Photo by Catie Staszak Media, Inc.
If the facilities at Reid & Associates are any indication, Byron Reid, VDM is prepared for just about anything. Reid’s Loxahatchee, FL-based clinic is a full-service equine hospital and referral center. Known for his surgical prowess, Reid has made his clinic and adjunct equine hyperbaric oxygen chamber available to all, both scrubbing in and hosting visiting surgeons. Reid is often the first call in an emergency or to schedule an elective procedure. “We still do surgeries of all kinds,” Reid said. “Most of the time, those are soft tissue surgeries and colic surgeries, but there’s another big category of arthroscopy, and we’re also prepared to do those.”
Byron Reid, VDM in surgery. Photo Courtesy Reid & Associates.
Having hyperbaric oxygen therapy at his disposal has also become a unique strength of the clinic. Reid established the Equine Hyperbaric Oxygen Center of South Florida in partnership with Meg Miller Turpin, DVM, more than 10 years ago, erecting the massive chamber adjacent to Reid & Associates’ 11-stall critical care barn.
The chamber at Equine Hyperbaric Center of South Florida is FDA approved and one of the largest equine chambers manufactured. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, in which atmospheric pressure is increased to approximately two to three times normal atmospheric pressure, has proven itself as a low-risk method of decreasing recovery time from a variety of injuries and diseases.
“The chamber is a wonderful adjunct in some of the most serious cases,” Reid said. “The first thing that comes to mind that would benefit the most would be what they call in people, ‘crush injuries’—where there’s a major trauma and tissue is compromised, where it lacks appropriate blood supply and oxygen.”
Hyper-oxygenation treatments last approximately one hour, with 45 minutes of the process at the highest levels of oxygen. HBOT is most effective when used in conjunction with an accurate diagnoses and appropriate primary therapy.
“The concept is that the chamber provides oxygen when blood can’t get there to supply oxygen, which is its main function—outside of carrying nutrients,” he continued. “Some of our most serious cases really benefit from the hyperbaric oxygen.”
That no day is the same at Reid & Associates is what has kept Reid enthusiastic about his work for nearly 40 years. Both leading surgeries and doing local ambulatory calls—inpatient and outpatient—he continues to oversee the care of every one of his patients.
“I’m doing surgeries and I’m doing pre-purchase and lameness exams. I don’t have five or six other veterinarians,” Reid said. “I’m limited in the number of horses I can see in a day, but we have scheduling to help with that. I do think we can actually offer better service because of it.”
To learn more about Reid & Associates and the Hyperbaric Oxygen Center of South Florida, visit ReidEquine.com and EquineHyperbaricCenter.com.