DISEASES OF HORSES 169 



congestion of the lungs and dilatation or palpitation of the heart, and 

 may occur in connection with these conditions. If not relieved, 

 death usually results from congestion or edema of the lungs, as the 

 breathing is interfered with by the inordinate action of this impor- 

 tant muscle of inspiration so much that proper aeration of the blood 

 can not take place. The treatment should be as prescribed for con- 

 gestion of the lungs, and, in addition, antispasmodics, such as 1 

 ounce of sulphuric ether in warm water or 3 drams of asafetida. 

 (Spl. Rpt. Horse, Dept. Ag. 1911.) 



WOUNDS AND THEIR TREATMENT. 



DESCRIPTION OP WOUNDS. 



A wound is an injury to any part of the body involving a solu- 

 tion of continuity or disruption of the affected parts and is caused 

 by violence, with or without laceration of the skin. In accordance 

 with this definition we have the following varieties of wounds: 

 Incised, punctured, contused, lacerated, gunshot and poisoned. 

 They may further be classified as superficial, deep, or penetrating, 

 and also as unclean, if hair, dirt, or splinters of wood are present; 

 as infected, when contaminated with germs; and as aseptic, if the 

 wound does not contain germs. 



An incised wound is a simple cut made with a sharp body, like 

 a knife, producing merely a division of the tissues. The duller the 

 body, the more force is required, the more tissues destroyed, and a 

 greater time will be required for healing. In a cut wound the edges 

 are even and definite, while those of a lacerated wound are irregular 

 and torn. Three conditions are present as a result of an incised 

 wound: (1) Pain; (2) hemorrhage; (3) gaping of the wound. 

 The first pain is due to the crushing and tearing of the nerve fibers. 

 In using a sharp knife and by cutting quickly, the animal suffers 

 less pain and healing occurs more rapidly. The secondary pain is 

 usually due to the action of the air and inflammatory processes. 

 When air is kept from the wound pain ceases soon after the lesion 

 is produced. Hemorrhage is absent only in wounds of the cornea 

 of the eye, the cartilage of joints, and other similar structures. 

 Bleeding may be from the arteries, veins, or capillaries. In the lat- 

 ter form of bleeding the blood oozes from the part in drops. Hem- 

 orrhage from the veins is dark red and issues in a steady stream with- 

 out spurting. In arterial bleeding the blood is bright red and spurts 

 with each heart beat. This latter variety of hemorrhage is the most 

 dangerous, and should be stopped at once before attempting any 

 further treatment. Bleeding from small veins and capillaries ceases 

 in a short time spontaneously, while larger vessels, especially arteries, 

 require some form of treatment to cause complete stoppage of the 

 hemorrhage. 



HESIOSTASIA. 



By this term is meant the checking of the flow of blood. It 

 may be accomplished by several methods, such as compress bandages, 

 torsion, hot iron, and ligatures. The heat from a hot iron will cause 

 the immediate clotting of the blood in the vessels, and this clot is 



