DATE: Saturday, May 3, 1997                 TAG: 9705030058

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ALVA CHOPP, CORRESPONDENT 

                                            LENGTH:  103 lines

SURGERY GOES TO THE DOGS HIGH-TECH TREATMENT, EXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT NOT RESERVED FOR HUMAN PATIENTS ANYMORE

BARNEY, A 150-pound St. Bernard, is something of a medical wonder.

In his four years, Barney has had surgery to correct water collecting on his elbow. He was rushed to a special surgeon to repair a twisted stomach that threatened his life. And he has had a titanium hip-joint replacement.

He was even treated by a veterinary dermatologist when he failed to grow hair over the surgery wound.

Eric and Diane Nathan of Williamsburg are convinced that without the advanced medical care, Barney wouldn't be the active dog he is today.

Like the Nathans, many pet owners are becoming aware of new opportunities in veterinary medicine that can save the lives of their four-legged friends. Treatments that were reserved for humans only a few years ago have found their way into specialty veterinary hospitals.

Doctors have long known that high-tech procedures used on humans could help animals, but they haven't always had access to expensive equipment. Desperate pet owners have traveled hundreds of miles to veterinary schools for specialized care - or the animals have suffered without it.

Now, fully equipped operating rooms, radiology machines and ultrasound equipment have found their way into the practices of specialized veterinarians.

The most advanced animal hospitals don't use only ``vet'' equipment. Much of their equipment is the same that hospitals use for people.

``A lot of the instrumentation is very expensive, and general practitioners simply don't have the money to justify the costs,'' said Dr. Tony Puglisi, the orthopedic surgeon who operated on Barney.

Puglisi and several other veterinary specialists last month opened Affiliated Animal Care, a specialized and emergency veterinary center near Greenbrier Mall in Chesapeake.

At the new center, the only one of its kind in the state, these specialized veterinarians will be able to perform a variety of diagnostic and surgical procedures. An emergency hospital located in the building is the first of its kind to provide round-the-clock, doctor-on-call treatment for pets in South Hampton Roads.

Unlike general veterinarians, these specialists treat serious and unusual cases. Cost to pet owners ranges from $200 to as much as $3,000.

``Most people that end up coming here know what kind of costs they're looking at,'' Puglisi said. Pet owners who seek this costly care aren't all wealthy.

``What I see are people who care very deeply for their pets. For them it's usually not a financial decision,'' Puglisi said.

Barney's surgery to correct his twisted stomach, performed in Puglisi's previous facility, cost about $1,100. It took another $2,500 to replace his hip joint with a titanium ball and socket.

Diane Nathan didn't think about the money when Barney needed surgery.

``All I wanted was for him to save my dog,'' she said. ``The cost didn't matter. He's like my kid. I wanted my dog and nothing else mattered. At that time I would have done anything to keep him alive.''

One of the biggest advancements in the treatment of animals has been in the use of ultrasound.

``Ultrasound exams were simply not done 10 years ago,'' said Dr. Keith Kremer, an internal medicine specialist at the center. ``But now we can use it for almost any problem.''

Ultrasound equipment has enabled veterinarians, for example, to watch the heart while it's beating to identify the problem.

With another instrument once reserved for humans, an endoscope, doctors can also look inside body cavities to diagnose disease or take biopsy samples.

``We've come a long way in the treatment of cancer in animals,'' Kremer said.

Puglisi, specializing in neurosurgery, orthopedic and soft tissue surgery, treats many pets with abdominal organ problems and cancerous tumors. About a third of his practice is for injuries due to motor vehicle accidents and what he refers to as ``sports injuries'' such as turning or twisting of the limbs and joints. He also treats problems such as disc ruptures, back fractures and spinal-cord tumors.

The Greenbrier center also will house two specialty veterinarians who deal mainly with quality-of-life problems, instead of life-and-death ones: Dr. Robert English, a veterinary ophthalmologist, and Dr. Dunbar Gram, an allergy and dermatology specialist.

When Barney was referred to Gram, Diane Nathan said she had never heard of a ``doggie dermatologist.''

``I think most people with animals want them to be as comfortable as possible,'' she said. ``Barney is back to normal and his quality of life is better than it would've been without all these procedures.

``The year of the stomach surgery was going to be the year we put a deck on our house,'' she said with smile. ``Well, there's still no deck.''

But, watching Barney run around, Nathan said she would do it all over again. MEMO: Affiliated Animal Care and its emergency facility, Greenbrier

Veterinary Emergency Center, are located at 1100 River Birch Run, in

Chesapeake. Phone: 366-9000. ILLUSTRATION: [Color] PHOTOS BY STEVE EARLEY

The Virginian-Pilot

Buster the boxer waits patiently while Dr. Tony Puglisi removes an

intravenous tube from his leg after an operation the day earlier.

Puglisi, left, checks up on former patient Barney, who has had

extensive surgery. Owner Eric Nathan says Barney is like part of the

family.

Puglisi, right, operates on a golden retriever at his Veterinary

Surgical Specialists office in Chesapeake.