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Re: [RC] Pathophysiology of Scratches - Carol Suggs

This may be a stupid question...
 
Two out of our 4 horses have some type of dermatitis on the front of their rear legs (about the cannon bone). Not in the back where I thought "scratches" normally occurs.
 
The skin is bumped up there, and is kinda oily.  If you brush it hard or use the pebble massager you can flake it off leaving skin that shows a dander.  Some of the bumps come off like little scabs and show pink when peeled off.   One mare has solid legs, the other has 1 white, 1 solid hind leg.  The mare with the solid legs has very "thin" skin and a fine coat. 
 
Last year I shaved one of the mares legs and washed her with an iodine type shampoo and it didn't really seem to help.
 
Anyone have any other suggestions for this before I call the vet?
 
Carol-Mariposa
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, July 29, 2005 8:32 AM
Subject: [RC] Pathophysiology of Scratches

This isn?t an exclusive treatise on this issue, but hope this helps some?

 

WHAT IT IS: a Dermatitis

 

NAMES: Scratches, mud fever, mud rash, cracked heels, dew poisoning. If it has an exudate (its weeping), its called Grease Heel.

 

PATHOPHYSIOLOGY: Infectious, or non-infectious disorders that result in inflammation, ulceration, crusting, or grape-like skin (in long-standing cases).

 

SOME CAUSES: it is a Syndrome, which means its causes are multifactorial (as opposed to a specific diagnosis where theres 1 cause in all horses).

  1. Physical Irritants (most common cause)
  2. Chemical Irritants (ex: ?soring? in gaited horses)
  3. Contact Allergy
  4. Contact Photosensitization
  5. Dermatophytes (chiggers, flies, ticks, mites etc)
  6. Immune system disorders

 

BREEDS/HORSES PREDISPOSED: Drafts (from their fetlock feathers), Arabs (in sandy soil), white skin at the pastern area.

 

AN EXAMPLE OF HOW IT GETS STARTED: Anything that can cause a break in the skin. Ex: horse is bitten by flies leaving minute openings in the skin. Then, due to the normal un-sterile conditions of a pasture or stall, bacteria get in the minute wound openings, setting up a bacterial infection. Since the bacteria didn?t cause the primary inciting incident (in this case, the biting flies did), their contribution to this cycle, is referred to as a secondary bacterial infection.

 

FOCUS OF TREATMENT: determine & treat the underlying cause(s), & keep the area dry & clean (for ex: wait until the pasture morning dew is gone before letting the horse out).

 

SPECIFIC TREATMENTS: see your vet.

 

HTH

 

 

 


Replies
[RC] Pathophysiology of Scratches, Gloria Adams