150 REVIEW — TBOPICAL MEDICINE, ETC. 



Piro- Passing now to the considoration of Eqicine piroplasmoni!:, which- has boon found by 



plasmosis— Olver to occur in the Sudan, into which country, however, it appears to have been 

 coiUinucd recently imported, one may note a paper by Bowhill,' who describes the South African form 

 attacking the horso, mule and donkey. He describes large and small spherical forms, large 

 and small pyriform parasites, large and small rod-like bodies, the rosette form which is a 

 division stage in reproduction and resembles a Maltese cross, a St. Andrew's cross or the 

 Manx coat of arms, and the flagellate forms which have a pear-shaped head and a long 

 llagellum ending in a bulbous protuberance. He also found spherical or ovoid, extra- 

 corpuscular forms in blood preserved aseptically in a flask with sterile citrate of potash 

 solution at room temperature. The symptoms are given, there being acute and chronic 

 forms. There is intense fever at the onset, and in the acute type, lachrymation, disinclination 

 to move, and a stumbling gait. Later on there is paresis of the hind limbs, and coma followed 

 by death in a few hours. The other chief symptoms are anorexia (though the animal 

 may be voracious), icterus, anaemia and weak and irregular pulse. There may be diarrhoea, 

 or constipation with dark, foul and slime-coloured faeces. Occasionally there is haemo- 

 globinuria. Bowhill states that many cases recovei without any special treatment, while 

 some are benefited by small doses of sodium bicarbonate. Hutcheon reconunends belladonna 

 and ammonium chloride. It would seem that South African veldt horses are more or less 

 immune, the immunity depending apparently on the animal being reared in an infected area. 

 A page is devoted to secondary or terminal infections, and Theiler's observation quoted to 

 the effect that — 



It is exceedingly rare to find that only the piroplasma is present in a horse suffering from, or dying of, 

 biliary fever. In nearly every case I found a bacterium (a cocco-bacillus showing bi-polar staining) which was 

 present sometimes in the blood, and always in the spleen. 



Theiler^ studied the transmission of the disease by ticks, and concludes that 

 li.hipicephahis decoloratus is not a host of Piroplasma equi, while Bhipiceplialus evertsi 

 transmitted the parasite in its adult stage after feeding as larva and nymph on a sick 

 horse. It is, therefore, a host. There is not yet sufficient proof to show whether the 

 disease is transmitted through the egg of a tick. 



He has also drawn attention^ to the risk of inducing the disease in horses utilised for 

 hyper-immunisation. He found that the greatest risk of causing piroplasmosis by infusion 

 is in animals which are hyper-immunised for the first time. There is still a certain amount 

 of risk in subsequent infusion, probably due to the first virus horse not being immune 

 against piroplasmosis. It is noteworthy that a horse which has undergone an inoculation of 

 piroplasmosis, and shown Piroplasma equi during the reaction, may still contract the disease 

 from hyper-immunisation. This contingency, therefore, has to be expected whenever 

 piroplasmosis immune animals are utilised for hyper-immunisation purposes. 



Eoger** has described what he calls equine petechial piroplasmosis in Algeria. He 

 recognises benign, hgemoglobinuric and grave forms. The special symptom seems to be 

 the presence of petechiis on the conjunctiva and memhrana niciitans. In the grave form, 

 where there is a "typhoid"' condition, the pituitary membrane is also dotted over with 

 petechial spots. 



The parasites found outside the erythrocytes were rounded in form, those within were 

 either spherical or pyriform and resembled bacilli. Eoger differentiates it from other forms 

 described, by the fact that (1) at first the membranes are not icteric, and (2) all the cases 

 have shown petechise on the conjunctiva and memhrana niciitans, a symptom which only 

 occurs in severe forms of equine piroplasmosis. 



Jolliffe' has reported on the disease as encountered in India. He queries the 

 conveyance of the disease by ticks — well-groomed horses being affected, and is inclined to 

 think that blood-sucking flies may be at fault. As regards treatment, he thinks that quinine, 

 with or without salicylate of soda, gives the best results. He also gives the differential 



1 Bowhill, T. (.January, 1905), " Equine Piroplasmosis or Biliary Fever." Journal of Hygiene, Vol. V., No. 1. 



- Theiler, A. (December 31st, 1906), " Transmission of Equine Piroplasmosis by Ticks in South Africa." 

 Journal of Comparalirc Pathology and Therapeutics, Vol. XIX. 



' Theiler, A. (1905-6), " Report of Government Veterinary Bacteriologist, Transvaal Dept. of Agriculture." 



* Roger, J. (December Slst, 1906), " A Form of Equine Piroplasmosis seen in Algeria." Quoted in Journal 

 of Comparative Pathology and Therapeutics, Vol. XIX. 



' Jolliffe, C. H. H. (February, 1907), " Some Remarks on Equine Biliary Fever in India." Journal of 

 Trojrical Veterinary Science, Vol. II., No. 1. 



• Article not consulted in the original. 



