News
Dear Friends,
We just wanted to pass along a couple links that recently made national news....
Here a story just launched from ABC News....
Arthritis Therapy Center
Just like in people, arthritis occurs in pets. It develops gradually, so it is not surprising that most owners are unaware of its painful effects on their pets. While this is understandable, it is also preventable at Ehrlich Animal Hospital's Arthritis Therapy Center. While arthritis can manifest as a result of injury, heredity or simply because of a pet's age, our Arthritis Therapy Center offers the means to have your pet live a longer and happier life. Our goal is to give your family more pain free years to enjoy the company of your beloved pets.
Ehrlich Animal Hospital offers several degrees of specialty arthritis therapies and treatments that may not be currently available at other local animal hospitals. Our hospital is unique in that we offer cutting edge arthritis therapy technologies: therapeutic laser treatments, injectable medications and oral medications to reduce inflammation and discomfort. Most notably, in 2011, we earned certification by Medivet to administer stem cell therapy to enhance our existing series of effective therapies. We are exited about this and all of our new arthritis therapy technologies. Most importantly, we have seen excellent success in their applications for your pets.
We love your pets and we know that you do too. Let us ensure that your pets live the longest, healthiest lives possible.
Thank you for your continued confidence in our love and concern for your pet's health and longevity.
- The Ehrlich Animal Hospital Veterinarians and Staff
» Click here to learn more about Arthritis Treatment Options
Another stem cell option for pets
By Cynthia Smoot
Published: Thursday, December 1, 2011
TAMPA - Stem cell therapy for dogs, cats, and horses has been around for a few years. But as companies compete, the technology keeps improving. And today, a Hillsborough County vet clinic became only the second in the Bay Area to offer same-day procedures.
Taya, a 7-year-old purebred doberman, has painful arthritis in both hips and her left elbow. But she's about to begin a procedure that promises to help her move and feel better.
It starts with harvesting some of her belly fat, which is rich with stem cells "They're laying dormant in the fat, so once we retrieve them and they're activated, then they can help repair the tissues and reduce the inflammation," explained Dr. Harold Langbehn.
Dr. Langbehn and the other vets at Ehrlich Animal Hospital are the first in Hillsborough County to offer the MediVet stem cell procedure.
After harvesting the cells, they isolate and activate them with a special light -- a procedure that takes about three hours.
MediVet says that's what makes their procedure unique -- everything's done in-house, same-day, with technology they say produces millions more stem cells.
"I think it has tremendous potential for not only arthritic dogs," Dr. Langbehn continued, "but maybe other diseases in the future, both animal and people."
The MediVet rep I spoke with says dogs usually feel better almost right away, even though it takes nearly a month for the stem cells to start regenerating.
The costs of the treatment varies, but it's not inexpensive. Ehrlich Animal Hospital is offering the procedure for $2,500 through the end of the year, then the price will rise to $3,000.
Source: http://www.myfoxtampabay.com
Stem cell treatment may help dogs with arthritis
Published: Monday, December 5, 2011
They said goodbye to Bourbon at the Ehrlich Animal Hospital. At, 13, the German shepherd mix was too arthritic to stand.
The veterinarian had told Debbie and Bruce Wilinski that the dog would give them a look when he was ready for it all to end.
"I saw the look," Debbie said. "I never want to see that look again."
Last week, more than a decade later, the Wilinskis returned with another dog in pain. But for Canyon, the visit was a second chance. For $2,000, he would undergo a procedure using his own stem cells to bring new life to old joints, easing his pain and slowing his arthritis.
The technique, promoted by a company called MediVet America, has taken hold in a country where 8 million dogs suffer from the degenerative condition.
There's still no scientific proof that the treatment helps in the long term, and no certainty that every owner will get a return on the investment.
But hundreds of pets like Canyon have undergone the procedure. Some now play Frisbee.
The term "stem cell" may call to mind controversy, but ethical debates about human embryos are a separate matter.
Stem cells are found in adults, too. They are called the building blocks of the body because they begin as a wild card but can divide into specialized cells that do different jobs, like make cartilage, bone and muscle. They are being researched around the world for treatment of human disorders such as spinal injuries, heart problems and auto-immune diseases.
Some of the leading veterinary schools in the country have been doing their own work with stem cells. Colorado State University is looking at them in relation to chronic kidney disease in felines. The University of California at Davis has found life-sparing treatments for horses with hoof problems. The University of Georgia is exploring the anti-inflammatory effects of stem cells.
Meanwhile, MediVet and another company called Vet-Stem have taken the developing science into the clinic. In the MediVet procedure, which can be performed by any veterinarian with the right training and equipment, the dog goes under anesthesia and a doctor extracts a tablespoon of fat from its belly.
