SPASMS, CONVULSIONS, PARALYSIS. 51 



SPASMS AND CONVULSIONS. 



Spasms are involuntary muscular contractions. When 

 attended with pain, they are called cramp. When consist- 

 ing of alternate contractions and relaxations, they are called 

 clonic spasm. When the rigidity is permanent, they are 

 called tonic spasm, as in lock-jaw. Convulsions are mus- 

 cular spasms of comparatively greater severity and extent 

 than ordinary or local spasms, but are essentially the same 

 in nature. The cause of the disorder is probably nervous 

 disturbance. The fibers of a spasmed muscle feel hard 

 and are shortened and swollen. 



The disorder, which is rare, often attacks the hind 

 legs, when it may be mistaken for spavin (concealed or 

 not), hock disease, or patella dislocation. (The patella is 

 the whirl-bone of the stifle joint. The whirl-bone corres- 

 ponds to the knee-cap in man.) The duration of the 

 cramp varies from minutes to hours and hours to days. 

 Relapses are common. Sometimes the disorder is of an 

 epileptic character (fits). 



Symptoms. — When of a limb, sudden lameness; limb 

 may be dragged, or there may be both hopping and drag- 

 ging; hind leg may be caught up and thrown out in an 

 awkward manner; standing position natural. 



Remedy. — For ordinary cramp of leg, exercise. Chlo- 

 ral hydrate, 3 to 4 drams. Chloroform inhaled and swal- 

 lowed. When of spinal origin, morphine subcutaneously 

 (under the skin) ; spinal ice bag. When of cerebral (brain) 

 origin, bromides or ammonia internally. Cold water or 

 ice to head. When reflex, remove source of irritation. 

 (For doses, see pages 13 to 29.) 



PARALYSIS (PARESIS, PALSY), 



Or loss of motor power, is a symptom of disease rather 

 than disease itself. It is nevertheless of great importance, 

 for it is dangerous. It is of four kinds — general, unilat- 



