The Importance of Preventative Medicine

My goal as a veterinarian is to prevent my patients from getting sick or having the same medical issues   over and over. This is done through yearly vaccines and blood work, wellness exams every 6 months,   yearly dentals, monthly flea/heartworm prevention and by diagnosing and addressing the underlying   cause of medical issues instead of just treating the same thing over and over again. At times I know it   seems like investing in prevention of disease by following these recommendations is going to be more   expensive than just dealing with things as they come up, but in the long-run the saying, “An ounce of   prevention is worth a pound of cure!”, is true.

You don’t have to take my word for it – in the April edition of one of the veterinary journals I get there   was a study that looked at the cost difference between prevention and treatment of the five most   common preventive pet conditions in 2012. These numbers are based on costs throughout the United   States and have nothing to do with EVH pricing. I thought you guys might find the article interesting so I   have listed those statistics below:

1. Dental Diseases
Examples: Tooth infection or cavity, multiple extractions needed, and periodontal disease
Average treatment cost: $531.71
Average prevention cost: $171.82

2. Internal Parasites
Examples: Round worms, Hook worms, Whip worms, tape worms, coccidia, and giardiasis
Average treatment cost: $ 179.93
Average prevention cost: $ 29.51

3. External Parasites
Examples: Heartworms transmitted by mosquitoes, Lyme disease transmitted by ticks, and skin issues
Average treatment cost: $ 180.67 to $ 5,000.
Average prevention cost: $ 84.89

4. Infectious Diseases
Examples: Parvovirus, Lyme disease, and feline leukemia virus.
Average treatment cost: $ 678.24 (this cost varies widely depending on the disease and each disease has   serious, often fatal consequences)
Average prevention cost: $73.52

5. Reproductive Organ Diseases
Examples: Pyometra, prostatitis, and ovarian neoplasia
Average treatment cost: $ 531.98
Average prevention cost: $260.69

As you can see from these numbers – prevention is what needs to be focused on, not only to decrease   costs, but to keep our four-legged kids safe & healthy for a longer, happier life!