Increase in limb size after injury?

[ajf]

So does anyone have experience of injury (traumatic) in their horse where the healing process led to increase tissue development? Did it return to normal with time? Or still bigger/different shape etc

My 4yo badly sliced his leg open (on the front of his leg below the knee to his fetlock but has not been lame at all!) and during the healing process (still ongoing) his fetlock has got much "thicker". The vet says this should reduce over time and when he can begin being worked again. Just wondering if anyone had witnessed this as I don't think his leg will ever be what it was before and just wondered what a realistic aim would be.

Thanks

x

 

[merlinsquest]

Merlin has one fetlock bigger than the other....

It was picked up on the vetting, but he passed the flexion tests and has remained sound for the last 5 years.

BUT on x-rays it is apparent that the joint is really badly affected with arthritis.... probably from an injury he got before I had him

So I suppose yes is the answer!!

 

[CrazyMare]

The swelling is part of the healing process, don't worry too much yet!

If its a cut, I would have thought with time, that it will go back to normal. In my experiance cuts and scrapes can swell quite impressively then go back to normal over a period of weeks/months, while deeper structure injuries can leave permenant thickening - for example...my mare gashed her pastern on a stone out hunting, BIG, hot, fat lump around the cut. A month later...nothing. Now she has damaged her tendon sheath and it (3 months later) is thickened and I suspect it still will be in a years time.

 

[scotsmare]

Try not to worry yet - we had a mare who caught her leg over a stable door and tore the flesh in a big L shape down to the bone from underneath her hock all the way to her fetlock. It took months to heal and got monumentally infected along the way. Now though you can barely see the scar and her leg is fine - the only issue is that it's prone to filling if she's stood in (but now she's a broodmare she's out lots!)

 

[ajf]

Thanks guys.
Scotsmare this sounds pretty much identical to my chaps (but obviously front leg!!!). He pulled a gate over onto his leg

. He got infected but not badly but proud flesh was horrid as we couldn't do anything about it really until the inside of his leg had healed. Its not swollen anymore just "thick" round his fetlock. The bit left to heal is about the size of the top of your little finger, taken months but nealy their now!

 

[ccooxxyy]

Tissue initially heals but the remodelling process can take months/yr(s) to happen depending on the severity of the injury. Good Luck though! What a bummer!

 

[ajf]

Thanks Bimble.
The top half of his leg is looking really quite "normal" now but his fetlock I can see taking ages to look like a fetlock again.