OSU conference spotlights vet-med advancements
Thursday, September 29, 2005
The expansion and enhancement of the national identification system for food animals,
including its implementation in the state, are among current developments in veterinary
medicine that will be highlighted next week at Oklahoma State University.
The OSU College of Veterinary Medicine Fall Veterinary Conference will be held October
6 – 7 at the Wes Watkins Center on the Stillwater campus. The event welcomes veterinary
doctors and technicians from Oklahoma and throughout the nation, according to Dr.
Michael Lorenz, dean and professor at OSU’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences.
“The conference primarily serves to provide quality, continuing education for practicing
veterinarians in Oklahoma,” Lorenz said. “We bring in board certified, distinguished
individuals from across the country to lead sessions and help ensure that, in transferring
knowledge to the profession, we provide the most practical, relevant program we can
for our constituents.”
“The conference also doubles as the College of Veterinary Medicine homecoming so
it’s our pleasure to welcome back to campus our alumni from all corners of the world,”
Lorenz said.
Concerns about agriterrorism and, to a much greater extent, infectious diseases such
as mad cow disease have led to the utilization of computer microchips to track cattle,
according to Dr. Carolyn MacAllister, CVHS coordinator of continuing education.
“Animal identification systems are a fairly new development but are rapidly becoming
mandatory,” MacAllister said. “The idea is to know where cattle are and have been
‘from birth to the plate’ as a way to protect our food supply.”
“Sessions of the conference will provide an overview for veterinarians of what to
expect from the system and how it will be used in the event of, for instance, a Bovine
Spongiform Encephalopathy scare or an agriterror attack,” she said.
Dr. Becky Brewer, state veterinarian, and Dr. Scott Dewald on Friday will describe
the implementation of the national animal identification system in Oklahoma. Other
presentations will focus on technologies behind the system and their optimization.
“Because microprocessors are implanted into animals, the system has a number of cattle
management applications,” MacAllister said. “A session will involve the system’s use
in health monitoring and how practitioners may use various kinds of software to assist
their customers and clients.”
In addition to the food animal symposiums, the conference includes sessions on medical
breakthroughs in the care and treatment of equine and small animals. Highlights include
new developments in the neonatal care of foals, the management of skin ailments for
dogs and the diagnosis of respiratory disease in dogs and cats.
Following education sessions Thursday morning, Dr. Stephen Sundlof, director of the
Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, will give the conference
keynote speech at 11:30 a.m. Sundlof will detail his agency’s approval and regulation
of drugs used in veterinary medicine. His appearance is sponsored by the OSU College
of Veterinary Medicine Class of 1963.
The 2005 Fall Veterinary Conference is a presentation of OSU’s Center for Veterinary
Health Sciences, its Alumni Affairs and College Outreach offices and the Department
of Veterinary Technology at OSU-OKC.