Vet Times

Tag: clinical

  • Giardia in cats

    Giardia in cats

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    Giardia lamblia is a protozoan parasite found in the small intestine of vertebrates. The most common cause of transmission in cats is faecal-oral, but cats can also become infected by drinking water containing the infective cysts. Most cats are asymptomatic, although they may keep passing on cysts for months or years. Clinical signs are most…

  • The great veterinary bake off

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    There is an unwritten rule that, at the end of each clinical placement (or, in some cases, every Friday), veterinary students are expected to produce some sort of edible creation for staff at the practice that so kindly opened its doors to them. The cop out (and to be quite honest, more expensive) option is a box of chocolates,…

  • Treatment of cat ringworm carriers

    Treatment of cat ringworm carriers

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    Cats, particularly long-haired varieties, can be carriers of ringworm but show no clinical signs at all. Diagnosis in the absence of skin lesions is made by either Wood’s lamp over the entire body (only 50-60% of positives will fluoresce), or by taking coat brushings and incubating the hairs, follicles and debris in a dermatophyte test…

  • Venusians, Martians and abscesses

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    Despite my continued annoyance at the non-appearance of hoverboards, the 21st century is truly a wonderful time to be alive. Contrary to the repeated attempts of 24-hour news channels to make us believe otherwise, many of us live in more tolerant and less violent societies than any of our ancestors. Men and women are now considered equals,…

  • Is our perfectionism making us ill?

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    My name is Jo and I’m a perfectionist. Perfectionism is a big part of who I am. I am grateful to that facet of my personality for many of my achievements, but I can see it has also caused issues in my personal and professional life. I read comedian Jon Richardson’s book It’s Not Me, It’s You about his…

  • Challenging Shar Pei dermatology cases

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    I recently saw a challenging dermatology case involving a 14-month-old Shar Pei bitch.

  • Fortnight of firsts at practice placement

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    I spent a couple of weeks at a mixed practice on extramural studies. It was a placement of firsts – first experience at a very “young” practice (lots of newish graduates), first clinical farm experience and first surgery experience. It gave me an insight into the difference between older, more experienced vets and new grads – from the…

  • OSCE season – the myths are out there

    OSCE season – the myths are out there

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    The final RCVS objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) for diploma nurses will be held this month, and in July City and Guilds have theirs. CQ will also have some around the end of term, too. There are many myths around OSCEs (everyone cries, someone always vomits, you can fail for wearing make-up, etc), but don’t worry. It’s…

  • Cytology better than swabs for culture in cases of otitis externa

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    This one’s a little controversial, but some evidence exists that taking swabs for culture from cases of otitis externa can lead to poor reproducibility. Swabs taken from the same ear may produce different isolates, and even when the isolates agree, they may have different (antibiotic) susceptibility patterns (Bloom, 2015; Graham-Mize et al, 2004; and Schick, 2007). Bloom (2015),…

  • Check for Demodex gatoi in pruritic cats

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    Demodex gatoi is an unusual cause of pruritus in cats, but given the challenging nature of establishing a diagnosis in cats (Hobi et al, 2011) it is well worth ruling out this parasite as a possible cause (Moriello, 2015). Karen Moriello reports finding this more oval, rather than cigar-shaped, form of Demodex more frequently in…