- Email: [email protected]
Malignant Endocarditis in the Horse
Mal£gnant Endocarditis
tn
the Horse.
I6s
and in walking swayed from side to side. Dyspn~a was ve~y marked; inspiration was performed by a d?uble act; eX~lratlOn was ~mgle. "The pulse was quick and weak, and .0bvlOusly of th~ kmd. ~haract~nsed as running-down." The eyes were starmg and almost msensltlve.to light; later they became perfectly insensitive. Then:: was n<;> scraping w.lth the feet, but at first the patient evinced a strong .deslre to he dow~; thiS, however, passed off in about an hour from the time I first saw him. Movement forward was comparatively easy, but "backing" was almost out of the question. There was no marked tympany of the abdomen until shortly before death, which took place at 9.15 P.M. The history of the case prior to my appearance upon the scene was as follows :-The horse had been on the pillar-reins for a few days, owing to a small wound on the head, and had not had his usual amount of food, which ordinarily consisted of bran and hay. At 4.45 P.M. he was left feeding, and apparently quite well; at 6 P.M. he was discovered in the condition I have described above. Treatment was of little avail. I gave him hypodermic injections of morphia with the idea of alleviating his sufferings, but the result was very slight. P ost-mortem examinaHon revealed a large rent in the muscular part of the diaphragm above the phrenic centre, and a small tear an inch to the left of the foramen dextrum. The edges of the tear showed a certain amount of congestion and exudation. Some of the small intestine was protruded into the thoracic cavity. With the exception of a slight injection of the great colon, the intestines presented nothing noteworthy. The lungs were congested, but all the other organs were healthy. I am aware that rupture of the diaphragm, as generally described, is a post-mortem lesion, but in this case I am of opinion that the damage took place prior to death; and for the following reasons :-The extreme distress in respiration, and the double character of inspiration, not accounted for by any other pathological condition. The congestion of the edges of the tom diaphragm, and the fact that the post-mortem examination was made before the abdomen became distended with the products of fermentation.
MALIGNANT ENDOCARDITIS IN THE HORSE. BY WM. LOTHIAN, ESQ., M.R.C.V.S., DUNS.
CASES of malignant, ulcerative, or infectious endocarditis are not altogether unknown in veterinary practice, but are sufficiently uncommon to demand careful attention when they do occur. The case described in the following short note offers some points of interest, sufficient at any rate to justify its being recorded. On the 29t~ of N.ovember l~st I was requested to see a four-year-old Clydesdale geldmg which was slightly lame on the right fore limb. The lameness was so slight as to be entirely unnoticeable so long as the animal was walking, and from the objective symptoms I came to the conclusion that it was a case of slight sprain of the structure below and behind the knee. Treatment suitable to such a condition was adopted, and the case was not seen again until December 23d. The lameness was now much more pronounced, and considerable pain was evinced in flexing the knee. A small
166
The Veter£nary Journal.
blister was applied on each side of the flexor tendons behind the joint, and as I suspected that there might be a rheumatic element in the case, salicylate of soda and nitrate of potash were administered. The appetite at this time was much impaired. On January 1st of this year considerable redema had appeared along the abdomen, and in connection with the sheath. The animal died on January 3d. On post-mortem examination a moderate quantity of fluid was found in the peritoneal and pericardial cavities. The chief lesions, however, were ' found in the heart and lungs. The right auriculo-ventricular valve was entirely replaced by a large mass of very irregular blood-stained vegetations. The other valves were practically normal. The left lung contained a number of abscesses, varying in size from the size of a pea to that of a bean. The flexor tendons and. their sheaths in connection with the right knee were much disorganised. The case appears to me to have been one of malignant endocarditis with embolic formation, and is especially interesting from the fact that the right auriculo-ventricular valve was affected.
'Rote£;. SANITARY INSPECTORS' E XAMINATION BOARD.
The attention of the public and the authorities concerned is, I learn~ to be directed to the attitude of the Local Government Board with regard to the Sanitary Inspectors' Examination Board. The Board is a selfconstituted body, existing for the purpose of granting certificates of competency for the office of sanitary inspector or inspector of nuisances. It is also among the objects of the Board to prescribe such courses of study and technical training as may be calculated to ensure the fitness of persons. desirous of qualifying for the public offices mentioned, and to make and maintain a register of those to whom certificates are granted. This body appears to be recognised by the Local Government Board, and no doubt its certificate will soon be an indispensable if not compulsory qualification for the office of inspector. But although the matter is one which closely concerns local authorities, and also those promoting technical education, the Local Government Board has declined to exercise its right to add representatives of these interests to the examining body. In these circumstances it is not surprising that at the recent meeting of organising secretaries for technical education the examinations were condemned as " unworthy of public confidence," and the attitude of the Local Government Board regarded as incomprehensible.-Dairy Press. THE PREVENTION OF TUBERCULOSIS.
As showing how the general public is awakening to the seriousness of tuberculosis, it is noteworthy that at the Hawick Congress of the Sanitary Association of Scotland, held on the 7th September 1899, three papers were read on the subject of the prevention of this scourge. Although noneof the papers contains anything entirely new, yet there are one or two paragraphs of special interest to veterinarians. Dr. Leslie Mackenzie, in
tn
the Horse.
