Wounds/Fractures in Ruminants

Question 1

What common procedure performed in FA med is considered clean contaminated?

Answer 1

C-sections

Question 2

What systemic pain meds are often used ruminants during procedures?

Answer 2

Butorphanol, xylazine, flunixin

Question 3

T/F: Local anesthetics are better than regional

Answer 3

FALSE- should do regional as local anesthetics are irritating and may delay healing

Question 4

If performing primary wound closure, what type of suture are usually used to close the muscle/fascia layers and the skin?

Answer 4

Muscle/Fascia: chromic gut-cheap and absorbable
Skin: non-absorbable monofilament (polyamid or braunamid)

Question 5

What type of mattress pattern is better for preserving the blood supply to tissue?

Answer 5

Vertical mattress

Question 6

When providing tension relieving sutures, how can you reduce pressure necrosis?

Answer 6

Use stents!

Question 7

How can you avoid dead space when closing the layers of the body wall?

Answer 7

Tack the layers to one another, utilize drains and pressure dressing (but last two rarely used in food animals)

Question 8

What is meant by secondary closure?

Answer 8

Wound is closed after granulation tissue forms. Often requires the use of skin flaps and closure must be under tension

Question 9

Why is healing by second intention so common in food animals?

Answer 9

There is often excessive contamination and delayed healing response due to field condition

Question 10

What are the clinical signs of flystrike in sheep?

Answer 10

Discolored wool, wool falling out, decreased activity/eating

Question 11

How do you avoid flystrike?

Answer 11

Shearing/clutching at appropriate times, mulesing (illegal in US), environmental fly control

Question 12

What is the treatment for flystrike?

Answer 12

Clip all fiber leaving a 5 cm area of intact healthy skin without fiber around the wound
- put the maggots/contaminated fiber in a trash bag and dispose immediately
-spray aggressively with Catron to kill the maggots
-clean the wound thoroughly through debridement and lavage
-use systemic antibiotics, pain meds, and topical skin trt and spray aggressively with catron daily

Question 13

What is the only prescription topical treatment commonly used in FA?

Answer 13

Silver Sulfadiazine

Question 14

What type of wound are the majority of wounds in food animal?

Answer 14

Iatrogenic
ex: castrations, dehorning, tail docking, etc

Question 15

What are the advantages/disadvantages to surgical dehorning?

Answer 15

Shorter healing times, elimination of open wounds
-often done for cosmetic reasons and pain is often severe- not good for animal welfare

Question 16

When should disbudding be performed?

Answer 16

At <4 weeks of age, <2 in goats

Question 17

What should always be sprayed onto the stumps after disbudding?

Answer 17

aluspray- greatly expedites wound healing and prevents infection

Question 18

What technique is commonly used for dehorning?

Answer 18

Barnes technique. should have pain meds and local anesthestic on board (cornual block and subQ line block caudal to the horn

Question 19

Should anything be applied to castration wound post-procedure?

Answer 19

No topical effective at improving healing times, but need to use fly spray to prevent infection (catch-on preferred)

Question 20

Name the common areas of fractures from most frequent to least frequent

Answer 20

Metacarpus > metatarsus> tibia > radius and ulna > humerus > femur

Question 21

What are the advantages to fracture healing in ruminants compared to horses?

Answer 21

They spend much more time lying down allowing for a greater potential for bone healing. They also rarely suffer contralateral limb breakdown for this reason

Question 22

What 3 complications greatly decrease the prognosis in fracture cases?

Answer 22

Presence of sepsis, nerve damage, and vascular trauma

Question 23

When do you use internal fixation in ruminants?

Answer 23

If the long bone fracture is proximal to the carpus and tarsus, since its impossible to immobilize joint above

Question 24

What are the advantages and disadvantages to internal fixation in cattle?

Answer 24

Advantages: can bear weight and ambulate easily
Disadvantages: cost, general anesthesia, special equipment, long recovery (stall confinement for up to 9 months)

Question 25

How often should casts be changed in cattle?

Answer 25

0-6 mo old- change every 3 weeks
6-12 mo old change every 6 weeks
12 months + old change 6-8 weeks

Question 26

What is the prognosis for open fractures?

Answer 26

poor to grave

Question 27

What is the thomas schroeder splint used for?

Answer 27

tibial and radial fractures
- animal has to be small <500 kg and needs to be confined for 6-10 weeks

Question 28

What are the options for fractures in the distal phalynx in ruminants?

Answer 28

Digit amputation or glue block + wiring of affected claw into flexion