568 • DISEASES OF THE MAMMARY GLANDS. 



the uterus has to be dilated. No superficial lesion and no incision is 

 produced; the result is therefore more permanent (see "Operative 

 Technique"). 



WOUNDS OR TRAUMATIC LESIONS. 



CHAPS AND CRACKS. 



These injuries consist in little transverse or oblique wounds of the teat. 



Causation. In free milkers the udder apj)ears completely relaxed 

 after milking. In the intervals between the different milkings, however, 

 the quarters become swollen, and are sometimes so distended as to over- 

 come the resistance of the sphincter at the base of the teat. The teats 

 are then greatly elongated, and, despite the richness of the tissues in 

 elastic fibres, this distension leads to little superficial epidermic fissures. 



These small lesions are unimportant, but if they become infected 

 by contact with the litter they granulate and suppurate, so that grave 

 complications may eventually follow. 



The wounds caused by the calves' teeth when sucking, or simply by 

 the rough way in which the little animal seizes the teat, may produce 

 similar accidents. 



Symptoms. The teat shows one or more little transverse fissures, 

 a few millimetres to a centimetre or more in length. The base of the 

 fissure appears of a reddish or brownish-red colour, and has thickened, 

 indurated, painful, discharging or suppurating margins. Local sensi- 

 tiveness may be either slight or very pronounced. In the latter case, 

 the patients resist being milked, and even refuse to let the calf suck. 



Diagnosis. The diagnosis is extremely simple. 



In a general sense the prognosis is favourable, but nevertheless the 

 local infection may extend and become generalised, thus giving rise to 

 interstitial mammitis, sometimes of a very grave character. On the 

 other hand, the sensitiveness may of itself render milking difficult or 

 impossible, and thus cause serious distension of the gland with milk. 



Treatment. As both sucking and milking aggravate the lesions, they 

 should be prevented by the insertion of a milk catheter. 



The surface of the udder and the wounds should be cleansed with 

 an antiseptic solution and be dressed with a 20 per cent, campho- 

 rated vaseline or with carbolic or iodoform ointment, to favour healing. 

 If the cracks produce excessive sensitiveness a small quantity of 

 orthoform may be added to the camphor ointment. Before the milk 

 catheter is inserted, the teat should be very carefully cleansed with 

 boiled water and the catheter sterilised by boiling. Neglect of these 

 precautions may result in infection of the galactophorous sinus and 

 mammitis. 



