Evidence and Significance of Biofilms in Chronic Wounds in Horses

Abstract

Equine wounds have a high risk of becoming infected due to their environment. Infected wounds encompass diverse populations of microorganisms that fail to respond to antibiotic treatment, resulting in chronic non-healing wounds. In human wounds this has been attributed to the ability of bacteria to survive in a biofilm phenotypic state. Biofilms are known to delay wound healing, principally due to their recalcitrance towards antimicrobial therapies and com- ponents of the innate immune response. The presence of biofilms in equine wounds partly explains the reluctance of many lower limb wounds to heal. Non- healing limb wounds in horses are a well documented welfare and economic concern. Therefore, there is a need to develop future treatments in order to increase the healing rate, decrease the cost of treatment and reduce suffering associate with equine wounds.