Animal Medical Service
Mission
Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) supports animal use research through the vivarium and veterinary services of the USA Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR). The mission of the USAISR Vivarium is to assure the responsible use of animals in medical research and training and provide BAMC Staff with opportunities, technical support, and administration for biomedical research and training, using appropriate animal models while ensuring humane animal care and use. The USAISR Vivarium supports Graduate Medical Education (GME) and other professional health education, ultimately facilitating improvements to health care and the introduction of new medical technology. All animal research at BAMC is performed strictly under an Animal Research Protocol, approved by the USAISR Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).
Resources
- AAALAC-I; Accredited Animal Care and Use Program
- Staff: Attending Veterinarian & Technicians
- Animal housing: Rodents, Rabbits, Swine, Ruminants
- Facilities: Surgical suites /ICU/CT/Radiology/C-arm fluoroscopy/Ultrasound/Bioluminescence imaging system/fluorescent/X-ray imager
Life Cycle of an Animal Research Protocol
- Research question of clinical benefit to the Warfighter
- Refinement of question and approach thru discussion with clinical mentors and subject matter experts
- Protocol development through consultation with the Attending Veterinarian: choice of an appropriate animal model and literature search for duplication and alternatives
- Consultation with Statistician
- Apply the three R’S:
- Reduction
- Refinement
- Replacement
- Protocol Submission to the IACUC, incorporation of revisions
- Approval of Animal Use Protocol
- Protocol Execution and Documentation
- Reporting of Results in peer-reviewed scientific publications