Anesthesiology

Feb 15, 2011

Vocab:
Arthroscopy- puttig a camera in a joint
OCD - Stands for Osteo Condrosis Dissecans which is a shoulder disease that causes lameness in dogs. It is a cartilage flap in the joint that can cause arthritis and swelling.

The job of the anesthesiologists is to prepare an animal for surgery and make sure to pay attention to all vitals throughout the surgery. A dog that had OCD (look at vocab it is not what you think) came in today. Once the dog is asleep, they had to shave his shoulders and put in a tracheal tube (long tube that is put in the trachea to supply the dog with oxygen and pain medication), they also put a clip on the tongue that measures heart rate and oxygen level. This dog had to get an Arthroscopy, although this surgery is painful the veterinarian can look at the whole joint and it results in quicker recovery. The best thing was that all of what the camera filmed would show in two different televisions which made me able to watch (D). After they removed all of the tiny cartilage pieces, the vet students and I got to hold them. Watching this surgery made me feel surprised about how a little piece of cartilage that is lifted coud cause such big problems (F). The second case was a mare who was getting her ovaries removed. It was incredible to see how easily they were able to find the ovaries and take them out. The ovaries of the mare were about as big as golf balls (D). This rotation has shown me how crucial the anesthesiologists are, even during the surgeries the play an important role in making sure the animal does not feel much pain and is stable (A).