The Veterinary Clinical Investigations Center (VCIC) is a center within the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine focusing on the implementation of high-quality clinical trials for client-owned companion animals. The director of the VCIC, Dr. Dorothy Cimino Brown, is a board-certified small animal surgeon with an advanced degree in clinical epidemiology/clinical trials from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
The center is staffed with full-time nurses certified in Good Clinical Practice, whose effort is devoted to all aspects of clinical trial implementation, from study set-up and recruitment to data collection, data management and study closeout. The VCIC is involved in the coordination and implementation of industry, foundation and government funded studies including FDA- and USDA-regulated studies.
All studies are conducted to the level of GCP / VICH GL9 regardless of whether or not data will be submitted to a regulatory agency.
The VCIC has been active in the successful completion of both single center and multi-center trials. Past studies have focused on a broad spectrum of conditions including 
acute and chronic pain, infectious disease, obesity, sepsis and trauma, and have involved many hospital services including oncology, cardiology, dermatology, neurology, endocrinology, interventional radiology and internal medicine.
The VCIC matches an investigator from the faculty and staff at the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, who has the expertise needed for a given sponsored study, and then facilitates the efficient start-up, high quality data collection and successful completion of that study.
For research involving investigational compounds including blinded, placebo-controlled studies, the VCIC works collaboratively with the Investigational Drug Service (IDS) at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The IDS is a research-only pharmacy that can provide 21CFR11 inventory monitoring, compounding and dispensing of investigational medications.
Our Available Facilities and Equipment
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging
- Computed Tomography
- Fluoroscopy
- Digital Radiology
- Intra-Oral Radiology
- Ultrasound
- Echocardiology
- Electromyography
- Endoscopy
- Interventional radiology
- Behavior clinic
- Exotic animal service
Successful Animal Trials
A successful companion animal trial begins with the ability to recruit the number of animals necessary to deliver meaningful results. The VCIC has a successful recruitment program, which utilizes print, Internet and radio advertising, as well as listserv and flyer recruitment through our network of over 3,000 referring veterinary practices.
When a trial requires more animals with a specific condition than would normally be presented in the 34,000 pets that come to Ryan Hospital annually, the VCIC has a proven record for targeted recruitment of animals at over 400 percent above baseline presentation rate.
The VCIC documents which recruitment modalities are most effective for a given target population and can guide sponsors on the most efficient means to enroll the desired number of animals in a specified period of time for a given study.
Contact the VCIC
If you would like more information about the Veterinary Clinical Investigations Center please contact the Associate Director, Michael DiGregorio at (215) 573-3885 or email mdigreg@vet.upenn.edu