Virginia Bear Update- Post #5, CT Scan

Now that Virginia was sedated and all safety and monitoring equipment in place, it was time to take her to radiology. (Another big thanks to Mike Charbonneau, the Director of Communications and Marketing at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine, for sending us the following pictures of this part of Virginia’s appointment).

The heart rate monitor is connected and can be seen on the left of the picture. (Actually, this machine monitors more than just heart rate)

I think these images of Virginia in the CT machine are pretty darn cool!

We already knew that Virginia had extensive arthritis, but we needed to get new films, determine progression, and decide how to best support her moving forward. The results of the scan confirmed how extensive her osteoarthritis is, especially in her front feet. She also has some spondylosis (a type of arthritis on her spine).

Check out these 3D images from her scan.

 

With the scans complete and blood taken, it was just about time to prepare Virginia for her trip back to the Museum. First, however, she got a large steroid injection in her front foot. This would help manage symptoms and pain until we could update/add new medicines to her treatment. (That will be the next post about Virginia so keep coming back to learn more).

 

When all work was done, Virginia was moved back in the crate. The team continued to monitor her in the crate, and once ready, they gave her some medicine to help reverse the anesthetic. (That’s when we shut the door below and continued to monitor Virginia through the smaller window openings).

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