FRACTURES OF THE RIBS, 315 



ally would be: Can any treatment be recommended in a fracture of 

 the body of a vertebra? The only indication in such a case, in oui- 

 opinion, is to reach the true diagnosis in the shortest possible time 

 and to act accordingly. If there is displacement, and the existence 

 of serious lesions may be inferred from the nervous symptoms, the 

 destruction of the suffering animal appears to suggest itself as the one 

 conclusion in which considerations of policy, humanity, and science at 

 once unite. 



If, however, it is fairly evident that no displacement exists; that 

 pressure upon the spinal cord is not yet present; that the animal with 

 a little assistance is able to rise upon his feet and to walk a short dis- 

 tance — it may be well to experiment upon the case to the extent of 

 placing the patient in the most favorable circumstances for recovery 

 and allow nature to operate without further interference. This may 

 be accomplished by securing immobility of the whole body as much as 

 possible, and especially of the susj^ected region, by placing the patient 

 in slings, in a stall sufficiently narrow to preclude lateral motion, and 

 covering the loins with a thick coat of agglutinative mixture. Watch 

 and wait for developments. 



FRACTURE OF THE BIBS. 



The different regions of the chest are not equally exposed to the 

 violence to which fractures of the ribs are due, and they are therefore 

 either more common or more easily discovered during life at some 

 points than at others. The more exposed regions are the middle and 

 the posterior, while the front is largely covered and defended by the 

 shoulder. A single rib may be the seat of fracture, or a number may 

 be involved, and there may be injuries on both sides of the chest at the 

 same time. It may take place lengthwise, in any part of the bone, 

 though the middle, being the most exposed, is the most frequently 

 hurt. Incomplete fractures are usually lengthwise, involving a por- 

 tion only of the thickness or one or other of the surfaces. The com- 

 plete kind may be either transverse or oblique, and are most com- 

 monly denticulated. The fracture may be comminuted, and a single 

 bone may show one of the complete and one of the incomplete kind at 

 different points. The extent of surface presented by the thoracic 

 region, with its complete exposure at all points, explains the liabilitj^ 

 of the ribs to suffer from all the forms of external violence. 



Symptoms. — In many instances fractures of these bones continue 

 undiscovered, especially the incomplete variety, without displace- 

 ment, though the evidences of local pain, a certain amount of swelling, 

 and a degree of disturbance of the respiration, if noticed during the 

 examination of a patient, may suggest a suspicion of their existence. 

 Abnormal mobility and crepitation are difficult of detection, even 

 when present, and they are not always present. When there is dis- 

 placement the deformity which it occasions will betray the fact, and 



