DROPSY. 167 



ject to anasarca, or dropsy of the skin, unless when accompanied 

 by ascites. The former is usually the consequence of some other 

 chronic aflFection, as asthma, tabies, &c. : neglected mange has also 

 produced it, but more frequently it is followed by ascites. Acute 

 hydrothorax commonly succeeds to active inflammation of the lungs ; 

 in which cases, about the third day from the pneumonic attack, the 

 water begins to be formed within the cavity of the chest, and in- 

 creases so as to suffocate the animal in a few hours. — See Inflamed 

 Lungs. 



Dropsy of the chest may be known to exist by the extreme un- 

 easiness the dog shews when he lies down, and by his attempts, 

 under such circumstances, to elevate his head. The chest will 

 also appear full and swollen, and the water within may be gene- 

 rally heard on motion. The beating of the heart will likewise af- 

 ford a decided characteristic of the complaint; for the hand, placed 

 on one side of the chest, will be affected with a kind of thrill, very 

 different from the usual sensation presented by the beating of the 

 heart of a healthy dog. 



The cure may be attempted by the means recommended for 

 ventral dropsy ; but I have hitherto found the disease fatal in every 

 acute case, without exception. In both the chronic and acute it 

 may not be amiss to try the effects of paracentesis, or the opera- 

 tion of letting out the dropsical accumulation, which will afford the 

 only chance : in the chronic hydrothorax I have prolonged life, even 

 some weeks, by this means ; but as the cause which had operated 

 in producing it had injured the constitution beyond repair, so I 

 never established a perfect cure. 



The operation of paracentesis thoracis, or puncturing the 

 chest, though not quite so simple as letting off water from the belly, 

 yet it is neither a complex nor a dangerous one, if only a moderate 

 portion of caution be used. Make an opening through the integu- 

 ments, by means of a lancet, near the anterior edge of the eighth 

 or ninth rib, about the termination of the bony portion of the rib 

 into its cartilaginous addition, which will be readily detected by the 

 touch. Previous to making the opening, draw the skin a little to 



