DMSO in Dogs & Cats

DMSO, or dimethyl sulfoxide, is a marvellous anti-inflammatory topical medication that is under-utilized in dogs and cats.

DMSO, Why Infrequent Use?
DMSO helps reduce swelling and helps decrease pain, so why don`t we use it more often?
• DMSO is applied topically so the hair must be clipped;
• DMSO drags whatever is on the skin deep into the body with it, so the skin must be clean before DMSO is applied;
• DMSO causes a strong garlic taste in the mouth.

When would we use DMSO?
DMSO is ideal for tendonitis because it penetrates, reaching the tendons in a way that blood-borne pain medications do not. If you’ve ever examined a chicken or turkey drumstick and noted the clear, tough tissue that stretches from the muscle to attach to the bone, you’ve seen tendons. Tendons are clear because they don’t have blood vessels inside them, like muscles have. This means medications have to diffuse thorough surrounding tissue to reach tendons, unlike the route medication can make directly into muscles. Thus, medications that travel through the skin to the tissues directly underneathare ideal for treating local tendon problems. DMSO does this.

Thus, we can apply DMSO to a sore limb and it will go straight down to the tissue below the skin. We just need to clip the hair and clean the skin before applying the DMSO.

Conditions Treated With DMSO
DMSO helps with these conditions
• DMSO can be applied topically post surgery to relieve pain and inflammation.
• DMSO can be applied topically to relieve tendonitis.
• DMSO can be used to flush bladders and help eliminate cystitis.
• DMSO can be mixed with triamcinolone and injected into tendons.

DMSO Is Similar to Laser Therapy
DMSO penetrates tissue directly beneath and eliminates inflammation. This is very similar to the action of a laser. So, for dogs or cats that cannot be shaved or have dirt on the skin that cannot be removed, laser would be a better choice for treating tendons.