March 2011 Derm Digest Newsletter

ADC Hosts Veterinary Students
 

If you have ever taken your pet to Animal Dermatology Clinic in our California locations, you might have seen a young person silently observing with the doctor. That person was probably a fourth-year veterinary student from the Western University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Established in 1977, Western University is a private college in Pomona, CA. When they started the veterinary medicine curriculum they became the newest college of veterinary medicine in over 30 years and are now 1 of only 28 veterinary schools in the United States.
Fourth-year veterinary students spend one month at a selected specialty veterinary practice as part of their curriculum learning from the doctors and observing first-hand the unique cases that are referred to specialty practices from local veterinarians.

Each student must attend eight specialty clinics as a requirement prior to graduation. Students may attend these veterinary clinics anywhere in the U.S. that have met the requirements of Western University to become a teaching hospital.
Animal Dermatology Clinic is now in its fifth year of hosting Western University students. With limited space available, slots are filled within days when the calendar is opened for the following year.
Students who opt for a rotation at dermatology can expect a quiz on their first day, a list of hands-on tasks and reading assignments and an assigned study project to present during their last week of attendance.
A number of these former students are now local practicing veterinarians and continue to work closely with the doctors at Animal Dermatology Clinic.

Warts and all…
Canine Cutaneous Papilloma

Warts (cutaneous papillomas) in dogs are caused by a viral infection that is transmitted either by direct contact with another dog or indirectly thorugh grooming instruments, insect bites, tattoo instruments, needles or bandages. The papilloma virus invades the skin through cuts, scrapes, or similar skin damage and proliferative tissue( warts) will develop after 2 to 6 months.
Cats (and other animals) can also develop warts, but the virus is species specific, so a dog cannot transmit the infection to a cat or a human.
Diagnosis of the warts are confirmed by taking a history, conducting a physical examination and a biopsy (microscopic examination of the skin tissue). The biopsy is important because some tumors can appear similar to warts.
The appearance of a canine wart is similar to a human wart, and has a verrucous (cauliflower) appearance. In dogs, warts can occur anywhere on the body, but are most commonly seen in the mouth, eyelids, legs and footpads. Large masses of warts especially those in the mouth may create difficulty in eating.
As most cases will undergo spontaneous remission no therapy is needed in the majority of cases, therefore treatment varies from benign neglect to surgery. However, in cases that do not resolve, therapy ranges from oral or topical antiviral medication to surgical removal, laser surgery or freezing. In the most severe cases, wart “vaccines” can be tried. Extreme cases may show hundreds of warts and due to the large surface area involved, medical treatment is unrewarding.
Rare documented cases warts have lead to malignancy, but this is far from the normal course of the virus.
Once a wart regresses, the animals are immune to subsequent infection for life.
(Download the print version for more pictures)