Pre-Anesthetic Blood Screening

At Murrayhill Veterinary Hospital all patients undergoing an anesthetic procedure receive pre-anesthetic blood screening prior to the procedure. This screening is performed to help ensure a safe anesthetic experience.  By discovering any underlying problems prior to surgery, the anesthetic protocol may be altered or the procedure cancelled. Blood panels evaluate parameters such as liver and kidney changes as well as red blood cell count. These tests can be performed the same day as the surgery because of sophisticated testing equipment in our lab. For our older patients, a more comprehensive panel of tests will be recommended prior to anesthesia.  (See our Canine / Feline Senior Wellness Plan.)

Pain Management

Your pet’s comfort is very important to us and we take pain management seriously for all our patients.  Every surgical patient receives narcotic pain medication prior to their procedure. Most receive an injection, but for more involved procedures we may use a narcotic patch applied 12 - 24 hours before the surgery. In addition we may administer local anesthetic blocks, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory injections, or constant rate infusions (CRI) of other medications to further control pain. We also employ the use of a surgical laser.  This provides significantly more pain relief than traditional scalpel surgery because it seals nerve endings allowing for increased comfort during healing. In addition, all patients go home with post surgical pain medication.

Anesthesia

We use only the safest anesthetic protocols for your pet including Isoflurane and Sevoflurane gas anesthesia – the same anesthetic agents used in human hospitals! Our anesthetic machines are carefully inspected and calibrated by certified anesthesia specialists on an annual basis to ensure they are working optimally.  Likewise, we customize our anesthetic protocols for each individual patient taking into account such factor as age, breed sensitivities, and recent lab work.

Vital Signs Monitoring

Electronic monitoring starts when your pet is anesthetized and continues until he/she is completely awake. This includes continuous evaluation of heart rate, as well as monitoring the oxygenation of the blood with every heartbeat with a pulse oximeter. In addition, we may use blood pressure and/or an electrocardiogram (EKG)—monitoring if indicated. All patients are cared for by trained Certified Veterinary Technicians. Just as importantly, every surgical patient recovers in our main treatment area —not in a kennel out of sight.

Intravenous (IV) Catheter Placement

Every patient undergoing anesthesia receives IV (intravenous) fluids during the procedures to ensure a safer experience. The IV fluids help in maintaining blood pressure during surgery and also helps improve recovery afterwards by ridding the body of anesthetic agents. The IV catheter also provides an immediate port for other drugs if needed.

Laser Surgery

Your pet’s health and comfort is as important to us as it is to you. The use of the laser for surgical procedures has many benefits over more traditional surgical techniques including:

1. LESS PAIN - laser energy helps pets heal with less pain because the laser seals nerve endings as it moves through tissue rather than cutting as with scalpel surgery.

2. LESS BLEEDING – the laser seals small blood vessels during surgery which allows us to operate with more precision and less bleeding for your pet.

3. LESS SWELLING - laser energy does not crush, tear or bruise tissues because the only thing that touches your pet is an invisible beam of light.

4. REDUCED RISK OF INFECTION – the laser sterilizes as it removes diseased tissue, killing bacteria that causes infection

5. REDUCED ANESTHETIC TIME – surgical and anesthetic time is often reduced on many procedures because of decreased bleeding and the increased speed at which many procedures can be performed.

A laser is ideal for most surgical procedures performed on your pet including cysts, tumors, warts, eye and ear diseases as well as all elective procedures. You can learn more about the use of lasers in pets by visiting:

• State of the Art Surgical Laser Procedures
• AccuVet
• or by asking one of our doctors.

Video Otoscopy

Our state of the art Video Otoscope allows us to better diagnose and treat many forms of ear disease including often undiagnosed middle ear disease. With the specialized irrigation system we can completely clean the ear canal including the middle ear. The scope also allows us to take images before and after to help our clients gain a better understanding of their pet’s condition.