Evidence in Exotic Animal Practice: A “How-To Guide”

Abstract

Evidence-based veterinary medicine is a process used to guide clinical decision making, thereby allowing veterinarians to find, appraise, and integrate current best evidence with individual clinical expertise, client wishes, and patient needs. Although the concept of using research evidence to guide clinical decisions is not new, a structured approach to integrating these aspects of veterinary practice opens the door to allow the overwhelming amount of available published evidence to flow into the veterinary examination room. The goal of this article is to demystify evidence-based veterinary medicine and explain how the techniques are used in exotic animal practice.

Key words: amphibian, avian, evidence-based veterinary medicine, exotic animal, exotic companion mammal, reptile