Christopher R. Lamb

Acute pancreatitis in the dog

PANCREATITIS is a problem familiar to most small animal practitioners, yet the diagnosis can be difficult to confirm, treatment is non-specific and the prognosis is guarded because there are no criteria for accurately predicting the outcome. Similar difficulties were encountered in humans with pancreatitis until intensive research enabled an improved understanding of the pathophysiology, more accurate methods of diagnosis and predicting severity, and a rational basis for selecting patients needing surgical treatment. This article describes the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of pancreatitis in the dog, highlighting recent advances influencing patient care.

THE FIRST TWENTY‐ONE YEARS OF VETERINARY DIAGNOSTIC ULTRASOUND

The veterinary literature of 1966–1986 was searched for articles and books related to the use of diagnostic ultrasound in animals. There were 492 references, categorized as follows: general, 30; small animal applications, 169; large animal applications, 248; blood pressure measurement, 23; ultrasound-guided biopsy, 4; miscellaneous, 18.

Abdominal radiography in small animals

Increasingly widespread use of ultrasonography has led to a decline in the use of abdominal radiography in small animal practice; however, radiography remains an efficient and useful technique for examining a patients abdomen. This article reviews the role of radiography in the diagnosis of some common conditions affecting the gastrointestinal and urinary tracts and the peritoneal cavity in small animals.