What Is Veterinary Neurology?

Veterinary Neurology is the branch of medicine that treats diseases of the nervous system: the brain, spinal cord, nerves, and muscles in pets. This encompasses such common problems as epilepsy, herniated disks, spinal and head injuries, meningitis, and cancers of the nervous system. A board certified veterinary neurologist is a licensed veterinarian who has obtained additional intensive training in veterinary neurology and has been certified by either the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) in the United States or the European College of Veterinary Neurology (ECVN) in Europe to specialize in veterinary neurology.

While your general practitioner veterinarian can diagnose and treat many health problems, certain diseases and conditions require the care of a doctor who has had specialized, intensive training in veterinary neurology in order to provide the very best outcome for your pet.

Why Does My Pet Need A Veterinary Neurologist?

Just as your own primary care physician may feel the need to refer you to the care of a specialist from time to time, your general practitioner veterinarian may feel your pet needs a veterinary neurologist to help diagnose or treat a problem. While your general practitioner veterinarian can handle many aspects of your pet's care, just as in human medicine, there is sometimes a need for the attention of a specialist. You can be assured that a veterinarian who knows when to refer you and your pet for more specialized diagnostic work or treatment is one that is caring and committed to ensuring that your pet receives the highest standard of medical care for his or her condition.

Specifically, veterinary neurologists can provide the following:

• A thorough neurologic examination, which may be videotaped for future reference.
• Brain and spinal cord imaging, including CT and bone scans, MRI, ultrasound, myelography, and radiography.
• Spinal fluid tap and analysis.
• Intensive care.
• Neurosurgery of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerve system.
• Electrophysiologic examination of nerves and muscles.
• Knowledge of clinical trials available to pets with specific neurologic disorders.

Will My Regular Veterinarian Still Be Involved?

In many cases, your regular veterinarian will still supervise your pet's veterinary care, especially if your pet is coping with multiple disease states or conditions. In other cases, your referral doctor will take over the majority of your pet's medical care for the duration of its referred treatment. It depends on your pet's particular problem.

Did You Know?

• In an emergency, the safest way to transport a seizuring or unconscious pet to its veterinarian, for both you and the pet, is in an airline crate.
• There are less than 100 veterinary neurologists in the United States today.
• Seizures are the most common neurological problem in companion animals.
• Intervertebral disk disease is the most common spinal cord problem in dogs.