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OÖPHORECTOMY OR OVARIOTOMY OF CATTLE.
1603 Mr. Alfred Coleman, and said that the fact
and the flow of milk is as a rule affected but for a few days. In M. Flocard’s last 3000 cases there has been no mortality and there were only from 4 to 5 per cent. of accidents of minor importance. The late Professor John Gamgee attempted to introduce the operation as a routine one into England some few years ago, but the idea does not appear to have been taken up. If the benefits claimed for it are so great it is curious that it has not made greater way than it has. In the case of town dairymen who wish to avoid the dangers and trouble attendant upon pregnancy and parturition in their cows, and who often buy them soon after calving and fatten them for sale when the milk-supply fails, the advantages would appear to be very real. It seems a more rational method of quieting the animal for fattening purposes than the one usually adopted of allowing it to become pregnant. If it became the custom in this conntry to perform the operation more frequently than at the present time some very interesting data should be forthcoming as the result of analyses carried out upon the quality and quantity of the milk yielded by the spayed animals. Cases occur from time to time in the human subject in which the operation of ovariotomy or oophorectomy is performed upon women during the puerperium, but in the great majority of such instances the babies are weaned. So far as we are aware no investigations have yet been carried out upon the changes produced in the milk by the removal of the ovaries in women. The difficulties and fallacies in the way of such a study are extremely numerous, and for the present we shall no doubt have to content ourselves with studying its effects in the cow. Further researches might throw an interesting light upon the debated question of an internal secretion of the ovary and its effect upon the metabolism of the body.
F.R.C.S. Eng., L.D.S., interposed was that teeth were getting worse and Mr. Bevan .every year, thought that that was eloquent ’evidence of the pressing necessity of increasing the hospital equipments. Mr. Bevan referred also to the importance of good teeth in members of the army, for without good teeth the digestion of campaign rations was difficult and the soldier in such a case would lose health, strength, and courage. He hoped that the students would manifest that zealous interest which they had shown in the past to maintain this centre of instruction and make it worthy of its good offices. Mr. Charles Tomes, F.R.S., in proposing the toast of " The Visitors," said that he always cherished the opinions of lay members on the committee and particularly gratitude should be given to those who were responsible for the financial affairs of the hospital. He drew attention to the excellent progress that was being made towards placing the dental profession on the same high platform of ethics as the medical profession, and added that they were indebted to the British Medical Association for their action towards securing a dental representative on the General Medical Council. Lastly, he referred to the contiguity of Charing,cross Hospital to the Dental Hospital which enabled them to - combine a plan of instruction to fit the dental student for his work. Dr. Montague Murray, the dean of Charing-cross Hospital Medical School, in replying to this toast, said ,that a cordial link had existed for many years between the school of the London Dental Hospital and that school of which he was dean. They had mutual interests and would continue to work together under the best relations, and he hoped that when the arrangements for the new London University were complete the Board of Dental Studies would form a worthy branch of the great mother profession of medicine. -
-
DUBLIN
UNIVERSITY
BIOLOGICAL
ASSOCIATION.
