Ilona Rodan

Bio: Ilona Rodan is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Medicine & Health care. The author has an hindex of 16, co-authored 29 publications receiving 1391 citations.

2015 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats*

Abstract: Rationale: The robust advances in pain management for companion animals underlie the decision of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) and American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) to expand on the information provided in the 2007 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines. The 2015 Guidelines summarize and offer a discriminating review of much of this new knowledge. Relevance: Pain management is central to veterinary practice, alleviating pain, improving patient outcomes, and enhancing both quality of life and the veterinarian‐client‐patient relationship. These Guidelines support veterinarians in incorporating pain management into practice, improving patient care. Approaches: The management of pain requires a continuum of care that includes anticipation, early intervention, and evaluation of response on an individual patient basis. A team-oriented approach, including the owner, is essential for maximizing the recognition, prevention and treatment of pain in animals. Evidence base: The Guidelines include both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic modalities to manage pain; they are evidence-based insofar as possible and otherwise represent a consensus of expert opinion. Behavioral changes are currently the principal indicator of pain and its course of improvement or progression, and the basis for recently validated pain scores. Post-surgical pain is eminently predictable but a strong body of evidence exists supporting strategies to mitigate adaptive as well as maladaptive forms. Chronic pain is dominated by degenerative joint disease (DJD), which is one of the most significant and under-diagnosed diseases of cats and dogs. DJD is ubiquitous, found in pets of all ages, and inevitably progresses over time; evidence-based strategies for management are established in dogs, and emerging in cats.

AAFP and ISFM feline-friendly handling guidelines.

Abstract: Background The number of pet cats is increasing in most countries, often outnumbering pet dogs, yet cats receive less veterinary care than their canine counterparts.1 Clients state the difficulty o...

AAFP and ISFM Feline Environmental Needs Guidelines

Abstract: GUIDELINES RATIONALE: A cat's level of comfort with its environment is intrinsically linked to its physical health, emotional wellbeing and behavior. Having a basic understanding of the cat's species-specific environmental needs and how cats interact with their environment will provide a foundation for addressing these fundamental requirements. ENVIRONMENTAL NEEDS: Addressing environmental needs is essential (not optional) for optimum wellbeing of the cat. Environmental needs include those relating not only to the cat's physical surroundings (indoors or outdoors; in the home environment or at the veterinary practice) but also those affecting social interaction, including responses to human contact. FIVE 'PILLARS' FRAMEWORK: The authorship panel has organized the Guidelines around five primary concepts ('pillars') that provide the framework for a healthy feline environment. Understanding these principles and the unique environmental needs of the cat will help veterinarians, cat owners and care-givers to reduce stress, the incidence of stress-related disorders, and unwanted behavior in their feline patients and pets. The recommendations in the Guidelines apply to all pet cats, regardless of lifestyle.

AAFP-AAHA: feline life stage guidelines.

Abstract: Background and goals Cats have become the most popular pet in the United States, yet statistics about veterinary care for cats remain troubling. 1 Although most owners consider their cats to be family members, cats are substantially underserved, compared with dogs. In 2006, owners took their dogs to veterinarians more than twice as often as cats, averaging 2.3 times/year, compared with 1.1 times/year for cats, and significantly more dogs (58%) than cats (28%) were seen by a veterinarian one or more times/year. 2 Cat owners often express a belief that cats ‘do not need medical care’. Two reasons for this misconception are that signs of illness are often difficult to detect, and cats are perceived to be self-sufficient. 2 One role of the veterinarian is to develop a partnership with cat owners that will pave the way for a lifelong health care plan. These guidelines aim to outline an evidence-based life stage wellness program to aid the veterinary medical team in delivering the best comprehensive care for cats. Specific goals are to provide: Life stage classification Distinct life stages (age groups) in cats are not well defined, in part because individual animals and body systems age at different rates, a process that is influenced by many factors. These guidelines follow one convenient classification (see box below). These age designations help to focus attention on the physical and behavioral changes that occur at different stages (eg, congenital defects in kittens, obesity prevention in the junior cat). It must be recognized, however, that any age groupings are inevitably arbitrary demarcations along a spectrum, and not absolutes. Evidence-based health care Supporting references for specific recommendations are supplied where possible, and any previously published guidelines on particular topics are referred to where relevant. Readers should note, however, that the guidelines panel was hampered in its efforts by the relative paucity of disease incidence data by age group that is available, and there is an urgent need for research to guide the future of evidence-based feline health care. 3

The 2006 American Association of Feline Practitioners Feline Vaccine Advisory Panel Report

Abstract: Vaccination is a medical procedure, and the decision to vaccinate should be based on a risk-based assessment for each cat and each vaccine.

