Featured Image Credit: Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society
By: Sarah Sharkey
Layla is a 7-year-old black rhinoceros that has recently undergone lifesaving surgery at the Brookfield Zoo. The surgery was done in order to help ease the pain of an impacted, unerupted molar that had caused a serious sinus infection. The infection was so bad that it had affected her breathing since December of 2017.
The team discovered this infection with the help of a CT scan. After the procedure, Layla was examined for a second time with a CT scan. This is likely the first time that a rhino has undergone a CT scan! It was definitely a difficult process, but necessary to save her life.
She is still being treated with antibiotics and her team is carefully watching her progress.
The vice president of clinical medicine, Mike Adkesson, said “To our knowledge, this type of surgery has never been performed on a rhinoceros before. We are very encouraged by how well Layla has tolerated the procedure,” Adkesson said. “In the wild, this condition would have proved fatal, but we are very hopeful that with our advanced medical care we will be able to save Layla’s life.”
An amazing medical feat that may have saved Layla’s life is an impressive show of how far veterinary medicine has come in recent years.
Learn more from our source.