180 Diseases of the Genital Organs 



the stallion there occurs sometimes a paralysis of the pos- 

 terior limbs. In one bull in my experiment herd, paralysis 

 was due to lead poisoning caused by licking a painted board 

 when but a few days old. He was completely paralyzed 

 and unconscious for a number of days. For months he was 

 quite severely paralyzed in his posterior parts, with some 

 swelling of the joints and bones. He attained medium size, 

 and was normally fertile, but was quite awkward and copu- 

 lated with some difficulty. 



Stallions suffer occasionally from paralysis of the penis, 

 the cause of which is generally unknown, largely associated 

 with partial paralysis of the posterior limbs and not ordi- 

 narily subject to remedy. 



G. Torsion of the Testicle 



Torsion of the spermatic cord, it is claimed, sometimes 

 causes atrophy of the testicles and inhibits the formation 

 of spermatozoa because of interruption of the nutritive sup- 

 ply. It is well known that emasculation can be produced in 

 ruminants by the process designated double subcutaneous 

 torsion, in which the testicles are twisted and inverted in 

 such a manner as to interrupt their vascular supply and in- 

 duce atrophy, with disappearance of sexual desire and 

 power. 



Occasionally in man torsion of the testicle appears to pro- 

 duce painful and serious symptoms simulating incarcerated 

 hernia with vomition. O'Connor (') describes two cases 

 and states that one hundred twenty-four cases have been 

 recorded in man. I am not aware that disease has been 

 traced to torsion of the spermatic cord in animals. In the 

 stallion, with horizontal testes, the gland is frequently re- 

 volved upon its transverse axis through 180 degrees, but 

 this appears to be of no consequence. The horizontal posi- 

 tion of the testicle permits it to revolve upon its transverse 

 axis below the mesorchium. The displacement involves 

 very slight damage to the spermatic cord. The freedom of 



•Vincent J. O'Connor, Torsion of the Spermatic Cord. Surg. Gyn. and 

 ( )hst., Dec, 1919, p. 580. 



