FLEXOR TENDONS AND SUSPENSORY LIGAMENT. 829 



Bier's treatment. In certain cases of slow-healing wounds and 

 bruises of tendon sheaths, fasciae, or joints below the elbow or stifle, 

 treatment by Bier's method of inducing passive hyperemia of the 

 injured part should be tried. Above the wound a linen bandage, 

 or a rubber tube £ inch in diameter, is applied round the limb and 

 made sufficiently tight to produce venous congestion and swelling 

 of the part below. At first the applications should be restricted 

 to half an hour twice a day, and afterwards gradually extended to 

 four or five hours or longer according to the effect produced. 

 Compression is accompanied by copious discharge of serum from 

 the wound, extension of infection is prevented, and in suitable cases 

 healing is greatly accelerated. This method may be employed in 

 the later treatment of coronary slough, treads, sinus, verrucose 

 dermatitis, canker, and after mutilation of the hoof. 



III.—RUPTURE OF THE FLEXOR TENDONS AND SUSPENSORY 

 LIGAMENT. 



The flexor perforans muscle, three times larger than the^perforatus, 

 arises from the humerus, radius, and ulna, and extends to near the knee 

 where its tendon begins. The tendon passes through the carpal arch 

 to the middle of the cannon, where it is joined by thesubcarpal ligament, 

 then downwards to the fetlock, where it passes through the perforatus 

 ring and over the sesamoid pulley. Descending behind the pastern, 

 under the bifid insertion of thejperforatus and over^the coronary glenoid 

 prominence and navicular bone, it is inserted on the semi-lunar crest of the 

 os pedis. Slightly compressed at the knee, it is rounder at the cannon, 

 considerably expanded and flattened at the fetlock, narrowed though 

 still flat behind the suffraginis, at the os coronse, to which it is loosely 

 attached, it again expands and rapidly attains its greatest breadth at its 

 insertion. In volume it varies little from its origin to the point of junction 

 with the sub-carpal ligament, and below this the increase is hardly noticeable 

 owing to the gradual attenuation of the reinforcing band. At the fetlock 

 the tendon is thicker, and its anterior surface, moulded on the sesamoid 

 pulley, shows some of the characters of fibro-cartilage. Another increase in 

 thickness and firmness occurs at the os coronas. It appears to be weakest 

 at its terminal expansion which, however, is well supported by the posterior 

 digital ligament. 



The sub-carpal or " check " ligament, a direct continuation of the 

 posterior common ligament of the knee, is united at its origin to the anterior 

 fibrous wall of the carpal arch and the suspensory ligament. Descending, 

 it closely embraces the anterior surface of the perforans, which it appears 

 to join at the middle of the cannon. In many instances their fusion is 

 very gradually effected, as some indication of the parts of tendon and 

 ligament can be traced to near the fetlock. The sub-carpal ligament is 

 the strongest portion of the suspensory apparatus of the fetlock. 



The perforatus or superficial flexor muscle, arising with a portion of 

 the perforans from the humerus, extends to near the knee, where it is 



