Natural products for wounds in equines: Integrative review

Abstract

Horses are curious and active animals. They do not show their pain or injuries easily. These factors favor the appearance and development of skin lesions, especially in the region of the distal limbs. The conventional therapeutic approaches for the treatment of these lesions are through antiseptic solutions, corticosteroids, and antibiotics. However, these solutions can cause damage to healing, if used improperly, or cause adverse effects to the animal. An alternative way to treat skin wounds is the use of herbal medicines and other natural products, which are viable due to their lower cost and easy access. Thus, the objective in this work, was to understand the use of natural products in the healing of wounds in horses through an integrative review, addressing the following bioproducts: Sugar, Aloe vera, Barbatimão, and Calendula. This academic research was carried out on the research bases SciELO, Google Scholar, VHL-Vet. (Virtual Library in Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science) and CAPES/MEC Periodicals through qualitative analysis of articles, mainly those published in the years 2017 to 2021. In the literature the sugar demonstrated the great potential in promoting tissue growth. Aloe vera has antioxidant and immunostimulating characteristics, while Barbatimão can reduce inflammations and has antimicrobial activity. Calendula has healing, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial activity. With this work, we conclude that these bioproducts are potent in terms of anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial action, in addition to helping in tissue repair, being excellent for alternative therapy.