WSAVA guidelines for the vaccination of dogs and cats

Abstract: The WSAVA Vaccination Guidelines Group (VGG) was convened in 2006 with the responsibility of producing global vaccination guidelines for dogs and cats that would consider international differences in economic and societal factors that impact on the keeping of these small companion animals. They were launched at the 2007 WSAVA Congress and contemporaneously published in the Journal of Small Animal Practice (Day et al., 2007). English and Spanish versions were made publicly available on the WSAVA website. With recognition that this is a rapidly developing field of companion animal medicine, the VGG was reconvened in 2009 with the targets of (1) updating the 2007 guidelines for veterinarians and (2) preparing a new set of guidelines directed at the owners and breeders of dogs and cats. The VGG has met on three occasions during 2009–2010 and has had active electronic communication between these meetings. The present document represents the conclusion of the first target, and the VGG is well progressed towards the launch of owner‐breeder guidelines in 2010. The first activity of this second phase of the VGG was to assess the impact of the 2007 guidelines on the international veterinary community. To achieve this goal, it developed a simple questionnaire that was circulated to all 70 WSAVA member countries through their WSAVA Assembly representatives. The following questions were asked: 1 Were the 2007 guidelines widely available to veterinarians in your country? 2 Were the 2007 guidelines discussed by your national small animal veterinary association? 3 Does your national small animal veterinary association have its own guidelines for the vaccination of dogs and cats? 4 If not, has your national small animal veterinary association adopted the WSAVA guidelines? 5 Is there any significant conflict between the WSAVA guidelines and national practices in companion animal medical care? Each country that had its own vaccination guidelines was also asked to send a copy of these to the VGG. Responses were received from 27 countries, both from developed and developing nations. The 2007 guidelines were generally accessible by the veterinary community (for 18 of 27 respondents); where this was not the case, the reason was most often the unavailability of a translated version. Notably, the lack of computers and internet access in general practice was also flagged by some developing nations. The 2007 guidelines had been discussed by the small animal veterinary associations of 12 of 27 respondent countries. Thirteen of 27 respondent countries already had national guidelines in place or in the case of some smaller European countries had adopted those used by a larger neighbour. The VGG was privileged to be able to assess six of these national guidelines documents, which ranged from excellent succinct summaries to very detailed and substantial papers that provided solid background discussion of immunology and vaccination. The VGG was pleased to note that in 12 of 14 countries without vaccination guidelines, the national organizations had either fully adopted or recommended the WSAVA guidelines or were currently using them to develop their own national recommendations. It is also clear that in some countries, publication of the guidelines had precipitated discussion by national organizations that had sometimes been driven by pressure from the general public. Most respondents indicated a range of minor conflicts between the WSAVA guidelines and national practice, but these were not as great as anticipated. For example, many countries maintain legal annual revaccination for rabies, some countries do not have access to the full range of products listed in the guidelines (e.g. individual component products or extended DOI products), and others have specific national products from local manufacturers that are not globally available. The responses to this questionnaire underline the importance of global vaccination guidelines and of their current revision. The aim of this document is to update and extend the information given in the 2007 version; while much of the text and recommendations will remain the same, specific changes are: 1 A clear indication of the purpose of a guidelines document. 2 A discussion of passive immunization, in particular for canine distemper virus (CDV) infection. 3 Preliminary assessment of vaccines for canine influenza virus (CIV), leishmaniosis and malignant melanoma. 4 Discussion of differences in approach to feline upper respiratory virus (FHV‐1 and FCV) and feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) vaccination. 5 Recommendations for sites of vaccination for cats. 6 An update on cross‐protection for canine parvovirus (CPV) 2c. 7 A new fact sheet on rabies vaccines. 8 An expanded list of 60 frequently asked questions (FAQs). Feedback suggested that this aspect of the 2007 guidelines document was particularly useful to practitioners. 9 An image bank of major canine and feline vaccine‐preventable diseases. The VGG believes that these images will be of great value to the practicing veterinarian during the ‘vaccination interview’ with clients. The images are freely available via the WSAVA website and provide visual evidence of the significance and severity of infectious diseases that may be prevented by vaccination. The images may be used in the consultation room whilst addressing the ‘risk‐benefit’ of vaccination with pet owners. The VGG again acknowledges the important work undertaken by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) Canine Vaccine Task Force (Paul et al., 2006) and the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) Feline Vaccine Advisory Panel (Richards et al., 2006) in addressing companion animal vaccination issues. Since publication of the 2007 WSAVA guidelines, the European Advisory Board on Cat Diseases (ABCD) has also formulated recommendations for feline vaccination from the European perspective, and the work of this group has recently cumulated in publication of a special issue of the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery (Horzinek and Thiry, 2009).

