514 
DR. EMERSON. 
PUNCTURED WOUNDS OF THE FOOT, INVOLVING THE JOINT, 
By Dr. Emerson. 
A paper read before the Massachusetts Veterinary Association. 
The most serious punctured wounds are those occurring 
at or near the centre of the foot, where the flexor tendon, the 
synovial sac, or the bony articulation, may be injured. 
By the centre of the foot I indicate that part of the plantar 
surface bounded anteriorly by the point of the frog, posteri¬ 
orly by its middle cleft, and laterally by the sole, just outside 
the base. In this section the lateral clefts of the frog seem to 
be the most common seat of gathered nails. The reason of 
this is either the anatomical location, or the fact that feet 
which are otherwise very hard, are here usually soft, from 
mud and dirt becoming lodged here. 
Nail pricks are of such common occurrence that many 
owners and drivers of horses, and not a few blacksmiths, have 
an infallible quick “ cure ” of their own, which they apply in 
all cases without regard to location or extent of injury. 
Hence, more than half the cases that the veterinarian is called 
to have been treated in one way or another for from one to 
four or five days. 
When the owner finds that the animal is constantly grow¬ 
ing worse he sends for the veterinarian and tells him what he 
has done, and how many times he has done it before without 
ever losing the use of the animal for a day. 
Often, in a simple puncture, the soft tissues are so much 
swollen and the foot so painful, that when the surgeon is 
called it is almost impossible for him to ascertain just the 
extent of the injury with his probe. In the locality of the 
joint it is never advisable to probe deeply unless synovia is 
already freely discharging from the opening ; then I can see 
no reason why we should not run the probe in as far as it will 
go, and satisfy ourselves whether there is any portion of bone 
exposed and roughened. 
Of the cases I am about to relate, the first two occurred in 
my practice at Lynn, and the other two at the Veterinary 
Hospital at Boston. 
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