inaugural meeting of the twenty-fifth session of the University Biological Association was held on the Dr. W. S. AT this year’s meeting of the National Veterinary Associa- evening of Nov. 28th at Trinity College. tion at Plymouth Professor Hobday read a very interestingHaughton, the outgoing President, occupied the chair and Dr. W. R. Dawson, the paper upon the results.following the performance of ovariotomy there was a large attendance. He pointed out that the President for the ensuing year, delivered the inaugural or oophorectomy in cattle. operation of spaying is at the present time performed in address on the R61e of the Blood-Supply in Mental Pleasure ,some parts of England upon calves and heifers and and Pain. Dr. Dawson reminded his hearers that mental occasionally upon milking cows. It has, however, never disease had come to be regarded as a symptom of been performed upon any large number of animals in this physical disease and something to be dealt with as such. country, although M. Flocard, a veterinary surgeon of This altered standpoint was rendered tenable by. the more Geneva has lately published the results obtained by him in recent results of neurological work, especially that of Professor Hobday has had the opportunity Flechsig, together with the products of research conducted some 5079 cases. of watching the after-progress of some 42 milch cows operated by the methods of Golgi and of Nissl. This mass of observaupon by M. Flocard in England and has also performed the tion formed the foundation for a working hypothesis of operation himself in 14 cases. The benefits claimed for the mind, and if it were objected that the connexion between operation are that animals which are being prepared matter and consciousness was unthinkable a sufficient reply for the butcher fatten in a much shorter time without any for practicable purposes was that mind could be profoundly .increase in the quantity or the quality of their food, while affected and morbid states of consciousness produced by their flesh is of much better quality than is that of cows purely chemical means. The first problem encountered by the which have not been spayed. The yield of actual meat is pathologist was that of the physical states underlying mental .said to be about 6 per cent. greater. In milking cows the pleasure and pain. The states themselves, especially when -duration of lactation is prolonged for an average of from morbid, were so absolutely different that it was not .20 to 24 months if the operation be performed within surprising that attempts at explanation had been made, one from 40 to 45 days of calving, while the animals continue of which was the now abandoned theory that melancholia to fatten at the same time. It is claimed that the milk was due to brain anaemia and mania to brain hyperæmia. becomes increased in quantity by some 1300 or 1400 litres per Yet there was here probably some modicum of truth. Dr. annum (the absence of oestrum rendering the average daily Dawson then recapitulated the results of various clinical and yield much more uniform and steady), and that it is also experimental observations with regard to the effects of richer in quality for cream and for butter-making. Professor anæmia, increased blood pressure, and inhalation of oxygen Hobday recommends if the operation be performed in milking under high pressure. Fresh observation was needed on nearly cows that it should be done within five or six weeks of every point, but he considered that the result of the calving, when the animal is five, six, or seven years old. He inquiry hitherto might fairly be summed up as follows. prefers operating by the vagina. The operation appears to 1. The emotional state produced by brain anaemia when the a very simple and easy one. No after-treatment is required gradual in onset, not too profound, and of some duration is
OÖPHORECTOMY
OR
OVARIOTOMY
OF
THE
CATTLE.
Dublin
I
and the flow of milk is as a rule affected but for a few days. In M. Flocard’s last 3000 cases there has been no mortality and there were only from 4 to 5 per cent. of accidents of minor importance. The late Professor John Gamgee attempted to introduce the operation as a routine one into England some few years ago, but the idea does not appear to have been taken up. If the benefits claimed for it are so great it is curious that it has not made greater way than it has. In the case of town dairymen who wish to avoid the dangers and trouble attendant upon pregnancy and parturition in their cows, and who often buy them soon after calving and fatten them for sale when the milk-supply fails, the advantages would appear to be very real. It seems a more rational method of quieting the animal for fattening purposes than the one usually adopted of allowing it to become pregnant. If it became the custom in this conntry to perform the operation more frequently than at the present time some very interesting data should be forthcoming as the result of analyses carried out upon the quality and quantity of the milk yielded by the spayed animals. Cases occur from time to time in the human subject in which the operation of ovariotomy or oophorectomy is performed upon women during the puerperium, but in the great majority of such instances the babies are weaned. So far as we are aware no investigations have yet been carried out upon the changes produced in the milk by the removal of the ovaries in women. The difficulties and fallacies in the way of such a study are extremely numerous, and for the present we shall no doubt have to content ourselves with studying its effects in the cow. Further researches might throw an interesting light upon the debated question of an internal secretion of the ovary and its effect upon the metabolism of the body.
