Patient of the Week

December 14th thru 18th, 2009

and the winner,
with 122 votes, is. . . .

PATIENT SUMMARY:
Gus is a 5 year old, 51 pound Blue Heeler mix. Gus was referred to Azzore by Dr. Bonnie McLaughlin of Wedington Animal Hospital. Gus suffered a right femur fracture, proximal (or the end closest to the body) involving the femoral neck and calcar, from a gunshot wound. Xrays also show that Gus suffers from bi-lateral hip dysplasia. His humans want Dr. Dew to take care of the fracture today, and may consider total hip replacment for Gus in the future.

TREATMENT:
Gus had a pretty nasty fracture.  Dr. Dew was able to reconstruct the majority of calcar area, but there was minimal bone available for implant seating.  He reduced the fracture, stabilized the bone with transcortical wires, pins, and tension band wires, and then placed an external fixator on Gus’s leg to hold his stifle in flexion while the bones heal. Dr. Dew co-designed the acrylic sidebar external fixator method used to repair Gus’s fracture.

Congratulations Gus!

A Very Special Patient – Part Three

How Dr. Dew Saved Christmas

Patient of the Week Candidates

for the week of December 14th thru 18th, 2009

Review the patient summaries below then  vote for your favorite patient.
The patient with the most votes wins the “Patient of the Week” title.

Then the POTW with the most votes in a month will
be dubbed Azzore’s Patient of the Month and will receive
an extra special prize package from Dr. Dew and the Dew Crew.

PATIENT SUMMARY:

Meet Max.  Max is a 3 month old, 5 pound Chihuahua who apparently thought he was superdog and could fly!  Max jumped from a place that was just a little too high off the ground.  The result?  A fracture of his left humerus, lateral condyle.  Dr. Stephanie Kessler with Lake Hamilton Animal Hospital referred Max and his humans to Azzore Veterinary Specialists for a fracture repair.

A Very Special Patient – Part Two

Dr. Dew Diagnoses Torn Cruciate Ligament. . . on a 282 lb Patient!!!

Once upon a time in Russellville, AR…

In Episode One, Kris made an appointment for his pet Rudy. In this episode, Dr. Dew diagnoses a torn cruciate ligament on his 281.6 pound mystery patient!

Patient of the Week

December 7th thru 11th, 2010 

And this week’s winner,
with 43 votes, is. . . .

PATIENT SUMMARY:
Konor is a 7 month old, 40 lb mixed breed dog. Konor’s veterinarian, Dr. Durham, has diagnosed coxofemoral hyperlaxity.  Lately, Konor has been consistently lame on the left rear. Xrays taken last month demonstrate bilateral poor acetabular congruity, subluxation with less than 15% femoral head coverage. The plan is to assess Konor’s angle luxation/reduction under anesthesia to see if he would be a candidate for TPO.  If not, then we will do a total hip replacement.

TREATMENT:
While under anesthesia, Konor’s left hip was luxated, but Dr. Dew was unable to reduce and achieve ortolani. Konor’s family wants to go ahead with a total hip replacement.  In a Total Hip Replacement, both the femur (ball) and the acetabulum (socket) of the hip joint are replaced with implants.  As is typical with orthopedic procedures, Konor will need to be exercise restricted with no off-leash activity for 12 weeks while he recovers.

Congratulations Konor!

A Very Special Patient – Part One

Special News Report: Could This Be The End of Christmas? 

Patient of the Week Candidates

for the week of Dec 7th thru Dec 11th, 2009

Review the patient summaries below
then vote for your favorite patient.
The patient with the most votes wins the “Patient of the Week” title.

Then the POTW with the most votes in a month will
be dubbed Azzore’s Patient of the Month and will receive
an extra special prize package from Dr. Dew and the Dew Crew.

 At the end of the month, we’ll repost the weekly winners. The Patient of the Month will receive a gift package from Azzore Veterinary Specialists with treats for both pet and owner. So, if one of these babies is yours, be sure to cast your vote and have your friends and family vote for them as well! Your pet just may win the Patient of the Month prize from Azzore.

PATIENT SUMMARY:
First up is Abby.  Abby is a 11 1/2 year old, 63 lb Black Lab mix.  Abby was sent to us by Dr. Jayasundera after her family had her looked at for left rear limb lameness which had lasted for a month.  Dr. Jay  identified a left cranial cruciate ligament injury, and sent Abby to Dr. Dew for treatment.  At her examination, Dr. Dew confirmed the diagnosis and Abby was admitted to our surgery center for surgery. 

TREATMENT:
The procedure Dr. Dew used to correct Abby’s injury is a Tibial Tuberosity Advancement.  Abby looks a little worried, but she has nothing to fear.  Dr. Dew has performed thousands of these procedures.  In fact, cruciate ligament rupture is the most common orthopedic injury in dogs of all breeds and sizes.  Abby will have to be exercise restricted to only leash activity for the next 12 weeks to give her bones time to heal.  But, after that, she should be back out on the trail chasing rabbits again! (more…)

Patient of the Week

November 30th thru December 3rd, 2009

and the winner of our very first
Patient of the Week

with 50 votes is. . . .

PATIENT SUMMARY:
Our next contestant, Lilly, is a 1 year and 9 month old, 105 lb female spayed Mastiff mix. Lilly has a history of bilateral rear limb weakness and dysfunction, which recently got worse. Her regular veterinarian, Dr. Seminara, identified hip dysplasia as well as bilateral cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture. In our surgery center, Lilly struggled to rise and sit. Her radiographs show bilateral coxofemoral subluxation, femoral neck thickening and osteophyte formation. Her mom has decided to go ahead with bilateral tibial tuberosity advancement for now.
 
TREATMENT:
Both of Lilly’s stifles were corrected with tibial tuberosity advancements. We had the easy part. The difficult part is the aftercare. For the next 12 weeks, Lilly will need to be exercise restricted while her bones heal. She was released to her parents with a special  harness by Blue Dog Designs to assist her family in helping her get around.

Congratulations Lilly!

Canine Total Hip Replacement

Breaking News Story

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