INTRODUCTION TO VETERINARY MEDICINE

Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad Khan

RCVetS
Introduction
Medicine
• It is an art of healing.
• The theory of medicine lays down the
principles on which the disease act on the
body and the remedies produce their effects.
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 Scientific Medicine; treatment of sick

individuals, based upon the sound knowledge of
anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, pathology,
clinical investigations, etc.
 Empirical Medicine; treatment of sick
individuals, purely based upon personal
observations and experiences. It is closely allied
to quackery.
 Quack; the person who pretends to has skills
without scientific knowledge.
Introduction - Medicine

 Clinical Medicine (Syn: Therapeutic Medicine,

Internal Medicine or Curative Medicine); It is the
branch of medicine which covers the art of
achieving correct diagnosis and treatment of sick
animals.
 Preventive Medicine; it is the branch of medicine
that study and practice the measures to control
and/or prevent diseases well before their
occurrence.
Introduction
– Veterinary Medicine: The branch of medicine
that deals with the causes, diagnosis,
treatment or control of diseases of animals.
– Veterinarian (Veterinary Surgeon, Veterinary
Physician or Doctor of Veterinary Medicine);
One who treats the diseases and injuries of
animals.
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– Disease: It is the state in which an individual displays
any anatomical, chemical or physiological deviation
from the norm, even though nutrition and
environmental requirements are provided at adequate
level.
– Health: it is the state of an individual living in complete
harmony with his environment.
In human medicine, the health can be defined as a
state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing
and not just the absence of a disease.
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 Signs and Symptoms of diseases are used synonymously
– Signs are the objective evidences of a disease (observed by
a clinicians or attendants)
– Symptoms are subjective evidences of a disease which are
experienced or narrated by the patient.
The symptoms are out of question in veterinary medicine.
However, the display of behavioral changes by an animal,
e.g. grunting, flank watching or frequent sitting and
standing seen in equine colic, can be called as symptom.
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 Objective signs/symptoms
 Subjective signs/symptoms
 Precursory (Premonitory) signs/symptoms
 Direct or Idiopathic signs/symptoms
 Indirect or Sympathetic signs/symptoms
 Typical signs/symptoms
 Atypical signs/symptoms
 Pathognomonic signs/symptoms
 Prognostic signs/symptoms
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– Lesions: it is the pathological/structural changes in
tissues or organs, detected either by naked eyes or
microscopic examination.
– Complication: It is the morbid conditions arising
during the progression of a disease, e.g. sit-fast
wound, develops during prolonged recumbency.
– Sequelae: It is the persistence of pathological
changes, seen following recovery from a disease.
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– Diagnosis: It is an art of recognition the cause
(effects) of a disease
 Tentative Diagnosis/Clinical/Symptomatic
Diagnosis
 Confirmatory Diagnosis
 Laboratory Diagnosis
 Postmortem Diagnosis
 Therapeutic Diagnosis
 Differential Diagnosis
 Teething Troubles in Veterinary Medicine

a. Animals unable to speak and thus the veterinarian has to

rely on owner’s observations and his personal skills.
b. It is common practice owners 1st try to treat animals at
home,
c. Owners may submit wrong statement of disease,
intentionally or un-intentionally.
d. There are variety of kinds of animals to teat (all living-
beings except human beings)
e. In Pakistan, lacks/limits in laboratory facilities &
diagnostic aids.
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– Treatment (Therapy): The aims are to bring the sick
animal back to normal state of health, as quickly as possible.
 Specific Treatment
 Symptomatic Treatment
 Supportive Treatment
 Treatment of Complications
 Palliative Treatment
 Prophylactic Treatment
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– Prognosis: It is the prediction to the outcome
of a disease. It is very important in veterinary
medicine, due to economic consideration.
Favorable, hopeful
Unfavorable,
Poor, very poor
Hopeless, grave or guarded.