Tulsa vet reating osteo-arthritis in your pets

A Tulsa animal clinic is trying out new technology that could make your dog's aches and pains go away! <br><br>The News on Six's Craig Day has more. "Ok Alex. Come on buddy." Alex is an eight-year-old

Friday, May 17th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

A Tulsa animal clinic is trying out new technology that could make your dog's aches and pains go away!

The News on Six's Craig Day has more. "Ok Alex. Come on buddy." Alex is an eight-year-old Labrador retriever who is about to get help from Doctor Dennis Henson at Woodland Animal Hospital. "Ok, you guys can come in if you want." And new technology.

Alex has osteo-arthritis in his right elbow, but it is hoped the pain will be zapped away with acoustic shock waves. Veterinarian, Dr. Dennis Henson, "What we're hoping on Alex is that this treatment would stimulate his own body to repair his joint." After Alex is anesthetized, sound waves pulse into his elbow.

It's hoped the treatment will eliminate the need for medications or surgery for Alex and other pets. If the procedure sounds and looks familiar to many people, it's because the technology has been used for 20 years on people to treat things like kidney stones.

But it's only been used on pets for about a year and a half to treat bone, tendon, and ligament problems. David Birdsong with Lumenis Accuvet Company, "The ultimate goal is to provide for pain free patients. With the human pet bond increasingly growing, people are more aware of wanting to provide better care for their babies."

The acoustic shock therapy works in about 75% of the animals that are treated. Which are pretty good odds for Alex.

Pets that undergo the procedure will experience some soreness for a day or so. But within a few days, most pets show dramatic improvement in their bone and joint conditions.