Honey, an unexplored topical wound dressing agent in Nigerian veterinary practice

Abstract

This paper presents an overview of honey as a wound dressing agent, its mechanism of action, selected cases of wounds managed with honey and a survey of veterinarians' perception and usage of honey for wound management in Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were administered to veterinary practitioners predominantly in Southwest Nigeria to evaluate their awareness, usage and concerns about honey as a wound dressing agent. Case reports of animal patients' wounds managed with honey are presented in a logical fashion to showcase honey efficacy in wound management. There was remarkable healing with honey in the cases managed. Many of the respondents did not consider honey as first choice in wound management and availability of pure honey is a major concern expressed with honey use. More veterinarians in Nigeria should use honey for its high efficacy and cost effectiveness in the management of animal wounds.

Nigerian Veterinariansattitude and response to small animal pain management

“…Previous studies have established the predominance of small and mixed practice in the southern part of the country due to predominance of dogs for companionship and security concerns (Eyarefe and Oyetayo, 2016). The greater percentage of male than female respondents may not reflect the actual picture of male to female veterinary practitioner's ratio in the country, since the statistics captured practice representatives although a previous study had also given a capture with similar ratio (Eyarefe and Oguntoye, 2016).…”

Enhanced electroscalpel incisional wound healing potential of honey in wistar rats

“…Following euthanasia with Ketamine (70 mg/kg) and xylazine (15 mg/kg) at days 5, 7 and 14 as described previously [17] , wound tissues consisting of the entire wound region excised in-depth with liberal margins of the surrounding skin including underlying connective tissues above the external fascia of the dorsal muscles, were obtained from the animals per group, at days 5, 7 and 14, and stored in (10%) formalin. The tissues were processed and stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin [25] .…”

“…It is characterized by a dynamics of simultaneous, interwoven phases that involve a complex arrays of chemical mediators and the immune cells, that ultimately result in repair processes characterized by angiogenesis, fibroplasia and remodeling [11] . Wound healing is influenced by host factors [12] , wound characteristics [15] , and applied healing agents [13] , [14] , [15] , [16] , [17] . Wound healing effects of various substances including potash-table salt [13] , Moringa oliefera [14] , aqueous pineapple juice [18] , honey [14] , [15] , to mention a few; have been investigated on animal model wounds created with cold scalpel.…”

“…Wound healing effects of various substances including potash-table salt [13] , Moringa oliefera [14] , aqueous pineapple juice [18] , honey [14] , [15] , to mention a few; have been investigated on animal model wounds created with cold scalpel. Honey, however, has been reported to have a potential healing effect on chemical burn wounds [17] . We hereby hypothesize that honey will positively influence rapid healing of electro-scalpel wound.…”

“…Honey outstanding potentials in accelerating varying wound types have been described in both clinical and experimental studies [19] , [20] , [21] . Its healing properties and mechanism of action have also been elucidated in our previous studies [17] , [22] . Despite, however, the robust information on honey wound healing potentials; there is a dearth of information on honey application to enhance healing of electro-scalpel created wounds.…”