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  Discussion on Cut/bump inside right hind cannon bone
Author Message
New Member:
benning4

Posted on Thursday, Sep 17, 2009 - 11:41 am:

Hello!
My mare kicked herself on the inside of her right hind cannon bone. She had a 1 inch cut and large, round bump on the bone. The cut has healed nicely, but the bump is still there after about a month of cold-hosing every day/20 min. per day. The lump is very hard and round, looks like she has a large marble under her skin. No pain when I feel it and put pressure on it. Will this bump be there forever, or is there anything I can do to help it come down completely?
Thanks so much for your time and help.
Member:
stek

Posted on Thursday, Sep 17, 2009 - 6:29 pm:

Hi JMB, welcome to HA.

In my experience those hard lumps left by a kick can take quite a while to dissolve; sometimes they go away completely and sometimes they stay. Usually they do dissolve to some extent. Not much help, I know!

I have seen people use DMSO and various and sundry poultices to try and take these sorts of things down but I can't speak to whether or not that is effective or just made the owner feel like they are doing something.

Is your mare lame at all, and did she require a vet visit when the injury occurred? And is the swelling loose (can you wiggle it) or does it feel like it's attached to the underlying bone?
Member:
stek

Posted on Thursday, Sep 17, 2009 - 6:31 pm:

One more thing.. at this point in the injury if no heat or soft swelling is present at the wound I would be more inclined to try warm therapy to increase the circulation than continuing the cold hosing.

Good luck with your mare!
Member:
mrose

Posted on Thursday, Sep 17, 2009 - 8:13 pm:

Sometimes a pressure wrap will help,too. You can also use a leg paint, wrap with saran wrap then a tight polo or standing wrap. But...make sure the paint is the type that won't blister, and make sure the wrap isn't too tight or have wrinkles in it. You don't want to cause burns or loss of circulation. Don't leave it on for too long either - how long depends on the type of paint. A plain pressure wrap might also help. Same caveats apply regarding wrinkles, too tight and too long.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Sep 17, 2009 - 10:07 pm:

Welcome JMB,
Assuming it is "hard as bone" and unmoveable, what you describe may be a exostosis of the cannon bone: extra bone laid down in response to trauma to the cannon bones outer layer (periosteum). This is more commonly seen on the splint bones but is exactly like a "splint" on one of the splint bones. You can read about how this occurs, treatment, and prognosis at Diseases of Horses » Lameness » Diseases of the Lower Limb » Diseases of the Splint Bones.

Note that continued heat, pain, and enlargement may indicate a sequestrum (area of dead bone) with a involucrum (new bone) growing over it but this would not be as common as a simple exostosis.
DrO
Member:
erika

Posted on Friday, Sep 18, 2009 - 12:27 am:

Welcome to HA, JMB. Not sure about horses, but I banged/possibly broke my radius bone several months back. I still have a hard bump on it. It is gradually getting smaller, but like DrO says, I think sometimes it just takes a looong time to go away after an injury.

I wouldn't worry after only a month.
Erika
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