PARTURIENT PARESIS 357 



Albrecht and Ostertag suppose that the symptoms of 

 intoxication are due to leucomaines. 



Eber looks upon parturient paresis as a toxigen disease. 

 The toxigen also forms in the parturient passages of a parent 

 which remains healthy, the toxigen being excreted as such. 

 As a result of metabolism it is supposed to be changed into a 

 real poison in the diseased ones. 



Kaiser believes that the poisonous agent forms in the 

 intestinal tract, being primarily a nerve poison and secondarily 

 a muscle poison. 



Ehrhardt also believes in the theory of autointoxication. 

 According to him, parturient paresis is a chronic autointoxica- 

 tion, developing acute clinical symptoms as a result of parturi- 

 tion. 



It depends on : 1. An increased accumulation of poisons, 

 products of metabolism in the latter stage of pregnancy. 2. 

 On a decreased elimination during the period colostrum is 

 secreted. The fact that the parent becomes seriously ill in 

 consequence of the intoxication, and the calf is born alive in 

 cases where the disease shows itself before or during parturi- 

 tion, Ehrhardt explains by the antitoxic action of the thymus 

 gland, which paralyses the effects of the ptomaines in the 

 foetus. 



4. Intoxications due to products of metabolism of low organ- 

 isms. Guillebeau and Hess found, in eight autopsies on cows . 

 dead with paresis, four times a serous phlegmon of the uterus, 

 twice lacerations of the cervix uteri, twice necrosis of the 

 muscles behind the bony pelvis. In all these cases the puer- 

 peral state took a normal course, so that injuries of the 

 parturient passages seemed excluded. According to Guille- 

 beau and Hess, a close relationship exists between labor pains 

 and serous phlegmon of the uterus and over-distention and 

 bruising of the mucous membrane of this organ by hard parts 

 of the foetus. Such a bruised spot would afford a proper 

 medium for the accumulation of bacteria. They believe that 

 the infection is caused by micro-organisms quite common to 

 the vaginal mucous membrane, as the bacillus cedematis. 



