DISEASES OF THE SKIN". 165 



Nitrate of potassium 3 ij. 



Flowers of sulphur gr. xxx. 



may also be given in the mash for two or three days. 



WARTS. 



Etiology. — Unknown. 



They appear on the thin and more delicate portions of the skin, 

 as the sheath, the inner surfaces of the hind limbs, the abdomen, the 

 eyelids, and the sides of the nose, and sometimes on the neck, where the 

 skin has been injured by the collar. 



They vary in size from that of a pea to that of a large potato. The 

 wart commences as a small round substance, and gradually increases. 

 As it increases, it becomes divided into clefts and fissures, from which 

 the blood occasionally exudes. 



Treatment. — Warts, if removed, should be operated upon while yet 

 small. The best practice is to scrape the surface and then dress it with 

 chloride of zinc. Large warts may, however, require to be removed by 

 the knife. Some care is needed in the operation to prevent excessive 

 bleeding. The divided blood-vessels should be stanched by some styptic, 

 as tannin, persulphate of iron, or, if necessary, the application of the hot 

 iron. 



In some cases, where there is a small base, the wart may be deprived 

 of its nutriment by means of a silk ligature tied tightly round it, and in 

 due time it will perish and drop off. In other cases, small warts, after 

 an incision has been made in the skin over them, may be squeezed out 

 by the fingers. 



It is as well, when the warts appear on such delicate parts as the eye- 

 lids or lips, to try the effect of repeated applications of nitric acid, being 

 very careful that the acid does not touch any part except the wart. 



ECZEMA. 



The majority of skin diseases, says Williams, particularly in the horse, 

 are due to the expression of some form of eczema; indeed, it may be 

 looked upon as the commonest form of skin disease. 



