Vet Times

Tag: Endometritis

  • Dystocia, pt 4: caesarean tips

    Dystocia, pt 4: caesarean tips

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    Prolonged hypoxaemia, hypotension and hypoventilation are the top three causes of periparturient fetal mortality – for these reasons, all precautions must be taken to avoid it. As soon as authorisation has been obtained to proceed with a caesarean section, the patient should be stabilised immediately. This includes having perioperative blood work performed, and clinical hypoperfusion…

  • Abdominal ultrasound, pt 3: scanning procedure

    Abdominal ultrasound, pt 3: scanning procedure

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    I cannot stress enough how crucial it is to develop a systematic approach to doing ultrasounds. Not only will this approach help develop an anatomic mind map, it will also safeguard you from accidentally overlooking organs. When examining each individual organ, the same theory applies. This will ensure you look at each organ in its…

  • Abdominal radiography, part 2

    Abdominal radiography, part 2

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    Last week’s tips (Abdominal radiography, part 1) were about taking appropriate images. Now, here are some tips on interpreting those images. Interpretation I often find there is too much to look at and it gets confusing with overlapping organs. I like to step back and look from a distance; sometimes, this gives me an overview…

  • First time for everything

    First time for everything

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    I’ve been lucky enough to not, until very recently, have a patient die on the operating table. Nothing quite prepares you for what you experience in that moment you realise the animal is crashing. We had CPR training at uni, we run through the practice crash box to refresh everyone of what’s in it, and…

  • Regaining surgical confidence

    Regaining surgical confidence

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    Having worked at my latest practice for three months, I had something of an epiphany while in surgery. It was a routine cat spay, which I performed entirely unaided and, while this may sound like nothing out of the ordinary to most experienced surgeons – or even other remotely confident new grads – it seemed…

  • A defence of generalism

    A defence of generalism

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    Ahh, veterinary medicine. Look at it, stretching out over the horizon – so pretty. Look at all those referral centres. Of course, I remember back when it was all fields. Back in my day, you could be a proper mixed vet, expressing anal glands with the lingering scent of cowpat on your fingers, and an…

  • The consequences of making a mistake

    The consequences of making a mistake

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    Fertility work makes up a large proportion of cattle veterinary work in the UK and, after spending a month on the farm rotation at university, I can appreciate the importance of getting it right – and how hard it can be. Experienced large animal vets make it look easy – they scan the uterus and…