PARTURIENT PARESIS 355 



cesses before dilatation of the cervix and a sudden recovery, 

 cannot be explained by it, nor is cerebral oedema always present 

 on autopsy. 



2. Harms 's theory. According to Harms, the symptoms of 

 parturient paresis are due to air bubbles in the blood (aeraemia). 

 He supposes that the air enters through the veins of the uterus. 



3. The theory of autointoxication. According to a gene- 

 rally accepted opinion, parturient paresis depends on poisons 

 generated within the body and which have entered the circula- 

 tion. The intoxication therefore looked upon as an autointox- 

 ication is said to be due to poisons (toxins) coming from the 

 lochia, milk and intestinal canal. 



Schmidt-Mul heim supposes that a material is developed 

 out of the lochiae by certain processes of decomposition quite 

 different from putrefaction, which are analogous to sausage 

 poison, when taken up by the blood produces serious symptoms 

 of disease. 



Freidberger and Frohner adopted this theory and believe 

 that the symptoms of parturient paresis, as well as the occa- 

 sional cases previous to parturition — that is, about the time 

 the cervix dilates — may be explained by it. In fact, the symp- 

 toms of parturient paresis (muscular paresis) resemble those of 

 botulismus greatly. 



Thomassen (Holland) thinks that the toxins are formed in 

 the milk. Already in 1889 he wrote (Rec. de med. vet.) that a 

 correct theory as regards parturient paresis should explain : 



1. Why this disease is peculiar to the bovine species. 



2. Why it occurs especially at a certain age — that is, after 

 the birth of the third calf. 



3. Why exclusively in well fed animals (heavy milkers) 

 which calved easily. 



4. Why the disease occurs occasionally before birth and 

 after parturition within 48 hours. 



5. Why the disease develops so rapidly, disappears quickly 

 without reconvalescence. 



None of the known hypotheses fill these demands. The 

 fifth question might be explained by the more and more 



