Neurosurgery in dogs and cats is now performed routinely throughout the world at a number of specialist centers. Veterinary neurosurgery in North America is performed almost exclusively by board certified neurologists or by board certified surgeons. Dr. Sharp is board certified both in neurology and in surgery. He is the primary author of the only current textbook dedicated to veterinary neurosurgery – Small Animal Spinal Disorders, 2nd Edition (2004) and is also the section editor for neurosurgery in one of the best-known veterinary surgery textbooks. Textbook Of Small Animal Surgery, 3rd Edition (2003).
Figure 5A: 3-Dimensional reconstruction of a CT scan made from a dog with Wobbler syndrome. Two bone screws (shown here in blue) have been used to stabilize the affected vertebrae. The spinal cord is shown as a pink, bean-shaped structure in the center of the spine (arrow).
Medical therapies are used to treat a wide variety of neurological disorders. Anticonvulsants such as potassium bromide and phenobarbitone are used to treat epilepsy, antibiotics are used to treat some types of meningitis & encephalitis as well as most cases of discospondylitis. Certain tumors respond well to mild forms of chemotherapy. Chemotherapy for animals is not associated with the nausea and hair loss that occurs in humans and is usually tolerated very well.
Physical Therapy is crucial to the rehabilitation of animals with neurological disorders. We are lucky to have a full time physical therapist, Cynthia Webster, to provide expert rehabilitation services to our patients. See also the SPAW in Aldergrove, BC.
Figure 5B: Dog with severe weakness caused by a disc herniation in its neck undergoing training on a balance board. This type of therapy helps the dog to retrain it’s balance and regain it’s strength.
Physical therapy has now been shown to be of value in a number of neurological disorders, for example following Fibrocartilaginous embolism (also called FCE). Click here for more information on FCE.
Radiation therapy is a way to control microscopic amounts of cancer cells left behind after surgical excision. It can also be used as the primary modality for treatment of some tumors such as those that cannot be excised completely with surgery. Animal Critical Care do not yet have a radiation therapy facility. The nearest centers that offer this service are Veterinary Oncology Services in Seattle, WA or the College of Veterinary Medicine in Pullman, WA.
