OVARY AS ORGAN OF INTERNAL SECRETION 73 



It will be noted that man\' of these effects of ovariectomy 

 are general results of de-sexing the animal and occur after 

 castration of the male. Similar effects are also found in 

 chronic insufficiency brought on by delayed development or 

 hypo-function of the gonad. 



Effects on the accessory organs. Ovariectomy causes profound 

 changes in the accessory organs of reproduction, the effect being 

 more striking when the ovaries are removed before puberty. 

 The operation at this time results in complete failure of the 

 organs to undergo their normal development, and in non- 



FiG. 37. — Uterus of Rat after Ovariectomy, showing 



DEGENERATIVE CHANGES. 



(From Marshall and Jolly.) 



appearance of the cyclic changes of cestrus. Post-pubertal 

 ovariectomy leads immediately (but see p. 137) to the stoppage 

 of all cyclic activity in the uterus, vagina, and mammary 

 glands, but the actual degeneration of the organs is slow, and 

 the degree of atrophy found at autopsy is usually proportional 

 to the time after operation. The general effects on the acces- 

 sory organs are suggestive of the changes occurring at the 

 menopause, and ovariectomy is often spoken of clinically as 

 producing an ' artificial menopause.' 



Carmichael and Marshall (114) have reported extensive 

 experiments on the adult rabbit. Six months after ovariectomy 

 the uterine stroma had entirel}^ degenerated, the glands, 

 mucosa, and muscle layers having undergone atrophy. De- 

 generation had also extended to the Fallopian tubes. Similar 



