Diagnostics Services
In House Laboratory
Performing preventive medicine and diagnosing emergent internal health issues requires the ability to perform a wide range of laboratory tests. Without timely access to precise laboratory test results, it is often difficult to make an accurate diagnosis or assessment of your pet’s health. Our laboratory offers a wide variety of on-site services, including serum chemistry, hematology, serology, cytology, urinalysis and parasite testing.
Digital Radiology
Radiography, also known as X-rays, is one of the most common and valuable medical diagnostic tools. X-rays are highly useful for screening areas of the body that have contrasting tissue densities, or when evaluating solid tissues. Vet Partners Apple Valley is equipped to perform routine radiograph services to identify many types of illness or injuries when pets are sick or suffer a trauma.
Ultrasound
An ultrasound is excellent at evaluating your pet’s internal organs. An ultrasound is usually recommended when our doctors find abnormalities on bloodwork or x-rays, or to monitor a disease process.
Ultrasound equipment directs a narrow beam of high frequency sound waves into the area of interest. The sound waves either transmit through, reflect, or absorb in the tissues that they encounter. Any ultrasound waves that are reflected will return as echoes and convert into an image that is displayed on the monitor, giving a 2-dimensional image of the tissues under examination.
The exam is completely painless. Light sedation may used to help the patient lie comfortably while the scan is being performed. Your pet may need to be shaved in the area of interest, as veterinary ultrasound images are of better quality if they have complete contact with the skin.
PennHIP
PennHIP x-rays are an objective way to assess hip joint laxity to determine a dog’s risk of developing hip dysplasia over time. Three very specific views are taken to assess hip laxity. Each dogs’ measurements are compared to a database to determine their risk of developing hip dysplasia relative to others within their breed.