Veterinary General Pathology and Clinical Biochemistry

To provide knowledge about the pathogenic mechanisms responsible of the pathologic changes detectable in domestic and wild animals. Students will be also educated to select appropriate clinical biochemistry and molecular biology methods and to elaborate, interpret and understand the limitation of the test results.

Knowledge and understanding: the student will acquire knowledge on the etiopathogenesis of the main pathological and pathophysiological changes in animal tissues and organ systems and on the analytical techniques commonly used in veterinary clinical chemistry, biochemistry and molecular biology.
Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: the student will acquire skills to interpret the most common pathological and pathophysiological changes and the associated laboratory abnormalities, as well as to select the most appropriate biochemical and molecular methods to measure diagnostic markers of disease in biological samples of animal origin. The student will learn how to process an instrumental reading into the concentration of a diagnostic molecular marker, and on how to interpret the diagnostic value of a laboratory result, how to control the source of error of laboratory's tests and the principle of quality insurance.
Autonomy of judgment: the student will develop problem solving abilities and autonomy of judgment by tackling problems of diagnostic clinical pathology and biochemistry during practical exercises in laboratories (biochemistry, microscopy and computer labs). The ability to integrate notions taught in the different modules will also developed by proposing to small group of students clinical cases that they must evaluate and solve autonomously as regards the aspects of pathology, immunopathology and clinical biochemistry.
Communication skills: the student during the class discussion and practical laboratory exercises will learn how to present pathology and clinical biochemistry data with appropriate and updated terminology, consistent with the professionalism required by a veterinarian surgeon. Communication skills will be as well developed during collegial discussions of the diagnostic pathology and biochemistry matters of the clinical cases that the students previously faced by themselves.
Lifelong learning skills: the reasoning skills and the notions and methodologies acquired during the classes should allow the student to continue autonomously the study and the lifelong updating of his knowledge on tissue and organ pathological and pathophysiological alterations, as well as on the method of analysis of clinical biochemistry markers of disease, both during the university career and then as a veterinarian.