On March 22, 2024, the UC Davis veterinary hospital hosted the 45th annual Gerald V. Ling Veterinary Intern and Resident Research Symposium (VIRRS). The day-long event featured short presentations of research findings from house officers (residents, fellows, interns) to fellow house officers, faculty, staff, students, and guests.

Having the ability to do research is a major advantage of doing a residency at the UC Davis veterinary hospital. With the largest and most diverse house office program in the country, the hospital is able to offer research opportunities not available elsewhere. UC Davis currently trains 139 house officers in 41 specialty disciplines, and 41 total research studies were presented at this year’s VIRRS, covering a large breadth of topics throughout veterinary medicine.

VIRRS is overseen by the House Officer Affairs Board, consisting of faculty members Drs. Jamie Burkitt (co-chair), Amandine Lejeune (co-chair), Allison Gagnon, Meera Heller, Amir Kol, Bianca Martins, and Richard Pereira, with program support from staff members Nicole Adams, Simon Ehrlich, and Audra Johnson. Congratulations to the planning committee for organizing yet another successful VIRRS.

Award winners at the 2024 VIRRS included:

Gerald V. Ling Award
•    Dr. Mallory Lehman (resident), Large Animal Internal Medicine: “Pharmacokinetics and Safety of Oral Fluralaner in Healthy Horses”
Outstanding Small Animal Research Study and Presentation Award #1
•    Dr. Emma Cosaro (resident), Small Animal Internal Medicine: “Efficacy of Oral Remdesivir Compared to GS-441524 for Treatment of Cats with Naturally Occurring Effusive Feline Infectious Peritonitis: A Blinded, Non-Inferiority Study”
Outstanding Small Animal Research Study and Presentation Award #2
•    Dr. Courtney Moeller (resident), Small Animal Internal Medicine: “Differences in Clinical Findings between Brucella Discospondylitis and other Causes of Canine Discospondylitis”
Chris Smith Award for Outstanding Equine Research Study and Presentation
•    Dr. Laurel Saldinger (resident), Equine Surgery: “An Investigation of whether Perfusate Instillation Time Affects Systemic or Synovial Concentration of Amikacin in the Radiocarpal Joint after Intravenous Regional Limb Perfusion”
Outstanding Large Animal Research Study and Presentation Award
•    Dr. Leah Streb (resident), Laboratory Animal – Traditional: “Characterization of Carpal Hyperextension in Nigerian Dwarf Goats”
Outstanding Avian, Exotics, Laboratory Animal or Poultry Research Study and Presentation Award
•    Dr. Brett Story (resident), Ophthalmology: “Safety and Biocompatibility of a Novel Aflibercept-Drug Delivery System in Rhesus Macaques”

Support for the event was provided by the Center for Companion Animal Health, the Center for Equine Health, the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, and Hill’s Pet Nutrition.

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