Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Surgery
Comprehensive in-house diagnostics
Our state-of-the-art diagnostic capabilities include CT, MRI, radiography, fluoroscopy, ultrasound, and musculoskeletal ultrasound, along with routine and send-out bloodwork options. These tools enable our surgeons to make precise diagnoses and tailor treatments to your pet’s specific needs.
Integrated patient care
We work closely with our rehabilitation team to maximize recovery, and our collaboration with the anesthesia team ensures patient safety through customized anesthesia protocols. With 24-hour postoperative care—a unique service in veterinary orthopedics—your pet receives continuous monitoring and care from our dedicated staff.
Conditions we commonly treat
- Sporting, athletic, working, and family dog injuries
- Stifle (knee) ligaments ruptures in dogs, most commonly the cranial cruciate ligament (CCL)
- Cat injuries, such as fractures
- Complicated bone, joint, and growth plate (physeal) fractures
- Patella (kneecap) luxation (“trick knee”)
- Hip dysplasia
- Elbow dysplasia, such as ununited anconeal process (UAP) and medial coronoid process disease (MCP)
- Joint conditions, such as osteochondritis dissecans (OCD)
- Angular limb deformities (ALD)
- Osteoarthritis management
- Tendon, muscle, and ligament, injuries including sprains, strains, and ruptures
- Joint luxations (dislocations), including shoulder, elbow, carpal (wrist), hip, stifle, and tarsal (ankle)
Some orthopedic surgical procedures we offer
- Arthroscopy of joints (minimally invasive surgery)
- Tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO) and Cranial Closing Wedge Ostectomy (CCWO) for CCL ruptures
- Joint ligament and tendon repair and reconstruction, such as collateral ligament repair and calcanean tendon repair or replacement
- Complex fracture repair
- Minimally invasive fracture repair with fluoroscopy
- Internal repair with plate and screws with multiple implant systems available
- Interlocking Nail
- External skeletal fixation
- Other adjunct repair methods are also available
- Corrective limb alignment surgery using CT based custom 3-D bone model print and planning
- Biological tendon treatments (platelet-rich plasma injections)
- Total hip replacement
- Partial elbow joint replacement (CUE, canine unicompartmental elbow replacement)
- Partial joint resurfacing (Synacart)
- Partial or complete joint fusion (partial or pantarsal/carpalarthrodesis)
- Calcanean tendon replacement (with cadaver tendon allograft)
Emergent Surgery (referral only)
Our Emergent Surgery Service is designed to address urgent soft tissue and orthopedic cases that require attention within the next day to two weeks. Our team of board-certified surgeons works in collaboration with residents, interns, students, and licensed technicians to provide the highest level of care.
Our surgical team is supported by specialized services, including anesthesia, diagnostics, and 24-hour postoperative care, ensuring comprehensive and continuous care for your patients.
Our Emergent Surgery Service is distinct from our on-call emergency surgery service. We do not handle after-hours on-call surgeries as part of this service; these are managed by our on-call rotation schedule, involving all our surgeons.
Conditions we commonly treat
- Fractures
- Joint luxation
- Treatment for septic joint
- Growth plate (physeal) fractures and physeal trauma
- Acute tendon laceration
- Complex wound management and skin reconstruction
- Dog bite wounds
- Laryngeal paralysis (tie-back)
- BOAS (if “urgent” case relating to e.g. weather, other comorbidities)
- Bladder stones, urethral stones, urethral prolapse
- SUB (subcutaneous ureteral bypass system) for ureteral blockage in cats
- Tumor resections, amputation
- Laparoscopy-assisted liver biopsies
- Gallbladder surgery
- Liver and splenic tumors
- Intestinal tumors
- Chest cases (lung abscess, pneumothorax, etc.)
- foreign body draining tract exploration (e.g. grass seed)
- Abscess exploration
Hospital Stories
Meet the Veterinary Teaching Hospital team: Nina Karn
Meet the Veterinary Teaching Hospital team: Dr. Boel Fransson
Meet the Veterinary Teaching Hospital team: Anna Blackburn
Health Topics
- Pets and anesthesia Many veterinary procedures require your pet to be put under anesthesia so that it will not feel pain and will remain still. Like any medical procedure, anesthesia does have risks, but most healthy animals, including older pets, don’t have any issues and recover rather quickly. How do I know if anesthesia is safe for my […]
- Frequently asked questions about excess growth hormone (acromegaly) in a cat Transsphenoidal hypophysectomy (pituitary gland removal) for a pituitary tumor causing excess growth hormone production (acromegaly) in a cat.
- Frequently asked questions about Cushing’s disease in a dog Transsphenoidal hypophysectomy surgery (pituitary gland removal) for a pituitary tumor causing Cushing’s disease in a dog.
- WSU veterinarian brings virtual reality to laparoscopic surgery Veterinary surgeons training for laparoscopic surgeries could soon be able to perfect their skills in a virtual reality simulation before ever performing the procedures on live patients.
- Cancer surgery Can surgery cure my pet of cancer? Cancer is a scary diagnosis for any pet owner, but there are often surgical treatment options that can improve your pet’s quality of life and, in some cases, even eliminate the cancer. Is my pet a candidate for cancer surgery? Whether your pet is a candidate for surgery […]
- What is Cushing’s Disease? Cushing’s disease can be treated by surgical removal of the affected adrenal gland.
Clinical Studies
Any current clinical studies for this service will be listed below.
Grateful Client Giving
Honor your pet’s caregiver
“This is a place of miracles.”
-Anne Hensley, veterinary hospital client