Overview
GVS has expanded our services, technology and staff over the years to reflect the advances in veterinary medicine, including opening a satellite location in Gwinnett. By offering a full complement of multi-disciplinary specialists and diagnostics, GVS can expand the scope of your practice. We fully recognize that as a primary care veterinarian you understand your patient’s needs better than anyone. And sometimes those needs require that you utilize a specialist. By collaborating, we can give your clients and patients options, as well as the highest level of medical care.
We value our relationship with our referring veterinarians and welcome your feedback on how we can continue to make our facility a resource for your practice, and the referral process efficient for you and your clients.
Locations
Main Hospital
GVS – Sandy Springs
455 Abernathy Road NE
Sandy Springs, Georgia 30328
Satellite
GVS - Gwinnett
1956 Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road
Lawrenceville, Georgia
Diagnostic Imaging
- Digital Radiology
- CT Scan
- MRI
- EMG
- Myelography
- Contrast Radiology
- Abdominal, Ocular, and Thoracic Ultrasonography
- Cardiac Ultrasonography
- Color-Flow Doppler Ultrasonography
Specialized Surgical Services
- Arthroscopy
- Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO)
- Complex Fracture Repair
- Orthopedic Surgery
- Cataract Surgery and Lens Implantation
- Diode Laser Ophthalmic Surgery
- Soft Tissue and Oncologic Surgery
- Facial and Reconstructive Surgery
- Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery
- Ear Canal Ablation
- Neurosurgery
- Portosystemic Shunts and Microvascular Surgery
- Laparoscopy and Thoracoscopy
Endoscopy
- Rhinoscopy
- Retroflex Pharyngoscopy
- Laryngoscopy
- Bronchocopy
- Upper Gastrointestinal Tract Endoscopy
- Colonoscopy and Proctoscopy
- Endoscopic Biopsy
- Endoscopic Foreign Body Retrieval
- Cystoscopy
Additional Services
- Emergency and Critical Care (24 Hours)
- Radioactive Iodine (I-131) treatment for cats
- Dermatology
- Holters
- Event Recorder
- Oxygen Therapy
- Telemetry
- Blood-Gas Analysis
- Blood and Plasma Transfusion Therapy
- Blood Pressure Determination
- Cerebrospinal Fluid Collection and Analysis
- Bone Marrow Aspiration and Bone Biopsy
- Chemotherapy
- Ultrasound-Guided Fine Needle Aspiration
- Ultrasound-Guided Soft Tissue Biopsy
- Radiation Therapy (linear accelerator)
- Nutritional Counseling
- Acupuncture
Hospice
Georgia Veterinary Specialists is dedicated to providing compassionate care throughout your pet’s lifetime. Even if your beloved companion is diagnosed with a terminal disease, we can help you provide a comfortable, loving environment much like that of hospice care for people. Hospice is supportive care – assistance in evaluating and managing your pet’s quality of life at each key stage. Hospice may last from days to years. During illness, your pet may suffer from losses of certain functions of daily living. Our team will help you identify, address and correct some of those, which may include:
- Recognition and management of pain
- Appetite and food intake
- Dealing with incontinence
- Managing immobility and/or paralysis
- Assessing your pet for dehydration
- Hygiene
We will educate you about medicines that are used in supportive care, including analgesics for pain, appetite stimulants, anti-nausea medications, subcutaneous fluids for hydration, as well as the administration of injections when necessary. We can advise you on mobility aids that can help aging, unsteady animals negotiate their environment more confidently. You can also turn to us to help you recognize the signs of impending death and the process of euthanasia, because we understand how difficult it is to know when “the time is right” to make that decision.
If hospice is right for you and your pet, please make an appointment with Dr. Susan G. Wynn.
Radioiodine I-131 Treatment for Feline Hyperthyroidism
The thyroid gland, in cats as in humans, produces hormones that are vital to maintaining normal growth and metabolism. Occasionally in older cats, a tumor forms on one or both of the thyroid glands that causes the gland to produce abnormally high levels of these hormones (hyperthyroidism). Hyperthyroidism has become the most common endocrine (hormonal) disorder in cats. Up to 2% of cats seen by veterinarians are reported to have the disease. Cats with this condition will frequently exhibit many of the following symptoms: weight loss, behavioral changes, increased appetite, increased heart rate, increased consumption of water and urinary output, excessive shedding, vomiting and diarrhea. If left untreated, hyperthyroidism can be fatal.
Radioactive iodine (I-131)provides a simple, effective, and safe treatment for cats with hyperthyroidism unaffected. . Treatment with radioiodine avoids the inconvenience of daily oral administration and side effects associated with antithyroid drugs, as well as the risks and postoperative complications associated with anesthesia and surgical removal of the affected thyroid gland. A radioactive isotope (I-131) is given which concentrates in the abnormal thyroid gland which then irradiates and destroys thyroid tumors while leaving normal tissue unaffected. More than 97% of all cats treated never need future treatment. There are very few side effects and normal thyroid function returns within approximately four weeks. The primary disadvantage to I-131 is the isolation of the patient for a short period of time.
The treatment involves only a single oral dose of medication. By law, your cat is required to stay with us for three days, but will receive plenty of TLC during that time. Your pet’s progress is monitored daily by specially trained medical personnel, and you will be updated regularly with updates. By the end of the three days, the radiation levels from the treatment are low enough for your cat to go home. Your cat will then need to be kept in a semi-isolated environment in your home for an additional two weeks.