Barbara Natterson-Horowitz: What veterinarians know that doctors don't

Summary

A cardiologist at UCLA recounts his transformative experience treating animals at the Los Angeles Zoo, revealing striking similarities in diseases between humans and animals. He advocates for a collaborative approach, 'Zoobiquity', to bridge the gap between human medicine and veterinary science, highlighting shared challenges like heart failure and psychiatric disorders. This interdisciplinary exchange could enhance treatments and deepen our understanding of health across species.

Takeaways

• 🐒 The speaker, a cardiologist, was called to the Los Angeles Zoo to help diagnose a chimpanzee's facial droop, highlighting the intersection of human and animal medicine.
• 🏥 Despite having highly qualified veterinarians, zoos sometimes seek human medical expertise for specialty consultations.
• 👩‍⚕️ The speaker found that both physicians and veterinarians deal with similar disorders in their patients, such as heart failure, tumors, and psychiatric conditions.
• 🧬 There's a significant overlap in diseases between animals and humans, which was a wake-up call for the speaker despite their background in comparative physiology.
• 🤔 The speaker questioned why human medical professionals don't consult veterinarians or veterinary literature for insights into human health.
• 🌳 The increasing separation between urban and nonurban lifestyles may contribute to the lack of integration between human and animal medicine.
• 🧠 There's a psychological barrier due to human exceptionalism that makes it difficult to see ourselves as part of the animal kingdom, despite scientific evidence.
• 🔍 The speaker now considers what veterinarians might know that could benefit human patients and explores the concept of 'human animal patients'.
• 💔 Emotionally induced heart failure was 'discovered' in humans in 2000, but veterinarians had been diagnosing and treating it in animals since the 1970s.
• 🐎 Veterinarians have developed effective interventions for conditions like postpartum depression in animals, which could potentially benefit human medicine.
• 🤝 The speaker is passionate about bridging the gap between human and animal medicine through programs like 'Darwin on Rounds' and 'Zoobiquity conferences'.

Q & A

What was the initial reason for the cardiologist's visit to the Los Angeles Zoo?

The cardiologist was called to the zoo to image the heart of an elderly female chimpanzee who had woken up with a facial droop, as the veterinarians were concerned she might have had a stroke.

How does the speaker describe the veterinarians at North American zoos?

The speaker describes the veterinarians at North American zoos as highly qualified, board-certified professionals who take outstanding care of their animal patients.

What was a surprising realization the speaker had while working with both human and animal patients?

The speaker was surprised to find that physicians and veterinarians were essentially dealing with the same disorders in their respective patients, such as congestive heart failure, brain tumors, leukemia, diabetes, arthritis, ALS, breast cancer, and even psychiatric syndromes.

Why did the speaker feel that the overlap in disorders between humans and animals was a wake-up call?

The speaker had studied comparative physiology and evolutionary biology, yet the significant overlap in disorders between animals and humans was not something they had considered before, prompting a reevaluation of their approach to medicine.

What was the speaker's initial reaction to the realization of the similarities in diseases between humans and animals?

The speaker felt that this realization was a much-needed wake-up call and started to question why they had never thought to consult veterinarians or the veterinary literature for insights into human patients.

What is one example the speaker gives of a condition that is not unique to humans but was 'discovered' by human cardiologists?

Fear-induced heart failure is an example given. While human cardiologists 'discovered' it around the year 2000, veterinarians had been diagnosing and treating it in animals since the 1970s.

How does the speaker suggest that the knowledge of veterinarians could benefit human medicine?

The speaker suggests that by incorporating veterinary knowledge, such as treatments for self-injury or postpartum depression in animals, human medicine could potentially save lives and improve patient care.

What is the Zoobiquity conference and what is its purpose?

The Zoobiquity conference is an event where medical schools are brought together with veterinary schools to discuss the shared diseases and disorders of animal and human patients, with the aim of fostering collaboration and learning between the two fields.

What is the Darwin on Rounds program and how does it work?

Darwin on Rounds is a program at UCLA where animal experts and evolutionary biologists are embedded on medical teams with interns and residents to promote interdisciplinary learning and collaboration.

What does the speaker believe is one of the main barriers to collaboration between physicians and veterinarians?

The speaker believes that one of the main barriers is the attitude of some physicians who can be snobbish about non-M.D. doctors, especially veterinarians, despite the fact that veterinarians have to learn about a wide range of species and conditions.

How does the speaker conclude the importance of considering humans as animals in the context of medicine?

The speaker concludes by emphasizing that humans are also animals and that physicians should embrace this fact, collaborate with veterinarians, and learn from the treatment of other species to improve human medicine.