Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 May 22;6(1):e000264.
doi: 10.1136/vetreco-2017-000264. eCollection 2019.

Randomised clinical trial showing the curative effect of bandaging on M2-stage lesions of digital dermatitis in dairy cows

Marcus Klawitter  1 , Dörte Döpfer  2 , Theo Broderick Braden  3 , Ermias Amene  2 , Kerstin Elisabeth Mueller  1
Affiliations

Randomised clinical trial showing the curative effect of bandaging on M2-stage lesions of digital dermatitis in dairy cows

Marcus Klawitter et al. Vet Rec Open. .

Abstract

Objectives and design: This trial evaluated the effect of bandaging of acute painful ulcerative bovine digital dermatitis (DD) lesion (stage M2) in dairy cows, tested using two different topical treatments.

Design: Randomised clinical trial.

Setting: This study was conducted using Holstein-Friesian cows ranging in age from heifers to fourth lactation in a single dairy herd and diagnosed with acute ulcerative DD lesions (stage M2) on the first examination (week 0). Cows were randomly assigned into either a non-bandaged or bandaged group across two treatment conditions: topical chlortetracycline spray (CTC) and Intra Hoof-Fit Gel (IHF). Lesions received standardised bandaging and treatment on a weekly basis. Unhealed lesions could receive up to five repeated treatments, at weekly intervals, within a four-week period. Both M-stage and locomotion were also evaluated and scored weekly. Cows with healthily formed skin (stage M0) were deemed healed and subsequently released from the study.

Results: In total, 163 M2 lesions were diagnosed at week 0. Bandaged M2 lesions had a significantly higher probability of cure than non-bandaged lesions regardless of treatment type (HR: 4.1; P<0.001; 95 per cent CI: 2.5 to 6.8). Most healing occurred within the first three weeks of trial. Furthermore, bandaged lesions (group 2 and group 4) were significantly less likely to progress into the chronic hyperkeratotic or proliferative stage (M4) than non-bandaged lesions in group 1 and group 3 (HR: 0.10; P<0.001; 95 per cent CI: 0.04 to 0.22). Out of concern for the cow's wellbeing, this study investigated the effects of bandaging on locomotion. Bandaging had no effect on locomotion for either cows treated with CTC (group 1: median Sprecher score, 2; IQR=1-2; group 2: median Sprecher score, 2; IQR=1-3; P=0.3) or IHF (group 3: median Sprecher score, 2; IQR=1-2; group 4: median Sprecher score, 2; IQR=1-3; P=0.3).

Keywords: bandaging; chlortetracycline; chronicity; dairy cattle; digital dermatitis; non-antibiotic.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram of leg inclusion. CTC, chlortetracycline spray; IHF, Intra Hoof-Fit Gel.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of M-stages treated with chlortetracycline spray at each examination. DD, digital dermatitis.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distribution of M-stages treated with Intra Hoof-Fit Gel at each examination. DD, digital dermatitis.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Kaplan-Meier survival analysis plots for digital dermatitis (DD) lesions stratified by different treatment groups and time until cure of DD (M0) as the outcome of interest. CTC, chlortetracycline spray; IHF, Intra Hoof-Fit Gel.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Kaplan-Meier survival analysis plots for digital dermatitis lesions stratified by different treatment groups and survival without the chronic (M4) stage as the outcome of interest. CTC, chlortetracycline spray; IHF, Intra Hoof-Fit Gel.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Blowey RW, Sharp MW. Digital dermatitis in dairy cattle. Vet Rec 1988;122:505–8. 10.1136/vr.122.21.505 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Wells SJ, Garber LP, Wagner BA. Papillomatous digital dermatitis and associated risk factors in US dairy herds. Prev Vet Med 1999;38:11–24. 10.1016/S0167-5877(98)00132-9 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cornelisse JL, Peterse DJ, Touissaint-raven E. A digital disorder in dairy cattle, digital dermatitis? Neth J Vet Assoc 1981;106:452–5. - PubMed
    1. Wilson-Welder JH, Alt DP, Nally JE. The etiology of digital dermatitis in ruminants: recent perspectives. Vet Med Res Rep 2015;6:155–64. 10.2147/VMRR.S62072 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Krull AC, Shearer JK, Gorden PJ, et al. . Deep sequencing analysis reveals temporal microbiota changes associated with development of bovine digital dermatitis. Infect Immun 2014;82:3359–73. 10.1128/IAI.02077-14 - DOI - PMC - PubMed