Special report on diseases of the horse / by Drs. Pearson [and others].

Date:
1903
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Special report on diseases of the horse / by Drs. Pearson [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    73/690 (page 67)
    in equal parts is good. Mucilaginous injections into the rectum may be of service for a few days. Hernia, or rupture.—There are several different kinds of hernias that require notice, not all of which, however, produce serious symptoms or results. Abdominal hernias, or ruptures, are divided into reducible, irreducible, and strangulated, according to condition; and into inguinal, scrotal, ventral, umbilical, and diaphragmatic,. according to their situ- ation. A hernia is reducible when the displaced organ can be returned to its natural location. It consists of a soft swelling, without heat, pain, or any uneasiness, generally larger on full feed, and decreases in size as the bowels become empty. An irreducible hernia is one that can not be returned into the abdomen, and yet does not cause any pain or uneasiness. Strangulated hernia is one where the contents of the sac are greatly distended, or where from pressure upon the blood vessels of the imprisoned portion the venous circulation is checked or stopped, thereby causing congestion, swelling, inflammation, and, if not relieved, gangrene of the part and death of the animal. Accord- ing to the time or mode of origin, hernias may be congenital or acquired. Congenital sci'otal hernia.—Not a few foals are noticed from birth to have an enlarged scrotum, which gradually increases in size until about the sixth month, sometimes longer. Sometimes the scrotum of a six-months-old colt is as large as that of an adult stallion, and operative treatment is considered. This is unnecessary in the great majority of cases, as this enlargement often disappears by the time the colt has reached his second }^ear. Any interference, medicinal or surgical, is worse than useless. If the intestine contained within the scrotum should at any time become strangulated, it must then be treated the same as in an adult horse. Scrotal hernia is caused by dilatation of the sheath of the testicle, combined wfith relaxation of the fibrous tissues surrounding’ the inguinal ring, thus allowing the intestine to descend to the scrotum. At first this is intermittent, appearing during work and returning when the horse is at rest. For a long time this form of hernia may not cause the least uneasiness or distress. In course of time, however, the imprisoned gut becomes filled with feces, its return into the abdominal cavity is prevented, and it becomes strangulated. While the gut is thus filling, the horse often appears dull, is disinclined to move, appetite is impaired, and there is rumbling and obstruction of the bowels. Colicky symptoms now supervene. Strangulation and its consequent train of symptoms do not always follow in scrotal hernia, for often horses have this condition without suffering incon- venience for years. Inguinal hen'nia is but an incomplete scrotal hernia, and, like the latter, may exist and cause no signs of distress, or, again, it may become