Daryl D. Buss

Inhaled gases affect the ultrasound contrast produced by albunex® in anesthetized dogs

In anesthetized animals maintained with isoflurane using 100% oxygen as a carrier gas, Albunex (Molecular Biosystems, Inc., San Diego, Calif.) produced no ultrasound contrast in the left ventricle after intravenous administration. The current study tested the hypothesis that the inhalation of gas mixtures with increased concentrations of oxygen decreased the quality and duration of Albunex-induced contrast. Albunex (0.22 mL/kg) was injected intravenously into anesthetized dogs (n = 9) breathing compressed air, oxygen, mixtures of oxygen and nitrogen, or combinations of oxygen and nitrous oxide. Albunex produced ultrasound contrast of shorter duration and decreased quality during the inhalation of gas mixtures containing increased amounts of oxygen. In the presence of inhaled gas mixtures containing nitrous oxide, Albunex produced no contrast in the left ventricle, regardless of the oxygen content. These data indicate that the inhalation of gas mixtures containing smaller amounts of nitrogen, compared with air, decreased the ability of Albunex to cause ultrasound contrast in the heart after intravenous administration.

Veterinarians in biomedical research: building national capacity.

This Executive Summary provides the conclusions from the presentations and discussions at the conference Veterinarians in Biomedical Research-Building National Capacity, a meeting coordinated by the AAVMC and held at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, August 1-4, 2007.

Driving Success over the Past 50 Years—The Faculty in Academic Veterinary Medicine

The faculty at member schools and colleges of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) are critical for continued progress in veterinary medicine. The success of those faculty members over the past 50 years has positioned veterinary medicine to engage an ever-widening array of opportunities, responsibilities, and societal needs. Yet the array of skills and accomplishments of faculty in academic veterinary medicine are not always visible to the public, or even within our profession. The quality and the wide range of their scholarship are reflected, in part, through the according of national and international awards and honors from organizations relevant to their particular areas of expertise. The goal of this study was to illustrate the breadth of expertise and the quality of the faculty at 34 schools/colleges of veterinary medicine by examining the diversity of organizations that have recognized excellence in faculty achievements through a variety of awards.

Special Topic: Educational Theory and Practice

In the previous issue of the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education (JVME), Drs. Regina Schoenfeld-Tacher and Henry Baker introduced a new Special Topic focused on Educational Theory and Practice. The quality and broad relevance of the manuscripts submitted in response to their invitation to authors was impressive, and the number of submissions substantially exceeded the space available. With the continued assistance of Dr. Schoenfeld-Tacher, this issue continues that Special Topic with articles that are again noteworthy not only for quality but also for the significance of the contemporary educational issues that they address. The initiation of this Special Topic was yet another example of the exemplary leadership and guidance provided to the JVME by Dr. Henry Baker during his long tenure as Editor-in-Chief. I am indebted to him, to the JVME Editorial Board, and to the many JVME reviewers for maintaining a high standard of quality over the years. I also thank the Board of Directors of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) for their intellectual, philosophical, and, critically, financial support of the JVME. Finally, the University of Toronto Press continues to be a superb publishing partner for the JVME, and I am highly appreciative of the professionalism, expertise, and creativity of its staff. Academic veterinary medicine, and the profession of veterinary medicine at large, faces many pressing challenges as well as equally striking opportunities. As the premier, peer-refereed journal focused on innovation and advances in the broad field of veterinary medical education, the JVME is a critical resource at a pivotal time. The JVME is extraordinarily well positioned and equipped to provide the new knowledge in education that is so greatly needed, but also to serve as a venue for an informed and critical assessment of key issues that face academic veterinary medicine, now and in the future. It is my privilege to serve as Editor-in-Chief, and I look forward to working with a remarkable team to carry on the tradition of the JVME. It begs the obvious to say that we share a common goal of making the JVME highly successful, as can be defined by many conventional publishing metrics. However, our goal must be much broader than success alone. Albert Einstein is famously quoted for his cautionary statement ‘‘Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.’’ Applied to a journal rather than an individual, that statement encapsulates my personal goal for the JVME, a goal I know that you share. It is a pleasure and honor for me to work with you toward the attainment of that goal.