Dermatology Services

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IMPORTANT NEWS!

Dermatology Services have moved. 

Dr Waisglass will now to see patients at  

Veterinary Emergency Clinic (VEC) Referral Centre www.vectoronto.com, 416-920-2002

and

404 Veterinary Hospital Referral Centre www.veter.ca, 905-953-1933 (Fridays).

Dr Karri Beck will also be seeing cases both at the 404 Veterinary Referral Centre and at the Veterianry Emergency Clinic.  However, she will have limited availability until November as she prepares for her ACVD certification examination. 

Current patients of the North Toronto Animal Clinic Dermatology Service may have their files transferred to either location - just let us know. 

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Dr. Stephen Waisglass is a veterinary dermatologist, a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Dermatology (certified by the American Board of Veterinary Specialties). He is a graduate of the Ontario Veterinary College. Dr. Waisglass obtained a Certificate in Small Animal Dermatology after successfully completing the examination process and requirements of the Veterinary Dermatology Board of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and opened his dermatology referral practice. Dr. Waisglass subsequently did a formal veterinary dermatology residency at the Ontario Veterinary College. 

Dr. Waisglass is a past President of the Toronto Academy of Veterinary Medicine, a member of the executive board of the Canadian Academy of Veterinary Dermatology and a member of the American Academy of Veterinary Dermatology.

Dr. Waisglass runs the dermatology and allergy referral centres at both the 404 Veterinary Hospital Referral Centre and the Veterinary Emergency Clinic referral Centre in Toronto. He serves as a dermatology mentor for the American College of Veterinary Dermatology's resident, Dr. Karri Beck, and is an educator for the resident at the Ontario Veterinary Clinic, Dr. Charlie Pye. As an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Clinical Studies at the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph, Dr Waisglass also serves as educator for final year veterinary externship students.

Dr. Waisglass has lectured to veterinary and technician groups internationally in the field of veterinary dermatology.  He is a dermatology consultant for veterinarians on the Veterinary Information Network (VIN) internet site.

Dr. Waisglass has written numerous articles in his field and has been the featured guest on numerous call-in radio and television shows as a dermatology consultant.

Prior to your visit, we ask that you complete a detailed questionnaire. Please return both sections to our facility no less than 24 hours before the scheduled appointment time. A fully completed questionnaire will help ensure that your valuable appointment time is not spent taking history.

Our questionnaires can be found by clicking on the links found at the bottom of the page and at our new locations.  Please download a copy of our forms and return them by E-mail, snail mail or FAX to our clinic, making sure that they arrive at least one business day prior to your appointment.

Please contact us if you would like to schedule an appointment. Appointments are available at 2 locations, the 

Veterinary Emergency Clinic and Referral Centre in Toronto (416-920-2002, www.vectoronto.com)

or the

404 Veterinary Hospital Referral Centre in Newmarket (905-953-1933, www.veter.ca)

If you prefer that we FAX, E-mail or mail a copy to you, just let us know.

A dermatology consult involves taking a full history, performing diagnostic tests and evaluating response to therapy, and developing a diagnosis, prognosis, and course of action. Unfortunately, many (but by no means all) skin diseases are incurable and in these cases, the goal will be to find a safe method of control (just as human allergists can’t cure environmental allergies, but need to find safe methods of controlling the symptoms). As the skin may take a few months to respond to some therapies, a thorough evaluation can often take a number of visits. By the end of the evaluation portion, you should have a good understanding of your pets’ disease and what needs to be done to control it.

Pets are referred to a veterinary dermatologist for a variety of reasons. Patients may be referred to evaluate the pet for unusual diseases that are seen more often at a referral practice, such as certain immune mediated diseases. Another reason could be for help in controlling a difficult skin or ear case that has already been diagnosed but is not responding well to treatment, and may need more aggressive therapy or re-assessment. Patients are sometimes referred in order to take advantage of certain equipment, such as video-otoendoscopes and ear flush systems (cameras used to evaluate the ear canals, and special flush, suction and cleaning equipment that are used). Many patients are referred for a dermatologist's expertise in performing certain tests and procedures, such as intradermal skin testing, treating difficult to manage ear diseases, or taking diagnostic skin biopsies from challenging sites.

Initial dermatology consultations are scheduled for an hour. In some cases, diagnostic tests are performed while you wait, and you should be prepared for a stay of up to 2 hours for the first visit. Most cases require follow-up consultations, but they are much more brief, and are generally scheduled for ½ hour.

