PRINCIPLES OF VETERINARY SURGERY 339 



sible. They may be covered with horny epidermis and com- 

 posed of dense, hard and fibrous tumors. This phenomenon 

 is not rare in connection with the keloids of the horse and 

 the ox. 



TREATMENT.— Some cicatrices, those of the knee of 

 the horse for example, materially diminish the value. They 

 may be removed, if not too extensive, by resection of the 

 bare spot. The operation is known as "operation for broken 

 knees." The projecting cicatrix of limited size, that causes 

 no obstruction to locomotion^ should be left alone. Sen- 

 sitive scars that prevent the use of the animal require sur- 

 gical intervention. If a scar in the skin of the shoulder, the 

 inodvilar tissue should be extirpated, if the collar can not be 

 advantageously adjusted. If the scar of neurectomy is sen- 

 sitive it may be necessary to make a new incision and resect 

 the proximal end of the nerve. 



Keloids can not be successfully managed by any sort of 

 surgical intervention. They must be left untouched. In 

 e^ery case in veterinary practice the extirpation that is not 

 complete has been followed by a recrudescence of the phe- 

 nomena of proliferation and by the re-formation of a tumor 

 more voluminous than the preceding one. 



This re-formation has been known for many years in 

 human surgery, and as a consequence those neoplasms are 

 not molested. It is actually hazardous to remove all the 

 tissues of the scar, and even if the operation is performed 

 under the strict rules of asepsis, the results are not often 

 favorable. 



The reappearance of these neoplasms is due, in all prob- 

 ability, to the absence of immediate cicatrization, or else to 

 the regeneration that occurs from some embryonic islets 

 that the surgeon has spared or has been unable to remove. 

 Ries advises excision, followed by a compressive dressing, 

 astringents and actual cauterization. The recent observa- 