A veterinary technician takes the fat into a lab and, through filtering and spinning, isolates the stem cells and activates them using LED light, in a process called photomodulation. The stem cells are then reinjected into the dog's problem areas and the animal goes home.
The stem cells incorporate into the joints. The dog gets a couple of weeks of rest.
Then, results.
• • •
Scientists are optimistic and cautious. But pet owners interviewed by the Times sounded like they could do infomercials.
"It was like watching a miracle," said dog owner Lila Najar.
Najar had taken her 8-year-old Shih Tzu to her Orlando veterinarian to be euthanized. The dog, Amy, suffered from arthritis and could no longer stand.
Cortisone shots weren't working. Amy's hind legs weren't working. Najar had spent three months carrying her dog.
Then, as they sat in the clinic, the doctor suggested an alternative. He was looking for five patients to try the MediVet treatment. Were they interested?
"Of course, I said yes," said Najar. "This was five months ago. And she's still walking."
Hummer, a 7-year-old dog with hip dysplasia, would play for a few minutes, then need to rest for two or three hours. Now after the therapy at his Panama City Beach clinic, he can go for hours.
"He's running around today like he did when he was 2 or 3," owner Dustin Stokesbary said. "Unbelievable results. ... The one thing we don't know is how long it will last."
That's true for all dogs who undergo MediVet therapy, which has been in use for the past two years. Some dogs may never need it again, MediVet predicts. Others may need a repeat treatment. The long-term results are still unknown.
University doctors studying stem cell technology are paying attention to MediVet. Three who spoke with the Times were of two minds: It's great that dog owners are getting results from a therapy widely considered safe. But at the same time, researchers aren't yet sure exactly what the implanted stem cells are doing.
"I know the veterinarians," Dr. John Peroni, of the University of Georgia, said about the MediVet doctors. "They're very respected individuals. If they're reporting the successes that they are, which they are, they're not making it up. ... But they cannot make any claims about why (the treatments) work."
It could be the anti-inflammatory effects under study in stem cells, the experts say. It could be that cartilage is growing, though cartilage doesn't grow as fast as the results owners are seeing. It could be a combination involving something still unknown, yet to be discovered in a laboratory.
The answer could emerge through controlled clinical trials, prolonged studies, and peer-reviewed work.
"The science is catching up," said Dr. Sean Owens, director of the veterinary Regenerative Medicine Laboratory at UC Davis. "Our goal is to put the underpinnings under the therapies that are out there right now."
Injections of stem cells for arthritis in humans are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but some medical clinics advertise the procedure.
There are exciting possibilities for veterinary stem cell therapy — the potential for taking stem cells from younger dogs and injecting them into older ones, and the ability to bank cells for use in a dog's senior years, a technology already being offered by MediVet.
Still, the technique may not be the answer for all arthritic dogs. Surgery is still the best option for a lame dog with significant bone deterioration and a femur no longer contained by a hip socket, Dr. Peroni said.
"On the other hand, a dog with mild amounts of arthritis, not particularly lame but yet it's obviously affected in the fact that it cannot play Frisbee, give the stem cell a shot," Peroni said. "It's a very benign treatment, very straight-forward, no side effects and it might be really useful for a period of time ...
"We are definitely jumping the gun in attributing miraculous properties to stem cell treatments," he said. "But there is a mounting evidence that stem cells do have amazing properties that will benefit animals and humans in the future."
• • •
Canyon could not wait for the future. His owners had been spending $700 or more a month for treatments including laser therapy, glucosamine shots and pain medication.
"I'd say if we had not done this treatment," said Bruce Wilinski, "in about six months, we would have been looking at putting him down."
Last week, at the Ehrlich facility, their vet, Dr. Harold E. Langbehn, led them to a kennel where a groggy Canyon lay, his belly sewn, his joints shaved for the injections they hoped would change his life.
They met Canyon as a puppy 14 years ago at the Humane Society after Bourbon died. Now he's an old dog with white whiskers.
Debbie crouched by his side.
"Hello there, little angel," she said. "You're going to feel better."
Source: http://www.tampabay.com/
Introducing E-Pet Health!
As of October 1st, we will be discontinuing Pet Portals from Vet Street and introducing E-Pet Health from Webster Veterinary. When the change occurs you will receive a new welcome e-mail from e-pet health. This new system has all of what Pet Portals had with many new perks for client friendly use.
Pet Wellness Packages
Ehrlich Animal Hospital introduces its new pet wellness packages to provide you with the best care for your pets at the best price.
Affiliated with Home Again!
Ehrlich Animal Hospital is pleased to be affiliated with Home Again!
Home Again is a trustworthy lost pet recovery service which uses state of the art microchipping technology. Read the many wonderful recovery stories at www.HomeAgain.com!
