HIF abstract wins prestigious prize

24 April 2023 / Update

A resident in small animal surgery has won the prize for best abstract presented at the annual spring meeting of the British Veterinary Orthopaedic Association (BVOA).

Dylan Payne, who has worked Northwest Veterinary Specialists (NWVS) in Runcorn since 2020, was awarded the prestigious Leslie Vaughan Prize for his paper, which was co-authored by Nick Macdonald, recognised specialist in small animal surgery, also at NWVS.

The paper is titled “Computed Tomography topographical analysis of incomplete humeral intracondylar fissures in English springer spaniel dogs”.

Dylan said: “Humeral intracondylar fissure or HIF is a common condition causing lameness and fractures in the front legs of dogs, particularly English springer spaniels.

“We used computed tomography (CT) of multiple dogs and different stages of progression to document and track formation and propagation of this condition to try and understand it better in the hope that therapies can be developed to treat it more effectively or even prevent it altogether.”

The paper is not yet published but is being submitted soon with the hope it will be published in the coming year.

The Lesley Vaughan Prize encourages and rewards young researchers in the field of veterinary orthopaedics and is awarded for the best Clinical Research Abstract to a scientist who is less than 12 years qualified.

Lesley Vaughan himself was born in 1927 and dedicated his whole professional life to the Royal Veterinary College (RVC), making an outstanding contribution to veterinary surgery for more than 50 years.

Prue Neath, clinical director at NWVS, said: “We’re incredibly proud of Dylan and the support he received from Nick.

“Dylan’s passion for small animal surgery is clear to see and his very impressive abstract further demonstrates his commitment to providing the highest level of patient care.”

NWVS is one of the UK’s leading specialist-led animal hospitals. It offers care in anaesthesia and analgesia, diagnostic imaging, internal medicine, neurology and neurosurgery, oncology, orthopaedics and soft tissue surgery. 

Dylan Payne Head