunochromatographic test for feline AB system blood typing.” AB blood typing is commonly performed in hospitalized cats to ensure blood compatibility and to prevent hemolytic transfusion reactions or potentially life-threatening reactions (e.g., B cats receiving A blood). Blood typing is a necessity for all feline transfusions because cats are born with antibodies against red blood cells of the opposite blood type. For this reason, there is no universal donor in cats, and cats must always be blood typed and/or cross-matched prior to administration! AB blood typing is also important in feline breeding programs in order to prevent neonatal isoerythrolysis. Several methods that allow AB blood typing have been previously validated and include gel column testing, which is no longer commercially