Veterinary rehabilitation: Much more than underwater treadmills Schaumburg, Illinois — When it comes to veterinary rehabilitation, most people probably imagine a dog walking happily (or perhaps warily) on an underwater treadmill.
In reality, says Dr. Janet Van Dyke, veterinary rehabilitation is the application of an all-new diagnostic algorithm to animal patients, focusing on soft tissues rather than bones and joints, and involving much more than treadmill exercises.
To give a better sense of the scope of veterinary rehabilitation and offer advice on adding rehabilitation to veterinary practices, Dr. Van Dyke, a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, will be hosting a series of sessions on the subject at this year's American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Convention in St. Louis.
"Veterinary rehabilitation is essentially bringing the skill set of physical therapy to the veterinary field," Dr. Van Dyke said. "It is the work done to get our veterinary patients back to peak performance after an injury or an illness."
Dr. Van Dyke estimates that about 90 percent of veterinary rehabilitation has to do with providing better diagnoses and then using manual skills to treat patients.
"This is something you can do in your exam room," Dr. Van Dyke said. "It is not something that requires a lot of bells and whistles, but it's also not something that you can just buy some equipment and take a weekend's course and know how to do it."
The history of veterinary rehabilitation essentially began in the 1960s in equine medicine, when horses went from beasts of burden to multimillion-dollar athletes. The canine market developed in Europe in the 1980s and spread to the United States in the 1990s. Dr. Van Dyke foresees pet owners continuing to drive demand for these services in the future.
"I think we're going to see veterinary rehabilitation becoming much more mainstream in general practice," Dr. Van Dyke said. "It's not unlike radiology in the '60s when we debated, 'Should I put an X-ray room in my new practice?' Now you wouldn't think of building a veterinary practice without one, and I think that's where we'll be in the next decade with rehabilitation."
Dr. Van Dyke will be presenting the following five sessions on veterinary rehabilitation at this year's AVMA Convention at America's Center in St. Louis:
Training the Rehab Team for Your Practice
Saturday, July 16
Room 123
12:30 p.m.-12:42 p.m.
What Is Veterinary Rehabilitation?
Monday, July 18
Room 130
8-8:50 a.m.
Panel Dialogue: Physical Therapists Working With Veterinary Patients
Monday, July 18
Room 100
10-10:50 a.m.
Rehabilitation Modalities and Therapeutic Exercises
Monday, July 18
Room 130
11-11:50 a.m.
Sports-specific Injuries and Their Rehabilitation
Monday, July 18
Room 130
2-2:50 p.m.
For more information, contact Michael San Filippo, media relations assistant, at 847-285-6687 (office), 847-732-6194 (cell).
###
The AVMA, founded in 1863, is one of the oldest and largest veterinary medical organizations in the world, with more than 81,500 member veterinarians worldwide engaged in a wide variety of professional activities. For more information, visit www.avma.org.
|
= AVMA/SAVMA Members Only
