Is Colloidal Iron an Effective Hoof Disinfectant?

Addition of colloidal iron oxide material to hoof scrubs with chlorhexidine yielded the most effective bacterial count reduction in this study.
horse hoof veterinarians examining
Addition of colloidal iron oxide material to hoof scrubs with chlorhexidine yielded the most effective bacterial count reduction. | Getty Images

There are a variety of hoof disinfectant products available on the market, but are they effective? With growing concerns about antimicrobial resistance, researchers in Italy evaluated the use of colloidal materials as an alternative to traditional products. Their research aimed to determine whether colloidal products effectively eliminate microorganisms and parasites from the skin surface without the adverse effects commonly associated with antiseptics.

In Vitro Study

Initially, an in vitro study established the ability of a colloidal suspension of iron oxide, organic acids, and detergents (Iron Animals or IA) to eliminate Staphylococcus aureus. Iron oxide colloids catalytically induce cell death through production of cytotoxic free radicals; trichloroacetic acid precipitates protein by sequestering water molecules bound to proteins. Sodium dodecyl sulfate is a denaturing detergent to disrupt membranes and denature proteins while lowering surface tension to allow medication to permeate the hoof for greater contact with microorganisms.

In Vivo Study

The in vivo study compared 10% povidone iodine (PI) and 4% chlorhexidine (CHx) separately, then looked at the effect of concurrent use of Iron Animals (IA) with each of those two antiseptics.

The researchers included 11 horses from the same farm and management for the in vivo part of the study. They cleaned their hooves with a hoof pick and trimmed the sole and frog as necessary. Then, they used a firm, sterile brush to perform two consecutive 3-minute scrubs, rinsing the hoof with sterile saline in between. They then dried the foot with sterile gauze and removed a 2 cm2 frog sample.

Researchers then applied and wrapped in place 10 ml of IA. The hoof was sealed inside a plastic bag, the limb was held off the ground for 15 minutes. Then, the the researchers removed the and acquired a second frog sample.

They repeated this procedure for each antiseptic choice—two scrubs with PI on the left hoof or CHx on the right hoof. Each scrub treatment was followed by application of 10 ml of IA on the excised frog area and sole.

To test for efficacy of IA used alone, a fragment of LF hoof sole served as control while the RF hoof sole had two consecutive scrubs with PI, was rinsed and dried, and was then sampled. The researchers prepared a rear hoof similarly, but instead of PI scrubs, they placed gauze soaked in 10 ml of IA on the hoof sole for 15 minutes before removing a sample with a sterile scalpel.

Each tissue sample underwent microbiological analyses within 24 hours. The samples were stored in saline at an appropriately cold temperature.

Study Results

The results are as follows:

  • CHx lowered bacterial load by seven-fold compared to PI.
  • PI alone did not accomplish sufficient disinfection.
  • After application of IA, both PI- and CHx-treated hooves had a significant reduction in bacterial load: 27% improvement for PI + IA; 55% improvement for CHx + IA.
  • IA applied by itself “showed a significantly lower bacterial load and a superior antibacterial effect compared to the rear hoof sample treated with PI.”

Final Thoughts

In summary, addition of the colloidal iron oxide material to scrubs with chlorhexidine yielded the most effective bacterial count reduction. Following use of IA, bactericidal activity of both disinfectants resulted in an overall improvement in 82% of all the cases.

Reference

Isola, M.; Piccinotti, C.; Magro, M.; et al. Colloidal Iron Oxide Formulation for Equine Hoof Disinfection. Animals 2021, 11, 766; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11030766

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