LEARNING CENTER

Equine Dental Scope

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The diagnostic examination of horses' teeth, the treatment of dental diseases and the surgical treatment of dental and jaw defects are currently a strongly growing discipline in equine veterinary practice.

The newly designed instrument range for inspecting horses' teeth is used for diagnosis and therapy in dental diseases, for exploration of the guttural pouch as well as for the visual control and video documentation of oral surgical operations.

• Practical working method thanks to two sheath versions - dental sheath, guttural pouch sheath
• Autoclavable Lumina SL working telescope, 5.5 mm, 60°, working length 495 mm
• Dental guide for resting the telescope on the teeth of the lower jaw

The dental guide enables the optical system to be rested on the teeth of the lower jaw, which simplifies significantly for the examiner the orientation and stabilization of the field of vision in the examination. Examination of the teeth of the lower jaw or upper jaw is possible according to the positioning of the dental sheath in the dental guide.

Diagnosing and documenting the dental crown, formation of hooks and sharp points, changes of the oral mucous membrane, dental fissures and fractures, enamel defects. infundibular necroses, etc., is possible sim- ply and safely.

The instrument set comprises telescope, dental sheath and dental guide.

• 98465.34 Lumina SL working telescope Ø 5.5 mm, 60° Working length 495 mm
• 9900.011 Dental sheath Ø 7.9 mm, capacity 5.8 mm Working length 467 mm
• 9900.031 Dental guide for fixing the telescope on the lower row of teeth

Optionally if required:
• 9900.021 Guttural pouch sheath Ø 7.9 mm, capacity 5.8 mm Working length 497 mm
• 9900.041 Handle for the dental sheath

Optical Foreign Body Grasping Forceps

Fri, 10 Sep 2010 22:57:04 -0400

The removal of larger debris (eg, pieces of bone, stones, wood chips, golf balls, etc.) from the stomach of the dog is a daily occurrence in many small animal practices. There are great extraction problems even with foreign bodies in the esophagus area.

For the removal of large objects flexible endoscopes with the appropriate size graspers are sometimes not suitable, so there is often a need for open surgery to remove an object. This is obviously a major intervention associated with a longer convalescence of the animals.

For foreign body removal from the esophagus and stomach we now offer the new Optical Foreign Body Grasping Forceps in addition to the longer and larger Torrent / Mora, esophagoscope set.

This large optical biopsy set allows for easier extraction of large foreign bodies under direct visualization.

The high strength of the forceps offers advantages over flexible instruments. Thanks to the design of the telescope positioned in the center of the forceps (wrap around technology) the product has a unique selling position in the market.

For more information contact James Burns at 845-277-1700 ext: 208 or

Laparoscopy, Thorascopy

Thu, 1 Jul 2010 23:46:56 -0400

Advantages of Laparoscopy:

Examination of the entire abdominal cavity together with better visualization (magnification factor 6 – 8) distinguish this minimally invasive procedure. Further aspects are the reduced patient trauma and shorter convalescence with a better cosmetic result.

The laparoscopic standard operations included:
• Female Castration
• Cryptorchid Castration
• Biopsies of the Liver
• Prostate
• Lymph Nodes
• Tumors
• Intestinal Biopsies
• Prophylactic Gastropexy

For the above, a large variety of endoscopes can be used:

In smaller animals the "semi-flexible" 2 mm endoscope is used for laparoscopy, in larger animals the typical endoscopes vary in diameter from 5 mm - 10 mm.

Trocars, forceps and other instruments are available to the user in 2 mm to 10 mm diameter.

