Small Animal Internal Medicine

Services We Offer

A big part of our job is to diagnose what's causing your pet's medical problem. We want to provide you with the best treatment available for that problem, which is why many of our services are Diagnostic in nature. We also offer Nuclear Medicine Tests and Treatments.

Treatment of Chronic Diseases

We treat chronic diseases including:

• Renal failure
• Liver disease
• Endocrinopathies (e.g., hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, diabetes,and adrenal disease)
• Feline asthma
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Immune-mediated diseases (e.g., hemolytic anemia and polyarthritis)

Advanced Diagnostic Procedures:

Endoscopy:
We offer advanced endoscopic procedures as a powerful and minimally invasive diagnostic tool for a variety of diseases.

Using a small fiber optic tube called an endoscope, we can directly visualize and access organs inside the body, allowing us to determine the extent of a disease, take biopsy samples from specific organs, remove foreign objects, and examine areas of the body like the nose, the abdomen, the gastrointestinal tract, and the bladder.

The approach requires general anesthesia and is generally a safe, non-surgical procedure often performed on an outpatient basis.

We offer the following types of endoscopy:

• Upper Gastrointestinal (GI) Endoscopy: Examination of the inside of the esophagus, stomach, and upper small intestine. Endoscopy is one of the best tools available for the diagnosis of GI disease in dogs and cats with vomiting and/or diarrhea. Not only can we examine these areas and obtain biopsy samples for microscopic evaluation, we can "balloon" open esophageal strictures, place gastric feeding tubes, and remove foreign bodies from the stomach before they become a surgical problem.
• Lower Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (Colonoscopy): Examination of the colon and the lower part of the intestine. We can look for disease, strictures, polyps, and other causes of diarrhea or painful defecation.
• Rhinoscopy: Examination of the nasal passages, nasal cavity, and even nasal sinuses from inside the nose. We can look for the cause of sneezing or nasal discharge, a bloody nose, or abnormal air flow. Biopsy samples can be attained as well as foreign body removal or treatment for nasal fungus.
• Laparoscopy: Minimally invasive examination of the entire abdominal cavity and its organs, looking for evidence of liver disease, pancreatitis, abnormal growths or masses, and other disease conditions. Laparoscopy is done through several incisions the size of a pencil eraser.
• Cystoscopy: Examination of the vagina, the urethra, and the inside of the urinary bladder. This procedure is routinely used to collect important samples in the diagnosis of bloody urine, chronic bladder infections, and bladder cancer. It also is used to help identify the cause of incontinence in dogs and even help in the treatment with the injection of collagen to tighten the sphincter.
• Bronchoscopy: Examination of the trachea (windpipe), and airways inside the lungs. This is an important procedure for collecting samples for microscopic examination (cytology) as well as the identification and culture of infectious organisms causing signs of respiratory disease.

Arthrocentisis:
Obtaining fluid from a joint. This procedure is used to help determine the cause of joint swelling, pain, decreased range of motion, and certain types of arthritis including immune-mediated or rheumatoid disease.

Bone Marrow Aspiration:
Removal of a small amount of bone marrow and cells. This procedure is used to check for blood cell abnormalities, chromosome problems, or to look for infection or cancer.

Trans-Tracheal Wash:
Collection of samples from the airways for culture and cytology for patients with significant and diffuse respiratory disease.

Venipuncture:
A common blood draw, intravenous fluids, or medicine administration via the veins.

Cystocentesis:
Collection of urine in a sterile manner, which is ideal for the diagnosis of urinary tract infection and/or inflammation.

Lymph Node Aspirates:
Withdrawal of tissue from a lymph node. The tissue is used for diagnosis or assessment of a swollen lymph node.

Nuclear Medicine Tests & Treatments

Colonic Scintigraphy:
This is a fast, safe, and sensitive way to look for a portosystemic shunt (abnormal vasculature taking blood around instead of through the liver) if the defect cannot be found using abdominal ultrasound.

Thyroid Scan:
A radioactive tracer is used to complete a thyroid scan, which can be useful to examine the size, shape, location, and function level of the thyroid gland.

I-131 Treatment:
I-131 is a radioisotope therapy used to treat hyperthyroidism in cats without the need for daily medication or surgery. Radioactive iodine has a high success rate at selectively destroying overactive parts of the thyroid glands. Read more...

Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR):
A test to measure kidney function or determine stages of kidney disease.

We also provide advanced treatment and care for infectious diseases such as: parvovirus, bordatella, distemper, methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection, leptospirosis, and other infectious diseases.