Many different skin conditions have the exact same clinical appearance. Veterinary dermatology consultants rely on “detective work” in order to sort out which disease is most likely affecting your pet. One of the most important aspects of detective work is interviewing the “witnesses”, and it is critical in dermatology and allergy to get a thorough clinical history from you, the primary caregiver. Your observations are needed to help determine the most appropriate route of action. The veterinary history will enable us to determine what treatments were successful or unsuccessful and help us to choose the most appropriate diagnostic tests.

It is best to assess the skin condition in a patient who is not currently undergoing any therapy. However, for humane or medical reasons, this might not be possible. It is important to consult your family veterinarian before discontinuing any treatments.

Please:

• Do not bathe your pet for at least 5 days prior to your appointment. This will ensure that you do not bathe away any “evidence”.
• Do not feed your pet for at least 12 hours prior to your visit. It is OK to give water. Certain blood tests or sedatives are best performed on an empty stomach.
• Please be sure to restrain your pet appropriately in our waiting room.  All dogs should be on a leash and all cats in a cat carrier.  Please do not allow you pet to "socialize" with other pets in the waiting room.

Although you may be referred by someone other than your veterinarian, we still require that the veterinary portion be completed. There are many reasons that we need to have the history.  For example, it will help us ensure that we do not administer medications to which your pet has had a prior reaction, and it may reduce the number of diagnostic tests and procedures that we need to perform.

That will depend on the type of medication. Please contact your family veterinarian. They can always contact our facility for advice.

We will always do our best not to repeat tests that have already been performed. This is one of the reasons that we ask the referring veterinarian to complete his/her portion of the questionnaire. However, cases referred to our facility tend to be more challenging and sometimes tests need to be repeated. In some cases we make a diagnosis by observing trends (comparing the new results with the old), in others we need to follow-up response to treatment (for example thyroid hormone replacement blood levels); in some situations, we need to repeat a test to re-assess a condition that has not responded to appropriate therapy and in still other cases, repeating the tests increase the likelihood of a diagnosis (e.g. skin scrapings). Please be sure to discuss the matter with Dr. Waisglass if you are concerned.

An allergy test involves sedating your pet, shaving a patch on his/her side, and injecting up to 60 different needles into the skin. In this way we can determine the environmental allergens to which your pet is “hypersensitive”. Intradermal testing does not accurately assess for food allergies in veterinary medicine, and so food allergens are not part of the test.  (Food trials are the standard diagnostic test for food allergies) .

The results of the skin test are available the same day that the test is performed. If indicated, we can then formulate a custom made allergy extract that contains ingredients that were positive on the test. The extract is sent to your family veterinarian.  The plan is to inject the extract under the skin according to a particular schedule of slowly increasing volumes and intervals ("allergy shots"). Our goal is to increase the pet’s tolerance to these items.

There are many factors involved in determining whether a particular patient is a good candidate for allergy testing. We take great pride in the success rate for allergy shots at our practice. We believe that the success is attributable to the care that we take in determining the best candidates and timing for allergy testing. As the determination of response to allergy therapy may take some time, it is critical that every “t” is crossed and every “i” is dotted before your pet is put through an allergy test and shots. As a result, it is rare that a patient is skin tested on the first visit.

Prior to allergy testing, certain withdrawal periods are needed to reduce the likelihood of false negative test results. Please be sure to contact our facility if you are unsure of the appropriate withdrawal periods.

Steroids: Pets may not receive any oral steroids. The withdrawal period varies with the length of time that the steroids have been given, but even if it has been a relatively short course, it should  be at least 28 days. Injectable steroid withdrawal times are 2-3 months. Topical (eye, ear, and skin) steroids may not be given for at least 14 days.

Antihistamines: Antihistamine withdrawal periods are at least 14 days

Fatty Acids: Fatty acids should not be administered for 14 days prior to skin testing.  This includes high fatty acid supplemented diets.

Unfortunately, our regulatory body, the College of Veterinarians of Ontario, does not permit us to quote fees on the internet or in a telephone message. Our staff will be happy to discuss visit fees in person with you or over the phone.  Of course, diagnostic tests and medication that may be necessary will vary on a case by case basis, and there are additional fees associated with these tests and treatments.  We will be happy to discuss the fees associated with any diagnostic test at your visit, before they are performed.  To find out the visit fees or to book an appointment, please call 905-881-2752 and follow the prompts.

For The Veterinary Emergency Clinic and referral Centre: http://www.vectoronto.com/dermatology.php

For The 404 Veterinary Hospital Referral Centre:

http://veter.ca/Derm_Referral.aspx

• For the VEC: http://www.vectoronto.com/dermatology.php
• For 404:http://veter.ca/Derm_Referral.aspx