I6s
and in walking swayed from side to side. Dyspn~a was ve~y marked; inspiration was performed by a d?uble act; eX~lratlOn was ~mgle. "The pulse was quick and weak, and .0bvlOusly of th~ kmd. ~haract~nsed as running-down." The eyes were starmg and almost msensltlve.to light; later they became perfectly insensitive. Then:: was n<;> scraping w.lth the feet, but at first the patient evinced a strong .deslre to he dow~; thiS, however, passed off in about an hour from the time I first saw him. Movement forward was comparatively easy, but "backing" was almost out of the question. There was no marked tympany of the abdomen until shortly before death, which took place at 9.15 P.M. The history of the case prior to my appearance upon the scene was as follows :-The horse had been on the pillar-reins for a few days, owing to a small wound on the head, and had not had his usual amount of food, which ordinarily consisted of bran and hay. At 4.45 P.M. he was left feeding, and apparently quite well; at 6 P.M. he was discovered in the condition I have described above. Treatment was of little avail. I gave him hypodermic injections of morphia with the idea of alleviating his sufferings, but the result was very slight. P ost-mortem examinaHon revealed a large rent in the muscular part of the diaphragm above the phrenic centre, and a small tear an inch to the left of the foramen dextrum. The edges of the tear showed a certain amount of congestion and exudation. Some of the small intestine was protruded into the thoracic cavity. With the exception of a slight injection of the great colon, the intestines presented nothing noteworthy. The lungs were congested, but all the other organs were healthy. I am aware that rupture of the diaphragm, as generally described, is a post-mortem lesion, but in this case I am of opinion that the damage took place prior to death; and for the following reasons :-The extreme distress in respiration, and the double character of inspiration, not accounted for by any other pathological condition. The congestion of the edges of the tom diaphragm, and the fact that the post-mortem examination was made before the abdomen became distended with the products of fermentation.
MALIGNANT ENDOCARDITIS IN THE HORSE. BY WM. LOTHIAN, ESQ., M.R.C.V.S., DUNS.
CASES of malignant, ulcerative, or infectious endocarditis are not altogether unknown in veterinary practice, but are sufficiently uncommon to demand careful attention when they do occur. The case described in the following short note offers some points of interest, sufficient at any rate to justify its being recorded. On the 29t~ of N.ovember l~st I was requested to see a four-year-old Clydesdale geldmg which was slightly lame on the right fore limb. The lameness was so slight as to be entirely unnoticeable so long as the animal was walking, and from the objective symptoms I came to the conclusion that it was a case of slight sprain of the structure below and behind the knee. Treatment suitable to such a condition was adopted, and the case was not seen again until December 23d. The lameness was now much more pronounced, and considerable pain was evinced in flexing the knee. A small
166
The Veter£nary Journal.
blister was applied on each side of the flexor tendons behind the joint, and as I suspected that there might be a rheumatic element in the case, salicylate of soda and nitrate of potash were administered. The appetite at this time was much impaired. On January 1st of this year considerable redema had appeared along the abdomen, and in connection with the sheath. The animal died on January 3d. On post-mortem examination a moderate quantity of fluid was found in the peritoneal and pericardial cavities. The chief lesions, however, were ' found in the heart and lungs. The right auriculo-ventricular valve was entirely replaced by a large mass of very irregular blood-stained vegetations. The other valves were practically normal. The left lung contained a number of abscesses, varying in size from the size of a pea to that of a bean. The flexor tendons and. their sheaths in connection with the right knee were much disorganised. The case appears to me to have been one of malignant endocarditis with embolic formation, and is especially interesting from the fact that the right auriculo-ventricular valve was affected.
'Rote£;. SANITARY INSPECTORS' E XAMINATION BOARD.
The attention of the public and the authorities concerned is, I learn~ to be directed to the attitude of the Local Government Board with regard to the Sanitary Inspectors' Examination Board. The Board is a selfconstituted body, existing for the purpose of granting certificates of competency for the office of sanitary inspector or inspector of nuisances. It is also among the objects of the Board to prescribe such courses of study and technical training as may be calculated to ensure the fitness of persons. desirous of qualifying for the public offices mentioned, and to make and maintain a register of those to whom certificates are granted. This body appears to be recognised by the Local Government Board, and no doubt its certificate will soon be an indispensable if not compulsory qualification for the office of inspector. But although the matter is one which closely concerns local authorities, and also those promoting technical education, the Local Government Board has declined to exercise its right to add representatives of these interests to the examining body. In these circumstances it is not surprising that at the recent meeting of organising secretaries for technical education the examinations were condemned as " unworthy of public confidence," and the attitude of the Local Government Board regarded as incomprehensible.-Dairy Press. THE PREVENTION OF TUBERCULOSIS.
As showing how the general public is awakening to the seriousness of tuberculosis, it is noteworthy that at the Hawick Congress of the Sanitary Association of Scotland, held on the 7th September 1899, three papers were read on the subject of the prevention of this scourge. Although noneof the papers contains anything entirely new, yet there are one or two paragraphs of special interest to veterinarians. Dr. Leslie Mackenzie, in