F.R.C.S. Eng., L.D.S., interposed was that teeth were getting worse and Mr. Bevan .every year, thought that that was eloquent ’evidence of the pressing necessity of increasing the hospital equipments. Mr. Bevan referred also to the importance of good teeth in members of the army, for without good teeth the digestion of campaign rations was difficult and the soldier in such a case would lose health, strength, and courage. He hoped that the students would manifest that zealous interest which they had shown in the past to maintain this centre of instruction and make it worthy of its good offices. Mr. Charles Tomes, F.R.S., in proposing the toast of " The Visitors," said that he always cherished the opinions of lay members on the committee and particularly gratitude should be given to those who were responsible for the financial affairs of the hospital. He drew attention to the excellent progress that was being made towards placing the dental profession on the same high platform of ethics as the medical profession, and added that they were indebted to the British Medical Association for their action towards securing a dental representative on the General Medical Council. Lastly, he referred to the contiguity of Charing,cross Hospital to the Dental Hospital which enabled them to - combine a plan of instruction to fit the dental student for his work. Dr. Montague Murray, the dean of Charing-cross Hospital Medical School, in replying to this toast, said ,that a cordial link had existed for many years between the school of the London Dental Hospital and that school of which he was dean. They had mutual interests and would continue to work together under the best relations, and he hoped that when the arrangements for the new London University were complete the Board of Dental Studies would form a worthy branch of the great mother profession of medicine. -
-
DUBLIN
UNIVERSITY
BIOLOGICAL
ASSOCIATION.
inaugural meeting of the twenty-fifth session of the University Biological Association was held on the Dr. W. S. AT this year’s meeting of the National Veterinary Associa- evening of Nov. 28th at Trinity College. tion at Plymouth Professor Hobday read a very interestingHaughton, the outgoing President, occupied the chair and Dr. W. R. Dawson, the paper upon the results.following the performance of ovariotomy there was a large attendance. He pointed out that the President for the ensuing year, delivered the inaugural or oophorectomy in cattle. operation of spaying is at the present time performed in address on the R61e of the Blood-Supply in Mental Pleasure ,some parts of England upon calves and heifers and and Pain. Dr. Dawson reminded his hearers that mental occasionally upon milking cows. It has, however, never disease had come to be regarded as a symptom of been performed upon any large number of animals in this physical disease and something to be dealt with as such. country, although M. Flocard, a veterinary surgeon of This altered standpoint was rendered tenable by. the more Geneva has lately published the results obtained by him in recent results of neurological work, especially that of Professor Hobday has had the opportunity Flechsig, together with the products of research conducted some 5079 cases. of watching the after-progress of some 42 milch cows operated by the methods of Golgi and of Nissl. This mass of observaupon by M. Flocard in England and has also performed the tion formed the foundation for a working hypothesis of operation himself in 14 cases. The benefits claimed for the mind, and if it were objected that the connexion between operation are that animals which are being prepared matter and consciousness was unthinkable a sufficient reply for the butcher fatten in a much shorter time without any for practicable purposes was that mind could be profoundly .increase in the quantity or the quality of their food, while affected and morbid states of consciousness produced by their flesh is of much better quality than is that of cows purely chemical means. The first problem encountered by the which have not been spayed. The yield of actual meat is pathologist was that of the physical states underlying mental .said to be about 6 per cent. greater. In milking cows the pleasure and pain. The states themselves, especially when -duration of lactation is prolonged for an average of from morbid, were so absolutely different that it was not .20 to 24 months if the operation be performed within surprising that attempts at explanation had been made, one from 40 to 45 days of calving, while the animals continue of which was the now abandoned theory that melancholia to fatten at the same time. It is claimed that the milk was due to brain anaemia and mania to brain hyperæmia. becomes increased in quantity by some 1300 or 1400 litres per Yet there was here probably some modicum of truth. Dr. annum (the absence of oestrum rendering the average daily Dawson then recapitulated the results of various clinical and yield much more uniform and steady), and that it is also experimental observations with regard to the effects of richer in quality for cream and for butter-making. Professor anæmia, increased blood pressure, and inhalation of oxygen Hobday recommends if the operation be performed in milking under high pressure. Fresh observation was needed on nearly cows that it should be done within five or six weeks of every point, but he considered that the result of the calving, when the animal is five, six, or seven years old. He inquiry hitherto might fairly be summed up as follows. prefers operating by the vagina. The operation appears to 1. The emotional state produced by brain anaemia when the a very simple and easy one. No after-treatment is required gradual in onset, not too profound, and of some duration is
OÖPHORECTOMY
OR
OVARIOTOMY
OF
THE
CATTLE.
Dublin
I