Digital Medical Imaging for Pets

AVMI: A Mac-based Medical Imaging Center Exclusively for Small Animals

Dr. Broome with a Burmese cat next to a GE scanner. Image courtesy of Larry Falke.

By one recent reckoning, there were at least 60 million pet dogs and 75 million pet cats in the United States. In this culture, where cats and dogs are often considered family members and best friends, and a rescued no-breed can be treasured as much as a trophy purebred, it was inevitable that pets would one day benefit from the scanning technology that has saved the lives of many of their owners.

Southern California dogs and cats arrive daily at the Tustin facility of AVMI (Advanced Veterinary Medical Imaging), whose services give new meaning to the term CAT scan – although professionals now prefer to call it a CT scan, for computerized tomography. AVMI radiologists can also use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), digital radiography, or scintigraphy (nuclear imaging) to help referring veterinarians make their diagnoses.

AVMI’s business model is much like that of the outpatient imaging centers we’re used to, with a few important exceptions. Patient/owner privacy is not legislated in the same way and patients are invariably sedated; picture trying to get a 10-minute CT series of an alert Pomeranian puppy or Abyssinian kitten. What AVMI does have in common with human imaging centers is imaging modalities – and the fact that Apple technology can make these enterprises more efficient and profitable.

Viewing the Images: Macs and OsiriX

Michael Broome, DVM is a principal of AVMI and a dyed-in-the-wool Mac fan. He is partial to brachycephalic dogs (like the Pekingese he grew up with), and is certified by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners. He has a Master’s degree in comparative pathology from UC Davis and is a self-taught imaging expert.

“I got into diagnostic imaging at Davis,” says Broome. “We were doing post grad work, treating cats with radioactive iodine and making pictures using scintigraphy.

“Our practice has been doing veterinary imaging since 1985, starting with nuclear medicine. In 1992, we discovered a software product called NucLear MAC, produced by Scientific Imaging. NucLear Mac was my first motivation to switch from PC to Mac. That product and our good old Mac IICi are largely responsible for my ongoing commitment to Apple and the Mac platform.”

In 2000, when AVMI was adding CT and MRI imaging tools to its practice, Broome went looking for Apple solutions he could use to review medical images. He found Osiris, a freeware system for displaying images in the medical-standard DICOM format. When OsiriX, the Mac OS X version of Osiris, appeared, Broome consulted the OsiriX User Group and began implementing it in his practice. Today clients can view OsiriX images of their pets’ pathologies on iMacs in examination rooms, and radiologists can view the same images on Apple Cinema Displays. Apple technology pervades the practice.

Dr. Broome at his desk, reviewing studies on his Macs using OsiriX. Image courtesy of Larry Falke.

AVMI’s imaging-only business model, a departure for a veterinary facility, is working well. Two independent veterinary neurologists work within the AVMI imaging center. In campus-like proximity in the same business park, six unaffiliated veterinary practices offer oncologists, internists, dermatologists, surgeons, ophthalmologists, and critical care specialists, and a cardiologist is on the way. The symbiosis among these professionals attracts referrals from primary-care vets around Orange County and Los Angeles. Showbiz glitterati bring their cats and dogs (but more often get someone else to bring them). AVMI has opened a second facility in Los Angeles.

1 2 Next Page >