TUSTIN, Calif., July 8, 2013 – To help save the lives of injured and ill mountain and Grauer’s gorillas and to sustain their populations in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gorilla Doctors is using the Viamo ultrasound system, donated by Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. The system is the first in the project’s 26 years to be used on gorillas in the wild, greatly improving the quality of veterinary care.
“The portability, battery operation, excellent image capability and ease of use of the Viamo allow our team to image in the field, which requires many hours of trekking up steep terrain and limited examination times,” said Dawn Zimmerman, DVM, MS, regional veterinary manager, Gorilla Doctors. “Using the Viamo, we are able to improve the speed of diagnoses and treatment, helping save wild gorillas from extinction.”
Gorilla Doctors uses the Viamo to evaluate viability (blood supply) of limbs after ensnarement and to conduct cardiac profiles and general abdominal scans, as well as for reproductive assessment. The Viamo is the industry’s only no-compromise laptop ultrasound system with advanced imaging capabilities. It can be used in either laptop or tablet mode with the performance of Toshiba’s larger cart-based systems.
“Toshiba’s ultrasound systems are designed to meet a diverse set of clinical needs, and partnering with Gorilla Doctors has proven diagnostic success in the most rural and challenging of situations,” said Tomohiro Hasegawa, director, Ultrasound Business Unit, Toshiba.
About Gorilla Doctors
Founded in 1986 at the request of the late gorilla researcher Dian Fossey, the Gorilla Doctors’ veterinary team is dedicated to saving the lives of Central Africa’s endangered mountain and Grauer’s gorillas through health care. Powered by the nonprofit Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project, Inc. and the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center, Gorilla Doctors treats wild human-habituated gorillas suffering from life-threatening injury and illness, aids in the rescue and treatment of orphaned gorillas, conducts gorilla disease research, and facilitates preventive health care for the people who work in the national parks and come into close contact with the gorillas. For more information, go to www.gorilladoctors.org.
