DIGITALIS POISONING 539 



4.30 P.M., pulse 34, tolerably firm, but unequal ; eating a little, and scarcely 

 so dull. No more digitalis being given, the animal recovered its appetite, 

 and by the 26th was well again. 

 No. 3. Brown Mare, 3 years old : 



Feb. 20, 12 noon, pulse 38, respirations 8 

 21, 33, 7 



22, 34, 7i 



23, 120, 20 



,, 24, 120, 25 



Towards the evening of the 22nd the mare became dull and would not 

 feed. 23rd, 10 A.M., very much nauseated ; nose, mouth, and ears cold ; 

 abdomen tympanitic, with colicky pains, and occasional pawing; pupil 

 some what, contracted ; pulse firm at axilla and heart, but not very per- 

 ceptible at jaw. Had four drachms of carbonate of ammonia and clysters 

 occasionally, the stimulant being repeated at two o'clock and four. At 

 4.30 P.M. she was down, much pained, attempting to roll ; pulse 82, but 

 unequal. 24th, 12 noon, pulse, imperceptible at jaw, about 120 ; respira- 

 tions 25, and very much laboured ; lips retracted and saliva dripping from 

 the mouth ; enormous abdominal tympanites and much pain ; rapid 

 sinking ; died on 25th at 11 A.M. 



Post-mortem examination made next morning at 9.30. Voluntary 

 muscles unusually pale ; spots of ecchymosis in the areolar textures, 

 between the muscular fibres and in places underneath the skin. Lungs 

 and pleurae healthy ; anterior extremity of lungs contained more blood than 

 posterior ; venae cavae contained the usual amount of dark non-coagulated 

 blood ; bronchial tubes inflamed for about six inches along their anterior 

 ends ; windpipe inflamed halfway up the neck, and containing flakes of 

 greenish pus mixed with mucus ; no froth here or in bronchi. Heart pale, 

 friable, containing a small clot of blood in its left ventricle. A rent of 

 eight inches long was found in the inferior curvature of the stomach, 

 through which food had passed into the omentum ; the mucous membrane 

 of the stomach was quite healthy ; the organ itself very large, but collapsed, 

 in consequence of the rupture ; the intestines were pale and flaccid, and 

 contained enormous quantities of food and gas, but their mucous membrane 

 was quite healthy. The kidneys and generative organs, with the brain and 

 spinal cord, were perfectly healthy. 



According to Salvisberg, ruminants can support large doses 

 by the mouth of digitalis leaves without showing any 

 reaction. If, however, the drug be administered intra- 

 venously the typical actions of digitalis are produced. In 

 treating pericarditis, Dottl found that doses of 150 grains 

 of powdered digitalis given by the mouth induced uterine 

 pains in pregnant animals and premature labour. 



Dogs receiving one or two drachms were nauseated, and, 

 when vomiting was prevented, moaned, and exhibited 

 abdominal pain, green-coloured fluid dejections were passed, 

 the pulse was feeble and indistinct, breathing irregular and 

 distressed, spasmodic efforts were made to empty the 

 bladder, muscular debility preceded death (Tabourin). 