AAHA Nutritional Assessment Guidelines for Dogs and Cats

Abstract: The American Animal Hospital Association recommends these nutritional assessment guidelines because good nutrition enhances pets’ quality and quantity of life, and is integral to optimal animal care. Incorporating nutritional assessment into regular animal care is critical for maintaining pets’

2015 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats*

Abstract: Rationale: The robust advances in pain management for companion animals underlie the decision of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) and American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) to expand on the information provided in the 2007 AAHA/AAFP Pain Management Guidelines. The 2015 Guidelines summarize and offer a discriminating review of much of this new knowledge. Relevance: Pain management is central to veterinary practice, alleviating pain, improving patient outcomes, and enhancing both quality of life and the veterinarian‐client‐patient relationship. These Guidelines support veterinarians in incorporating pain management into practice, improving patient care. Approaches: The management of pain requires a continuum of care that includes anticipation, early intervention, and evaluation of response on an individual patient basis. A team-oriented approach, including the owner, is essential for maximizing the recognition, prevention and treatment of pain in animals. Evidence base: The Guidelines include both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic modalities to manage pain; they are evidence-based insofar as possible and otherwise represent a consensus of expert opinion. Behavioral changes are currently the principal indicator of pain and its course of improvement or progression, and the basis for recently validated pain scores. Post-surgical pain is eminently predictable but a strong body of evidence exists supporting strategies to mitigate adaptive as well as maladaptive forms. Chronic pain is dominated by degenerative joint disease (DJD), which is one of the most significant and under-diagnosed diseases of cats and dogs. DJD is ubiquitous, found in pets of all ages, and inevitably progresses over time; evidence-based strategies for management are established in dogs, and emerging in cats.

2008 American Association of Feline Practitioners' feline retrovirus management guidelines

Abstract: Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) are among the most common infectious diseases of cats. Although vaccines are available for both viruses, identification and segregation of infected cats form the cornerstone for preventing new infections. Guidelines in this report have been developed for diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and management of FeLV and FIV infections. All cats should be tested for FeLV and FIV infections at appropriate intervals based on individual risk assessments. This includes testing at the time of acquisition, following exposure to an infected cat or a cat of unknown infection status, prior to vaccination against FeLV or FIV, prior to entering group housing, and when cats become sick. No test is 100% accurate at all times under all conditions; results should be interpreted along with the patient's health and risk factors. Retroviral tests can diagnose only infection, not clinical disease, and cats infected with FeLV or FIV may live for many years. A decision for euthanasia should never be based solely on whether or not the cat is infected. Vaccination against FeLV is highly recommended in kittens. In adult cats, antiretroviral vaccines are considered non-core and should be administered only if a risk assessment indicates they are appropriate. Few large controlled studies have been performed using antiviral or immunomodulating drugs for the treatment of naturally infected cats. More research is needed to identify best practices to improve long-term outcomes following retroviral infections in cats.

AAFP and ISFM feline-friendly handling guidelines.

Abstract: Background The number of pet cats is increasing in most countries, often outnumbering pet dogs, yet cats receive less veterinary care than their canine counterparts.1 Clients state the difficulty o...