Diagnosis. Treatment. 185 



Diagnosis. The diagnosis of the local catarrhal conditions 

 is not at all difficult, and a careful examination of the other or- 

 gans makes it possi))le to determine whether such a stomatitis 

 is a primary affection or the complication of another disease. 

 If stomatitis is due to mycotic invasion, numerous mycelia and 

 spores of the causative mould (Polydesmus exitiosus, Puccinia 

 graminis, etc.,) are often found in the scrapings from the mucous 

 membrane. Since stomatitis occurring in specific infectious 

 diseases (foot-and-mouth disease, stomatitis pustulosa conta- 

 giosa) presents the same sjanptoms as a simple catarrhal stom- 

 atitis, it is always necessary to consider the possibility of such 

 causative diseases during the first day of the affection. 



Treatment. In most cases, a regulation of diet and the re- 

 moval of the causative factors, after they have been ascertained, 

 suffice to procure a speedy recovery. Whenever there is a stom- 

 atitis which is at all severe, no coarse dry feed should be 

 given. Herbivora should receive green feed, fine hay, bran, a 

 mash of bruised grain. Hogs are given liran mixed Avith whey ; 

 carnivora prefer milk, soups or finely chopped meat. A change 

 of feed is particularly indicated when the disease appears to be 

 due to spoiled or otherwise improper material. Fragments, 

 splinters, etc., have to be removed by hand or by the aid of 

 forceps ; pointed and sharp margins of teeth must be removed 

 by the proper instruments. The simplest local treatment con- 

 sists in suspending a vessel with fresh water before the animal, 

 so that the patient can wash out his mouth whenever he feels 

 like it. The accumulation and decomposition of saliva in the 

 buccal cavity can be prevented by washing with sponge or cloth 

 and l)y irrigation of the mucous membranes. Instead of the 

 use simply of clean water, a number of disinfectants may be em- 

 ployed, particularly chlorate of potash (1-3% solution), per- 

 manganate of potash (0.5%), alum or tannin (i/^-l%), boracic 

 acid (2%), sulphate of soda (1%), creolin (1-2%) or, as a do- 

 mestic remedy, water 1000 cc. to vinegar 125 cc. and common 

 salt 1 tablespoonful ; also, dilute vinegar (1 part to 9 parts of 

 water). In stomatitis follicularis the ulcers must sometimes 

 be treated by stronger disinfectant solutions. 



Chronic catarrh is often treated with 1-2% solution of sil- 

 ver nitrate. 



2. Vesicular Inflammations of the Mouth. Stomatitis Vesic- 

 ulosa. 



{Sporadic aphthce, sporad'isclie Manlseuche [German] ; Stom- 

 atitis aphthosa sporadica.) 



Vesicular inflammation of the mouth is an inflammatory 

 process distinct from foot-and-mouth disease and from stoma- 

 titis pustulosa contagiosa of the horse, leading to the formation 

 of vesicles varying in size and filled with a clear fluid. 



