Treatment of bovine dermatophilosis with Senna alata, Lantana camara and Mitracarpus scaber leaf extracts.

This study describes interesting preliminary results on the therapeutic effects of ointments prepared with extracts of medicinal plants on bovine dermatophilosis. Our results show that the use of ointments made with ethanolic extracts of leaves of Senna alata, Lantana camara and Mitracarpus scaber, as topical treatments on chronic crusty or acute lesions of dermatophilosis, induces healing of the disease in the nine infected animals treated without recurrence. This is opposed to what is observed by using oxytetracycline, terramycin long-acting (TLA), or procaine-penicillin, antibiotics commonly used parenterally for the treatment of dermatophilosis in the Republic of Benin which could not prevent the recurrence of the disease. These ointments, when applied once a day for 8-15 days, provoked the falling off of the crusts after 3-4 days of treatment. Hair grows on the treated areas, which heal without scarring, within 3-4 weeks after the end of the treatment. The healed animals became free of dermatophilosis without recurrence for more than 3 years and were in good health.