vettechresource.comA Veterinary Technician in Los Angeles

A typical general practice case you might see is an animal with hot spots.

DEFINITION: HOT SPOT - An area on an animal that has been licked over and over often causing skin infections. Hot spots can be located anywhere on an animal that can be reached with the tongue.

When a case like this comes into the hospital, the doctor will do a physical exam and request certain diagnostics.

DEFINITION: DIAGNOSTICS - Various tests to be done to help determine a diagnosis.

It is the technicians responsibility to restrain the patient while the exam is being performed. In addition to restraint, the tech will also perform diagnostic testing for the doctor. The most standard diagnostic testing includes blood work (CBC/CHEM and PCV/TP) and radiographs. These tests are run to rule out other problems that might be going on with the patient before treatment can take place for the hot spots.

DEFINITIONS:

CBC (complete blood count) indicates electrolyte imbalances, present infection, and anemia.

CHEM (chemisrty) indicates organ malfuction and/ or disease

PCV/ TP (packed cell volume/ total protein) indicates anemia and dehydration

RADIOGRAPHS (xrays) diagnostic imaging

the above are not complete definitions of each diagnostic.

Once the diagnostics have been completed, and it’s been determined that the animal is stable enough for treatment, the doctor will give orders to treat the patient.

Treatment for hot spots include shaving, cleaning, and applying antibiotic ointment to the affected area(s). The MOST important treatment to prevent worsening or re-occurance of hot spots is to place an Elizbethan-collar on the patient to prevent licking or scratching the wounds.

DEFINITION: ELIZBETHAN-COLLAR (e-collar or cone) a collar that is worn around the neck, in the shape of a cone, that prohibits licking.

Before the patient is discharged from the hospital, it is the responsibility of the tech to fill any prescriptions and provide the owner with detailed discharge instructions. Discharge instructions explain to the client what procedures were performed, how to keep the area clean, and how to administer medications.

In most cases, treating hot spots are very straight forward and often heal with very few complications.

It was around 1 A.M. and I was fast asleep. My cell phone rings to the tune of Darth Vader’s theme in Empire Strikes Back. The hospital is calling, and I’m the vet tech who’s on-call that night for emergency procedures.

I arrive at the hospital 15 minutes after getting the call. The internal medicine doctor who’s on call with me arrives 15 minutes later.

The 24 hour emergency staff has already performed the physical exam, x-rays and blood work. The owner’s of ‘Lunar’, a sweet three year old black and white cat with long white whiskers, thought all she ate was thread. Upon looking at the xrays, it revealed ‘Lunar’ had also eaten a needle.

The first thing I do when I arrive is prepare the endoscope.

DEFINITION: Endoscope - An imaging instrument. A long tubular camera that’s inserted into the mouth, through the esophagus and into the stomach.

This procedure was performed on the wet table.

DEFINITION: Wet Table - A table that’s attached to a sink where exams and procedures are performed.

The doctor feeds the endoscope down into the stomach and locates the needle as it’s ready to go into the small intestine. To pull the needle from the stomach, the doctor then uses another instrument called alligator forceps. Through cautious handling by the doctor, she pulls the needle slowly back up trying to avoid puncturing anything along the way. As I hold my breath, she carefully continues pulling as it slides against the walls of the of the stomach then the esophagus and out through the mouth without injuring any tissue. Lucky for Lunar, her parents (owners) were quick to bring her into the hospital. If another half hour had passed, Lunar would have woken up with an incision from surgery.

This was a pretty routine case for me as I monitored ‘Lunar’s’ anesthesia and vital signs. Thankfully, we never went to surgery, so it was back to bed for me. We were very happy with the result.

‘Lunar’ had no complications and was discharged by 9 A.M that morning.