Equine Wound Assessment

Why does the low grade inflammatory process persist in the distal limb more than the overall body?

M1 pro-inflammation

What are the characteristics of contraction in an equine wound?

wound contracts in a centripetal fusion toward the center, starts around day 5 and spans both the proliferative and remodeling phase

How many millimeters do the distal body parts regenerate per day?

~0.2 mm/day

How many millimeters do the upper body parts regenerate per day?

0.8-1.0 mm/day

What are the steps of epithelialization?

initial wound, migration, proliferation

Between horses and ponies, who heals better?

ponies

What is a common development in distal wound of horses?

exuberant granulation tissue aka “proud flesh”

What is the process of development of exuberant granulation tissue?

inflammation fails to resolve so a chronic inflammatory response is established (fibrosis)

What is fibrosis?

characterized by excessive accumulation of ECM components at the site of injury

True or False: Exuberant granulation tissue impedes wound healing, particularly epithelialization.

True

What colors can viable tissue be? You want to protect this.

pink and red

What color is the epithelial part of a wound?

pink

What color is the granulating part of a wound?

red

What colors can non-viable tissue be? You want to debride this.

yellow and black

What color is the slough part of a wound?

yellow

What color is the necrotic part of a wound?

black

What diagnostics is better for bone or acute wounds?

radiographs

What diagnostics is better for for chronic wounds due to gas artifact on acute wounds?

ultrasound

When does the biofilm formation process begin?

within 2-6 hours post wounding and is well established by 2-4 days

What are the effects of biofilm?

bacteria are protected in the biofilm from tropical and systemic antimicrobials, inhibits host defenses, and impairs migration and proliferation of keratinocytes

How long does it take for sequestration to occur after foreign body?

~21 days (3 weeks)

What is a cause of chronic wounds that are seen on histopathology as eosinophils and larvae?

cutaneous habronemiasis

What is pythiosis?

fungus like protozoan associated with standing water

What does pythiosis cause?

granulomatous ulcerative lesions that grow rapidly, very pruritic, intralesional “kunkers” present