Comparison of Fine Arts- and Pathology-Based Observational Skills Training for Veterinary Students Learning Cytology

Keen observational skills are essential for veterinarians; however, the development of these skills is not usually an explicit part of the veterinary curriculum. Fine arts-based (FAB) observation training has been shown to improve medical students' observational skills and might also improve veterinary students' observational skills. We compared FAB and pathology-based (PB) observation training in a veterinary cytology course. Students initially wrote a pre-test in which they described two cytology images and one art image, followed by participation in either FAB or PB observation training. Both groups completed a similar post-test immediately after training and a delayed post-test 4 weeks later following instruction in cytology. Differences between groups were noted only in the immediate post-test cytology descriptions. The PB group used significantly more specific vocabulary terms and significantly more accurate observations than the FAB group, suggesting an immediate benefit to the discipline-specific information gained in the PB observation training. In the delayed post-test, results for both groups were similar. The FAB group significantly increased their use of specific vocabulary terms and maintained but did not increase accurate observations following cytology instruction, while accurate observations decreased significantly for the PB group. The FAB group might have been able to generalize their observation skills to the discipline of cytology and to better retain these skills. Neither type of training resulted in both achievement and maintenance of the highest recorded scores for accurate observations. Both FAB and PB training led to improved observational skills, and explicit observation training may be useful for veterinary students.

Tolerance of Ambiguity in Veterinary Students at the Beginning and End of a Second-year Clinical Pathology Course

Tolerance of ambiguity (TOA) is essential for veterinarians because ambiguity and uncertainty are unavoidable aspects of veterinary practice. However, TOA has been little investigated in veterinarians or veterinary students. In this article, the 27-item Tolerance of Ambiguity of Veterinary Students (TAVS) scale, including eight additional clinical pathology-specific items, is used to evaluate TOA in veterinary students at the beginning and end of a clinical pathology course. Clinical pathology is often one of the first subjects in which students encounter ambiguity because real-life cases are used in teaching. The hypotheses are that TOA will increase across the course and that TOA will correlate with the final grade in the course. Analysis of the TAVS scale revealed very good inter-item reliability (α = 0.80) and a positive correlation between the original TAVS items and the new clinical pathology items (ρ = 0.63). Students demonstrated a significant increase in TOA across the course for TAVS items and a similar trend for clinical pathology items. Four items related to affinity for complexity and novice view showed significant increases in TOA. Two items related to discomfort from uncertainty showed significant decreases. There was no correlation between TOA and final grade in the course. Students rated their personal frustration with ambiguity in the course as low and did not think ambiguity in cases was problematic for teaching. The results suggest that the increased TOA at the end of the course might relate to students being taught-and learning how to cope with-ambiguity through the real-life cases used for teaching.

Using Fine Arts-Based Training to Develop Observational Skills in Veterinary Students Learning Cytology: A Pilot Study

Arts-based training has been shown to improve medical students' observational skills. Veterinarians also need keen observational skills. Student veterinarians are expected to develop their observational skills; however, this training is usually not an explicit part of the veterinary curriculum. The impact of arts-based observation training has not been investigated in veterinary students learning cytology. In this pilot study, we compared student descriptions of art and cytology images before and immediately after receiving arts-based observation training. After 10 hours of cytology instruction, we again tested students' observational skills and asked for feedback via a survey. Pre-tests and post-tests were scored following a rubric based on expert descriptions of the images. Scores for art image descriptions were higher for both the immediate and delayed post-tests compared to the pre-test (p < .05). Scores for cytology image descriptions were higher for the immediate post-test than the pre-test, but this difference was not significant. Despite 10 hours of cytology instruction between post-tests, scores for cytology image descriptions were lower for the delayed post-test than the immediate post-test, but again, this difference was not significant. Student feedback on the arts-based observation training was positive. Overall, our results suggest that arts-based training may improve student observational skills, although context could be important, as the improvement in description was only significant for art images. Further investigation with a larger cohort of students and a control group that does not receive arts-based training would be valuable.

Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of doxycycline in a Streptococcusequi subsp. zooepidemicus infection model in horses

The objectives of this study were to investigate the pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), and the efficacy of oral administration of doxycycline (DXC) in horses with Streptococcus zooepidemicus tissue infections. Tissue chambers (TC) were implanted subcutaneously in the cervical region of 7 horses and inoculated with a single S. zooepidemicus isolate with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.25 µg/ml, determined by agar dilution. Doxycycline hyclate (10 mg/kg, orally, q 12 h, for 5 days) mixed with poloxamer gel was started following inoculation. The TC fluid was sampled prior to and following inoculation for cytology analysis, quantitative culture, and DXC determination. Plasma DXC concentrations were measured over 48 h following the last dose of DXC administered. The mean plasma peak concentration (C_max ) of DXC was 0.32 µg/ml, and concentrations above the MIC were only reached in 3 TC samples. In plasma, mean T > MIC was 2.4 h, mean C_max /MIC was 1.30, and mean AUC_last /MIC was 11.63 h. These PK/PD indices did not reach the suggested targets for DXC treatments of infections, and the TC abscessed in all horses. This is the first study to evaluate the recommended dose of DXC in horse in an infection model.

Prevalence and mutation analysis of the spike protein in feline enteric coronavirus and feline infectious peritonitis detected in household and shelter cats in western Canada

Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a fatal disease for which no simple antemortem diagnostic assay is available. A new polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test has recently been developed that targets the spike protein region of the FIP virus (FIPV) and can identify specific mutations (M1030L or S1032A), the presence of which indicates a shift from feline enteric coronavirus (FeCV) to FIPV. This test will only be useful in the geographical region of interest, however, if the FIP viruses contain these mutations. The primary objective of this study was to determine the presence of the M1030L or S1032A mutations in FeCV derived from stool samples from a selected group of healthy cats from households and shelters and determine how many of these cats excrete FeCV. The secondary objective was to evaluate how often these specific FIPV mutations were present in tissue samples derived from cats diagnosed with FIP at postmortem examination. Feline enteric coronavirus (FeCV) was detected in 46% of fecal samples (86/185), all were FeCV type 1, with no difference between household or shelter cats. Only 45% of the FIPV analyzed contained the previously reported M1030L or S1032A mutations. It should be noted that, as the pathological tissue samples were opportunistically obtained and not specifically obtained for PCR testing, caution is warranted in interpreting these data.