#LEG INJURIES IN HORSES SKIN#

Sometimes the process of healing can be hastened by the simple expedient of skin grafting. If the wound shows evidence of healing over the next four to seven days, treatment is continued. Infection may need to be controlled with antibiotics after appropriate culture and sensitivity to identify the causative bacteria and reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance. Sometimes, immobilisation of the wound site under a firm bandage or cast is needed. At this stage, the vet will reassess the wound and make a decision as to the likelihood that it will heal naturally. Treatment is focused on creating a healthy wound that wants to heal.Ĭareful wound dressing management immediately after such surgery is vital - dressings are usually changed every 24hrs. However, where proud flesh has been present for some time, the margin of the wound could be unhealthy and the sensitive edges of the wound may have to be cut back. This may allow the skin edges to contract and cells to migrate across the margin of the wound. It is common practice to cut the proud flesh back to just under the skin level. It reduces the bulk of the wound and, at the same time, will remove many of the “blocks” to healing.

Surgical debridement (cutting back) can serve several purposes. Where proud flesh develops at sites other than the lower leg regions, there is usually another definable cause, such as a foreign body embedded deep in the wound. Infection and excessive movement are the most likely reasons why horse wounds develop proud flesh. All these factors can encourage exuberant granulation tissue and inhibit the spread of skin cells across the surface of the wound. There are many reasons why a wound doesn’t heal as expected, which include infection, foreign bodies, dead tissues or movement within the wound site, chemical applications and poor blood supply to the wound. Sometimes the tissue can protrude out of the wound and look like a pink cauliflower. It may also have a yellowing tinge and may bleed easily if knocked. This results in bulging masses of tissue, which usually looks rather knobbly, pink and shiny. If contraction and the migration of skin surface cells are inhibited then the wound may get bigger because granulation tissue is the only active process happening. If the healing process is impaired, the delicate balance between the various processes can be upset.

Leg injuries in horses