The CHUV opened its brand-new Centre of Excellence in Interventional Medicine (CEMI) on January 23rd, 2024.
This innovative center, located within the Small Animal Hospital, hosts the very first integrated veterinary interventional medicine suite in Canada; uniting advanced imaging and cutting-edge equipment in a single location.
Interventional medicine allows treatment of a wide range of conditions in many species, such as kidney and bladder stones, bladder polyps, tracheal collapse, liver malformations (lithotripsy, laser ablation of malformations/polyps, tracheal stenting, liver shunt closure) using state-of-the-art technologies. “Minimally invasive procedures allow us to enter the body through natural routes and reach areas unattainable by standard surgery, such as the inside of the kidneys,” explained Dr. Marilyn Dunn, professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.
Our brand-new interventional suite includes a fluoroscopy table with C-Arm for high-resolution image acquisition, a screen system for monitoring procedures, an integrated anesthesia system and a column for endoscopy equipment.
This equipment enables minimally invasive procedures to be performed, often without the need for an incision. Procedures are done through the patient’s natural orifices or through a very small incision of a few millimetres. In this way, the animal is treated with little or no pain, and can be discharged from hospital the same day. Interventional medicine and cardiology also offer unique opportunities to treat where other medical or surgical options have failed.
The CEMI will offer a unique training experience for veterinary students, including future specialists. “The University can now offer a unique training experience for future veterinary surgeons. Here, we learn to use the tools of tomorrow, to carry out the interventions of tomorrow,” emphasizes Daniel Jutras, Rector of the Université de Montréal.
“The CEMI will allow for a greater number of patients to be treated and provide a unique training experience for veterinary students servicing a wide range of diagnostic and therapeutic options involving the respiratory, cardiovascular and urinary systems,” Dunn said.
The CEMI also enables us to offer our patients advanced non-invasive cardiovascular procedures, such as angiography of complex cardiac anomalies and advanced interventional surgery. The equipment allows for more realistic, three-dimensional imaging of the heart to better assess therapeutic approaches. The CHUV’s neurology, surgery, zoological medicine and dentistry services will also be able to use the CEMI.
This major project was made possible by a $1 million donation from Royal Canin Canada and a $200,000 donation from Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Canada Inc.
New veterinary centre of excellence is the only one of its kind in Canada (UdeM Nouvelles)
