Vet Times

Tag: blood

  • The view from the other side

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    A recent weekend at home comprised a much-needed rest and time spent with my family – which, of course, includes the animals. Tom, my moggie farm-born cat (who is far more scared of any potential prey than it would be of him, so doesn’t really live up to his farm origins), has an allergic skin condition that usually…

  • What’s causing the recurrent pyoderma and pruritus?

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    Given my interest in dermatology a lot of itchy canine and feline individuals are passed in my direction. They often have a history of recurrent microbial skin infections either in the form of Staphylococcal pyoderma or Malassezia dermatitis, which is treated as and when it occurs. I’m often surprised to find these individuals are not receiving routine parasite…

  • It takes two to tango

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    Before the full force of third year hit, the first week back at vet school started with everyone catching up on tales from their summer holidays. Before long, it was like we’d never left and the four months of freedom seemed to fade into a distant memory. However, one particular topic of holiday gossip that…

  • Twenty years too late?

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    I recently paused to think about what I was doing (which is always fatal) and realised I was drowning in paper. I was looking after seven in-patients, all in various stages of recovery. Each patient had a set of computer records where the narrative of their stay and invoicing were kept, while the hour-by-hour notes…

  • Clinical EMS 101

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    At vet school, you learn some basic clinical skills and are taught how to conduct a general clinical examination to prepare you for EMS placements in veterinary surgeries. What they don’t prepare you for is making a complete idiot out of yourself. Before my first clinical placement I told the vets I would be working…

  • It’s worth ruling out hypothyroidism if blood cholesterol is elevated

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    To be truthful, I have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to hypothyroidism. I often find few dogs follow the traditional textbook description of the clinical signs. I have seen two cases of late with elevated cholesterol, but no hair loss, unexplained weight gain, heat seeking and mucinous skin thickness. Both cases had blood…

  • PCV and blood transfusions

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    There are no specific packed cell volume guidelines as to when to transfuse an animal with red blood cell containing products. The decision to transfuse is based on the clinical condition of the patient and the chronicity of the anaemia. For example, a cat with chronic non-regenerative anaemia due to bone marrow disease may be…

  • Diagnosis of Lyme disease

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    Diagnosis of Lyme’s disease is challenging and normally depends on evidence of exposure along with clinical signs and diagnostic tests. Tests for Borrelia burgdorferi can be divided into those that demonstrate presence of the organism, and antibody tests. Detection of the organism by culture, cytology, or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay can be difficult as…

  • The German attitude to learning

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    The vet handed me the needle and vacuum tubes and, at the slightly bewildered look on my face, asked if I’d ever taken blood from a horse before. Upon my answer of “no”, he shrugged and said: “I’ll show you the first one, instruct you for the second, then you can do it by yourself.”…

  • Ignorance is bliss

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    Over the last month there’s been quite an uproar over the reality of the production of halal and kosher meat, which has finally been brought to forefront of the public eye after the controversial decision to ban slaughter without stunning in Denmark. There has been nationwide outrage and horror at the claims that slaughter without…