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Discussion on 4" puncture--no irrigation
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Member:
parfait
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Posted on Thursday, Oct 18, 2007 - 3:17 pm:
We found my gelding with a 10 inch long stick impaled inside his elbow. The wound had a lot of hair and skin in it, as did the stick when removed. The vet doesn't want me to irrigate as the fluid will seep into the fascia lower in his leg. She ran a very slow drip in the wound but then pulled a bunch of hair out after the drip. I'm worried about the foreign matter in the wound, which is 4-5 inches deep and 1/2 to 1 inch wide. He's on sulfa and bute.
I've never had a puncture this deep. Is it crazy not to irrigate it?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Friday, Oct 19, 2007 - 6:20 am:
Hello kerry,
Not being able to see the wound I cannot comment on the care.
At a minimum wounds should be cleaned to the point that all foreign material and exudate is removed. Wounds that will continue to produce copious exudate should have ventral drainage. If the veterinarian's care achieved these 2 objectives then she did her job. If the wound continues to have foreign material in it, I would consider a second opinion in on this. I will say there are very few wounds, including deep wounds, that I don't heavily irrigate with a hose then follow with betadine or chlorhexidine in saline.
If I felt there were fascial disruptions that the irrigation would force its way into and then not drain back well I might hesitate at forceful irrigation....but this is an indication that we need to surgically establish drainage of those areas.
DrO
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Member:
parfait
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Posted on Friday, Oct 19, 2007 - 1:10 pm:
Thank you Dr O.
OK, I think a second opinion might save me some trouble in the long run.
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