VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts

Latest Episodes:

Using a point-of-care glucometer to identify septic peritonitis in the dog | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Oct 02, 2017

Show notes

Do you use a AlphaTRAK 2 glucometer in your veterinary clinic? In the veterinary emergency room, many of us utilize the veterinary handheld point-of-care (POC) glucometers to obtain rapid glucose measurements, as it only requires a tiny volume of blood. Not all hospitals have the benefit of having expensive lab analyzers and instead rely on the POC glucometers for glucose measuring. However, it's important to note that the accuracy of these POC glucometers can be affected by various factors such as the concentration of red blood cells present in the sample (e.g., anemia, hemoconcentration) and various medications. The POC glucometer utilizes a different mechanism by which to measure blood glucose levels than our traditional lab analyzers.

Fluid analysis in veterinary medicine: Effusion Confusion | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Sep 25, 2017

Show notes

Normally, our small animal veterinary patients have a very small amount of fluid within their body cavities. We can not see this radiographically, and most novice users of the ultrasound machine would also likely miss this effusion. The main goal of this fluid is to lubricate the surfaces of the organs and body walls like motor oil for your car engine. This allows the organs to glide over each other without friction, avoiding inflammation. That is in health. However, in states of disease, we see effusion develop which needs to be identified and characterized for both diagnosis and targeted treatment. So, if you see a dog or cat with abdominal effusion or pleural effusion, rapid fluid analysis is imperative!

Learning with veterinary toxicologist, Dr. Tina Wismer, DABT, DABVT, with the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Sep 18, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Dr. Tina Wismer, DABT, DABVT, Medical Director at the #1 Animal Poison Control Center, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, based out of Urbana, Illinois. Here, she shares the top 5 poisons affecting dogs and cats, including what clinical signs you may see and how to treat them. We'll also discuss some helpful hints when it comes to calling the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center - like having the patient signalment and exposure information ready, along with having the pet owner initiate the first phone call to create a case number. Dr. Wismer will also discuss the differences between cholysteramine and activated charcoal, talk about new updates in veterinary toxicology, and discuss why your veterinary clinic should be utilizing their expertise and services!

How to write a good veterinary client discharge | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Sep 11, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we discuss how to write a good discharge for your pet owners. While we're often busy in general practice, emergency practice, or specialty practice, it's so important that we write clear, concise discharges for pet owners. Here, Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT and Dr. Garret Pachtinger, VMD, DACVECC review all the pertinent information you need in your discharges! Help promote better client communication and education with these simple tips.

Prospective study on the use of hydrogen peroxide as an emetic agent in dogs | Dr. Alicia Niedzwecki | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Sep 04, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Dr. Alicia Niedzwecki, DACVECC, on a recent study that she performed entitled Effect of oral 3% hydrogen peroxide used as an emetic on the gastroduodenal mucosa of healthy dogs. In this study, Dr. Niedzwecki performed a prospective study aimed to investigate the effects of 3% hydrogen peroxide on the gastrointestinal mucosa in healthy dogs when ingested in amounts we routinely use for emesis induction. What'd they find? Maybe we shouldn't be using hydrogen peroxide in our veterinary poisoned canine patients after all, as evidence of esophagitis, gastritis and gastric ulceration can be seen. This study supports that hydrogen peroxide is not as benign as perhaps we once thought. While the authors' take away from this study was that the use of hydrogen peroxide shouldn't be recommended for at-home use in pet owners unless the benefits outweigh the risks, the toxicologist in me is going to take a little bit of a different take on it. VETgirl will likely still use it as an emetic agent (again, only in dogs), but now I'm going to add on gastric protectants and antacids for 1-2 weeks post-administration of hydrogen peroxide.

Survival of hypotensive cats in the ICU | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Aug 28, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the significance of lactate levels in hypotensive cats in the ICU. Can lactate be a prognostic factor for survival?

The growing prevalence of Lyme disease based on forecasting | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Aug 21, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we interview Dr. Jenna Gettings, DVM MPH, who is a Post-Doctoral Fellow with the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) on her recent paper A Bayesian spatio-temporal model for forecasting the prevalence of antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi, causative agent of Lyme disease, in domestic dogs within the contiguous United States. While this is mouthful, find out what you need to know about the Lyme prevalence data and the practical implications that this may have for veterinarians. Based off some pretty complex stats and math, this paper forecasts that Lyme disease is expanding geographically. More importantly, why do we care as health care professionals, and does this affect our treatment as veterinarians? Tune in to learn more!

How accurate are point-of-care glucometers in hemodiluted and hemoconcentrated canine blood samples? | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Aug 14, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the importance of anemia or hemoconcentration on blood glucose measurements when using point-of-care (POC) gluometers in our veterinary patients.

Tips and tricks to survive your veterinary internship and residency | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Aug 07, 2017

Show notes

In this VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT and Dr. Garret Pachtinger, VMD, DACVECC, discuss some helpful tips and tricks on how to survive your veterinary internship and veterinary residency. While you have to work hard during this upcoming year (or next two to three years), there are some easy tips to survive this learning period! You can do it! Any hints that you guys have? Share below!

Can I use maropitant chronically in my veterinary patients? | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts Jul 31, 2017

Show notes

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the chronic use of maropitant in veterinary medicine based on the most recent, cutting edge veterinary studies that have been done. In this podcast, we interview Dr. Jessica Quimby, DVM, PhD, DACVIM and Dr. Craig Clifford, DVM, DACVIM (Oncology) on their chronic use of maropitant in cats with chronic renal failure (CRF) and oncology patients, respectively. Can you use maropitant long-term without any problems?
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