The 26th annual American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) Forum was held June 4 through 7, 2008, at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas.
The keynote presentation, "One Health, One Medicine: A Common Pathway for Veterinary and Human Medicine," was presented by Dr. Franziska Grieder, director of comparative medicine at the National Center for Research Resources. Dr. Grieder's address focused on the importance of veterinary medicine to world health for both humans and animals, the steps veterinarians can take to prepare for the future of veterinary research, and the need to find money to train researchers and support their efforts.
The equine program included more than 30 oral presentations that summarized research abstracts and almost as many poster presentations that relayed up-to-date information on all fields of equine medicine—most notably respiratory and infectious diseases. According to Jenn Armbruster, communications and media relations manager for the ACVIM, "Highlights of the equine program were scientific sessions on maple leaf toxicosis in horses and the control of MRSA in clinics and the community." Other topics of interest included a series on nutritional supplements and the ACVIM equine short course on diseases of the central nervous system, which was presented by Robert MacKay, PhD, DACVIM, of the University of Florida. In addition, many presentations on various topics for specialists and generalists were available, including the award-winning research abstract, "Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Dysfunction in Critically Ill Neonatal Foals," by Dr. Kelsey Hart of The University of Georgia.
"The total attendance in San Antonio was 3033, including 2566 veterinarians, 375 technicians, and 92 veterinary students," summarized Armbruster. "The 2008 ACVIM Forum was a great success, and we are eagerly looking forward to the 2009 ACVIM Forum in Montreal from June 3 through 6, where we will continue to provide our attendees with the most current information in cardiology, oncology, neurology, and small and large animal internal medicine."
This year's conference was only slightly less well attended than last year's silver anniversary conference, which attracted a record 3757 attendees.