Another minimally invasive field of use is thoracoscopy, in particular diagnostics and therapy of the following diseases:
• Pleura
• Mediastinum
• Lung
• Pericardium
• Diaphragm
• Vascular anomalies
• Ductus thoracicus

Mobile Equine Laryngoscope

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 11:09:11 -0400

Advantages of the system:
• Easy to Disinfect
• Space saving and easy to transport, no extra saddle
• Safe for both horse and rider, no backpack solution
• Easy to use
• Facilitated endoscopic insertion
• Highest image quality with digital video recording
• Document and save the results

Canine Arthroscopy

Fri, 2 Apr 2010 20:30:16 -0400

The development of arthroscopy in small animals began in the late 70's. Initial reports describe the technique and findings of diagnostic arthroscopy of the stifle joint.

In the 80's and early 90's, a number of publications were written on arthroscopy of the shoulder, elbow, and the hock and hip joints.

Arthroscopy in small animals is gaining increasing interest and progressing rapidly. This progress was only possible due to the development of arthroscopes with small diameters and the respective ancillary instruments.

Arthroscopic surgery in small animals has similarly experienced a tremendous advance in its development. For some years now, the treatment of osteochondrosis (OCD) in the shoulder joint and also the OCD and FPC of the elbow joint have been carried out on a routine basis using a simple "triangle" technique.

Intra - articular structures and their pathological changes can be examined very exactly recurring to detailed viewing, to enlargement using both arthroscope and camera as well as to a suspension of the structures in the irrigation fluid. Abrasion and superficial erosion of the cartilage, fibres of (partially) torn ligaments and the capillary vascularisation of the synovial villi are details that cannot be judged using arthrotomy.

Arthroscopy can be implemented for detecting changes that show hardly any pathological findings, or early changes without radiological findings. Due to the minimal invasive trauma, only little postoperative treatment is required, and there is only a very slight risk of complications.

Abomasum Repositioning Set

Mon, 29 Mar 2010 21:04:42 -0400

The operative treatment of abomasum displacement* in cattle is the most commonly performed major surgical intervention in cattle, normally in high-producing dairy cows.

Alongside other surgical techniques, abomasopexy with "toggle pins" has gained in importance.

One of the main reasons for this is economic pressure in agriculture. The costs of laparotomy, follow-up and loss of milk production can sometimes swallow up all the profit of an entire lactation, percutaneous abomasopexy is considerably cheaper.

Laparoscopy allows safe abomasopexy in the fundus area of the organ in all clinically occurring displacement situations. The size, gas production and fill level of the abomasum and the rumen are unimportant for the procedure. Abomasopexy can be performed safely in an extremely dilated abomasum or one filled with very little gas. Risk of incorrect trocar insertion in the pyloric region and damage to other abdominal organs can be excluded. The abomasum is repositioned under endoscopic control using a toggle pin suture on the ventral abdominal skin.

An overview of other pathological change in the abdominal cavity can be obtained quickly, in particular changes to the wall of the abomasum, adhesions of the abomasum to the rumen or to the left wall of the stomach can be reliably diagnosed.

Laparoscopy is not only a useful tool in the diagnosis of abdominal cavity disease but also allows the surgical therapy of certain conditions. Compared with laparotomy, it is far less invasive and can be repeated at any time.

Literature:* H. Janowitz, Tierärztliche Praxis, Issue November 1998 Laparoskopische Reposition und Fixation des nach links verlagerten Labmagens beim Rind

Equine Arthroscopy

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:03:14 -0400

Joint damage is a frequent problem in race horses and competition horses.

Joint damage generally occurs when the support mechanism can no longer cope with the bio-mechanical stresses or when osteochondral fragments, in the joint of a competing horse, are left untreated.

Arthroscopy has optimized surgical techniques in joints in horses and in the past 20 years it became the accepted way to perform joint surgery.

New techniques and new instruments have been developed. These days, the arthroscope is not only used for joint surgery but also to assess and treat tendon sheaths.

Instruments have to meet the constantly increasing number of indications and surgical operations.

The aim was to create strong, long, practical and durable instruments capable of handling the large fragments often encountered in arthroscopic surgery.

This page list the items in the Richard Wolf basic equine instrument set and the options that we offer for expanding the set.