Clinician’s Brief podcast spotlights OA pain care beyond NSAIDs
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Clinician’s Brief has published a sponsored podcast episode, “Osteoarthritis Pain: Beyond NSAIDs with Dr. Robin Downing,” featuring host Dr. Beth Molleson and veterinary pain specialist Dr. Robin Downing. The episode focuses on practical strategies for managing osteoarthritis pain in dogs and cats as treatment options expand, with an emphasis on going beyond a single-drug approach and improving conversations with pet parents about recognizing pain and tracking quality of life. Clinician’s Brief frames the discussion as a response to a fast-changing pain-management landscape, where new therapeutics and more structured assessment tools are reshaping how practices approach chronic OA cases. Related Clinician’s Brief podcast coverage on mobility and joint health has also underscored that mobility is a major quality-of-life marker, that cats are often overlooked despite common obesity- and age-related OA, and that management extends beyond medications and supplements alone. (cliniciansbrief.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the timing is notable. The 2022 AAHA Pain Management Guidelines recommend early, proactive, multimodal pain control, regular reassessment, and use of validated clinical metrology instruments such as CBPI and LOAD for chronic osteoarthritis monitoring. That makes Downing’s “beyond NSAIDs” framing especially relevant as clinics weigh how to combine pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic options, engage pet parents earlier, and document response to therapy more consistently. It also fits with broader mobility-focused messaging in Clinician’s Brief podcasts, including the reminder that OA and impaired mobility affect both dogs and cats and can have a direct impact on day-to-day function and perceived quality of life. At the same time, the OA drug landscape is still evolving: Librela, approved by the FDA in 2023 for control of OA pain in dogs, received safety-related label changes in February 2025 that added post-approval adverse event information and directed veterinarians to discuss a client information sheet and return-to-activity planning with dog owners. (aaha.org)
What to watch: Expect more discussion across the profession about how to balance newer OA pain therapies with multimodal protocols, structured monitoring, species-specific mobility needs, and clearer pet parent communication as post-approval safety data continue to accumulate. (fda.gov)