Joana Tabanez

Joana graduated from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in the University of Lisbon in 2012.

After working as a general practitioner, Joana moved to the UK in 2015 to pursue specialised training. She completed a rotating internship, a specialised orthopaedic and neurosurgery internship and a neurology internship prior to commencing an ECVN residency in Neurology and Neurosurgery at Fitzpatrick Referrals.

Joana worked as a residency trained clinician in veterinary neurology for two years before joining Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists in July 2023 and passed the ECVN diploma examination in February 2025, becoming an EBVS® European Specialist in Veterinary Neurology. Joana enjoys all aspects of neurology and neurosurgery and in particular, craniocervical junction abnormalities and thoracolumbar malformations in brachycephalic dogs and feline neurology.

Joana is a proud dog and cat mum of four

Publications:

1. Couto F, Tabanez J, Rose J, Driver C. Surgical management of single-level thoracolumbar vertebral body segmentation and formation failure causing progressive thoracolumbar myelopathy in three adult large-breed dogs. Front Vet Sci. 2025 Jan 7;11:1504477. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1504477. PMID: 39840342; PMCID: PMC11747646.
2. Alf V, Tirrito F, Fischer A, Cappello R, Kiviranta AM, Steinberg TA, Poli F, Stotz F, Del Vecchio OV, Dörfelt S, Falzone C, Knittel A, Loderstedt S, Mercuriali E, Tabanez J, Zagarella P, Matiasek K, Rosati M. A multimodal approach to diagnosis of neuromuscular neosporosis in dogs. J Vet Intern Med. 2024 Sep-Oct;38(5):2561-2570. doi: 10.1111/jvim.17145. Epub 2024 Jul 17. PMID: 39016150; PMCID: PMC11423454.
3. Rose JH, Driver CJ, Arrol L, Cardy TJA, Tabanez J, Tauro A, Fernandes R, Schofield I, Adamantos S, Granger N, Harcourt-Brown TR. Prospective randomized trial comparing relapse rates in dogs with steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis treated with a 6-week or 6-month prednisolone protocol. J Vet Intern Med. 2024 Jul-Aug;38(4):2221-2227. doi: 10.1111/jvim.17130. Epub 2024 Jun 19. PMID: 38895927; PMCID: PMC11256166.
4. West N, Butterfield S, Rusbridge C, Fernandez A, Tabanez J, Rudolf NJ, Archer S, Whittaker D. Non-traumatic hemorrhagic myelopathy in dogs. J Vet Intern Med. 2023 May-Jun;37(3):1129-1138. doi: 10.1111/jvim.16694. Epub 2023 Apr 24. PMID: 37095733; PMCID: PMC10229319.
5. Butterfield S, Whittaker D, Tabanez J, Carrete JC, Pitchford C, Mattias CRJ, Crawford A, Rusbridge C. Bacterial meningitis secondary to otogenic infection in 10 French bulldogs: A retrospective case series. Vet Rec Open. 2023 Jun 13;10(1):e263. doi: 10.1002/vro2.63. PMID: 37325339; PMCID: PMC10264364.
6. Caldero Carrete J, Tabanez J, Civello A, Rusbridge C. Vertebral giant cell tumour of bone in a domestic shorthair cat. JFMS Open Rep. 2023 Apr 11;9(1):20551169231160227. doi: 10.1177/20551169231160227. PMID: 37077341; PMCID: PMC10107977.
7. Gomes SA, Garosi LS, Behr S, Toni C, Tabanez J, Rusbridge C, Targett M, Lowrie M. Clinical features, treatment and outcome of discospondylitis in cats. J Feline Med Surg. 2022 Apr;24(4):311-321. doi: 10.1177/1098612X211020159. Epub 2021 Jun 8. PMID: 34100660; PMCID: PMC10812237.
8. van Renen J, Fischer A, Kolb N, Wielaender F, Zablotski Y, Nessler J, Tipold A, Cappello R, Flegel T, Loderstedt S, Gnirs K, Rentmeister K, Rupp S, von Klopmann T, Steffen F, Jurina K, Del Vecchio OV, Deutschland M, König F, Gandini G, Harcourt-Brown T, Kornberg M, Bianchi E, Gagliardo T, Menchetti M, Schenk H, Tabanez J, Matiasek K, Rosati M. Clinical Course and Diagnostic Findings of Biopsy Controlled Presumed Immune-Mediated Polyneuropathy in 70 European Cats. Front Vet Sci. 2022 May 17;9:875657. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.875657. PMID: 35664840; PMCID: PMC9156799.
9. Kolb N, Matiasek K, van Renen J, Fischer A, Zablotski Y, Wieländer F, Nessler J, Tipold A, Cappello R, Flegel T, Loderstedt S, Dietzel J, Gnirs K, Rentmeister K, Rupp S, von Klopmann T, Steffen F, Jurina K, Del Vecchio OV, Deutschland M, König F, Gandini G, Harcourt-Brown T, Kornberg M, Bianchi E, Gagliardo T, Menchetti M, Schenk H, Tabanez J, Rosati M. Biopsy Characteristics, Subtypes, and Prognostic Features in 107 Cases of Feline Presumed Immune-Mediated Polyneuropathy. Front Vet Sci. 2022 Jun 24;9:928309. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.928309. PMID: 35812863; PMCID: PMC9263917.
10. Tabanez J, Beck S, Driver C, Rusbridge C. Spinal ectopic choroid plexus papilloma in a cat. JFMS Open Rep. 2021 Oct 6;7(2):20551169211048464. doi: 10.1177/20551169211048464. PMID: 34646571; PMCID: PMC8504248.
11. Tabanez J, Gutierrez-Quintana R, Kaczmarska A, José-López R, Nadal VG, Rotter C, Leblond G. Evaluation of a Novel Dorsal-Cemented Technique for Atlantoaxial Stabilisation in 12 Dogs. Life (Basel). 2021 Oct 2;11(10):1039. doi: 10.3390/life11101039. PMID: 34685410; PMCID: PMC8539997.