ter still, a
bath.--THE AUTHOR.]

At the end of the third or fourth day the poultice or the bath may be
discontinued, and the opening in the sole dressed with any suitable
astringent and antiseptic.

The most serious complication arising from this method of treatment is
one of excessive granulation of the sensitive sole. This we find to be
successfully held in check by a daily application of undiluted Spts.
Hydrarg. Perchlor. (Tuson). Should the granulations become very exuberant,
then the knife must be called to our aid, and the wound so made afterwards
dressed with an astringent.

When the suppuration has under-run the horny frog there should be no
hesitation in at once removing all the horn that is visibly separated from
the sensitive structures beneath.

_When the os pedis is splintered and carious_, a portion of the sole round
the wound is removed, and the bone exposed. The diseased portion is scraped
away either with a curette or with the point of the drawing-knife. In this
case the only after-treatment called for is the application of suitable
antiseptic dressings.

_When necrosis of the plantar aponeurosis has occurred_. We have already
pointed out the tendency there is in this case for the wound to maintain a
fistulous character, and lead to the formation of abscesses in the hollow
of the heel. With a wound in this position, as with a wound in any other,
the only method of avoiding this termination consists in removing all that
is visibly diseased, whether it be soft structures, bone, ligament, or
tendon, and giving the wound free drainage.

This can only be done by removing the horny sole and frog, and cutting
boldly down upon the structures beneath. The operation is known as
resection of the plantar aponeurosis, or the complete operation for
gathered nail.

Practised for some years on the Continent, this operation, on account of
its gravity, has been avoided by English veterinarians. From reported
cases, however, it appears often to be followed by success.

That there is a large element of risk in the operation is quite evident, if
only from the two facts mentioned beneath:

1. That the close attachment of the plantar aponeurosis to the navicular
bursa, and the nearness of both to the pedal articulation, render
penetration of a synovial sac or a joint cavity extremely likely.

2. That there is always great difficulty in maintaining strict asepsis of
the foot, more especially if it is a hind one.