Illicit Toxicities: Treat the Worst First

What can you do to ensure your staff is safe and the patient is comfortable while producing good-quality diagnostic radiographs? Tune in to this VetFolio Voice podcast episode to learn about hands-free radiography. It complements existing compassionate care efforts across veterinary medicine, helping veterinary technicians and veterinary assistants to minimize the stress of obtaining radiographs for patients. The approach reduces exposure to radiation for veterinary assistants and technicians via proper protocols of gentle sedation (when indicated), anti-anxiety medicines if appropriate and hands-free positioning approaches. The results are quality images which are obtained more efficiently with a reduced number of retakes while improving the safety and overall experience for hospital teams and patients.

With dogs living longer, veterinary professionals are seeing more patients presenting with cognitive decline, a degenerative disease that worsens over time. Although there isn’t a cure, there are ways to manage cognitive dysfunction. Tune in to this episode of the VetFolio Voice podcast to deepen your understanding of the causes, early signs and treatments and get tips for communicating with clients. You’ll explore how tools like questionnaires can help identify signs, plus learn how atrophy in part of the brain can be seen on MRI. You’ll also discover how antioxidants can slow the progression of cognitive decline, how to keep aging dogs active and engaged, and the importance of managing anxiety and behavioral issues earlier in life.

One of the most important parts of offering oral health services in your practice is making sure your team understands the key components of a successful veterinary dental procedure. In this VetFolio Voice podcast episode, get tips for conducting the consultation, pre-anesthetic examination and a thorough workup. Get an insider’s look at what impacts the day’s workflow, including procedure length, pain management, anticipated recovery, and staff scheduling and abilities. You’ll learn about the importance of having a routine and maintaining focus particularly during induction and recovery, plus review important considerations during the procedure from premedication and induction to nerve blocks, patient positioning and intraoperative radiographs. Finally, you’ll explore best practices for patient discharge, follow-up care, and home care recommendations to support optimal recovery.

In this episode of the VetFolio Voice podcast, we’re joined by renowned veterinary surgeon and educator Dr. Terry Fossum, who probes a number of complex issues in veterinary medicine. Dr. Fossum takes us on a deep dive into the world of drug discovery, sharing insights on the challenges and breakthroughs in developing new treatments for animals. Noting that veterinary education shouldn’t stop at graduation, Dr. Fossum emphasizes the importance of continuous learning in advancing veterinary care. Dr. Fossum also weighs in on the evolving debate between supplements and drugs, so that you can better understand how to choose the best option for your patients—and how to manage long-term care using both approaches. Whether you’re a seasoned vet or just starting out, this episode offers invaluable advice on improving patient outcomes and ensuring lasting health through informed decisions.

It’s everywhere you look—and it’s one of the hottest topics in veterinary medicine—artificial intelligence (AI). How informed are you about the ways in which AI can be used as an effective, innovative and beneficial tool? In this VetFolio Voice podcast episode, we explore the growing role of artificial intelligence in veterinary medicine and break down key terminology such as “agent” and “co-pilot” to demystify how these tools function in day-to-day practice. Tune in to learn about the practical applications of AI, from streamlining workflows to helping clinicians stay up to date with the ever-expanding medical knowledge base.

Dr. Michelle Oakley — Nat Geo WILD’s “Yukon Vet” — advocates that changing consumer habits and participating in grassroots efforts will have a greater, positive impact on wildlife conservation than sweeping legislative initiatives. In this VetFolio Voice podcast episode, you’ll learn how the “lose the loop” effort — cutting any loops on plastic bags, fishing line or other items before throwing them away — helps prevent entrapment of marine animals, plus so much more. Dr. Cassi and Dr. Oakley explore conservation success stories, such as Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka’s work with endangered mountain gorillas as well as some of the research Dr. Oakley is doing regarding safer capture protocols for wolves to facilitate their study and conservation. Find out about worldwide wildlife efforts that could use the support of veterinary professionals — even if you don’t have a background in zoo medicine or wildlife medicine.

Is your veterinary team prepared to treat pets that are exposed to illicit drugs, such as marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamines and alcohol? For a number of reasons, it can be challenging to manage these patients. From initial patient history to treatment, having a specific plan to approach these cases is fundamental to successful outcomes. This informative VetFolio Voice podcast episode addresses clinical presentation, good history taking, initial stabilization, diagnostics, treatment and client communication.

Luckily, veterinarians have an arsenal of medications available to treat dermatology conditions in their patients, including Apoquel (oclacitinib) for immediate itch relief during allergy flares, Cytopoint (lokivetmab) for dogs with difficulty taking pills or when needing longer-lasting itch control, and cyclosporine for more severe cases that require a stronger immunosuppressive response. In this VetFolio Voice podcast episode, Dr. Cassi and Dr. Watson explore the use of these drugs in managing dermatology cases. You'll learn when cyclosporine is most likely to be helpful and how to dose it — in particular, starting with a low dose and adjusting the dose up, giving with food to reduce GI upset, and giving with ketoconazole to help lower the dose of cyclosporine needed. You’ll also get insights into potential side effects and how to address them. Dr. Cassi and Dr. Watson take a look at the role of diet, allergy testing and immunotherapy in managing these cases, as well as emphasize the importance of referral in veterinary dermatology and the importance of early referral for successful management of these cases. Be sure to log into VetFolio and take the quiz to qualify for your CE credit! https://www.vetfolio.com/courses/stop-snoring-on-cyclosporine-podcast-quiz

Rick LeCouteur blends his many talents talents and passions — he is a natural storyteller, conservation photographer, digital artist and wildlife lover, as well as a veterinary neurosurgeon — into the craft of writing children's books that are designed to educate, captivate and inspire young readers to care about the planet and its inhabitants. Join Dr. Cassi in this special VetFolio Voice episode as she chats with Dr. LeCouteur about his journey as a children's book author and illustrator.

Sodium–glucose cotransporter (SGLT) 2 inhibitors are an exciting new class of drugs approved for the treatment of newly diagnosed diabetic cats. These drugs work by blocking the kidneys from reabsorbing glucose, which causes more glucose to be lost in urine and lowers blood glucose levels. Tune in to this episode of the VetFolio Voice podcast as host Dr. Cassi and her guest, Dr. Audrey Cook, explore when to consider an SGLT-2 inhibitor instead of insulin and how to successfully manage and monitor a cat receiving this treatment. Want to earn CE from this episode? Be sure to log into VetFolio and take the quiz to qualify for your CE credit! https://www.vetfolio.com/courses/feline-diabetes-when-and-how-to-reach-for-an-sglt-2-inhibitor-spel