Laceration Wound Treated with L-Mesitran in an Arabian Gelding Horse

An Arabian Gelding of 11 years old , Noean, was too excited in the
stable and wounded himself on a door handle on the right barrel. Noean is a healthy horse and has no medical history.

The laceration is almost Y-shaped with a skin flap of ±8x7cm
and 0.5-1 cm deep with slightly rough edges. The wound bed is
red and shows healthy tissue.

Immediately after the injury, the veterinarian flushed the wound thoroughly and closed it partially with staples. The wound was left open at the bottom to enable the fluids to drain.

The wound was cleansed with tap water twice a day. Thereafter,  L-Mesitran Ointment was applied on the wound and its edges.The wound was covered with regular gauze, absorbent pad and a blanket for fixation.

After 1 week, the autolytic debridement of the wound removed the skin flap. The veterinarian removed the remaining sutures. The triangular wound measured 8cm on all sides and showed a red wound bed with a little spot of necrosis and some fibrin.

When the wound became smaller (8x3cm) and superficial, it was rinsed with a clean wet gauze only once a day, however, the wound was still treated twice a day L-Mesitran Ointment. The horse had no stable rest and was offered controlled motion on a lunge line.

The horse was allowed in the meadow only under supervision to avoid rolling which could damage the wound. Necrosis and fibrinous slough disappeared rapidly, revealing granulation tissue, which quickly led to re-epithelialization.

When the wound was almost closed, the owner started riding the horse again. A silicone dressing was used for protection of the delicate new tissue. The wound completely healed within 2 months without scars or adverse events.