UDDER-STREPTOMYCOSIS 49 



Fever occurs in the early stages but later subsides unless 

 gangrene sets in, in which case the fever becomes chronic. 



This begins imperceptibly and proceeds insidiously. 

 The alteration of the udder and the milk takes place by 

 slow degrees. 



One or more quarters become involved. The quarter 

 is not enlarged, but often diminished in size and after milk- 

 ing does not collapse at all or only slightly reduces. That 

 portion of the udder around the base of the teats, especially 

 the parts anterior to the teats of the fore quarters and pos- 

 terior to the teats of the hind quarters, appear, after milk- 

 ing, to continue to be filled with milk and to be hard to the 

 touch or sclerotic. 



These pathologically altered parts increase in area by 

 extending forward, backward and slowly upward. 



The quantity of milk decreases by slow degrees. The 

 milk is at first imperceptibly but later always distinctly 

 changed. It coagulates on boiling because of the albumin 

 contained. It is thicker, almost like cream, due to the in- 

 creased number of cells, and can contain blood at the same 

 time. Finally it becomes decidedly puslike and consists 

 almost entirely of cells. 



Upon microscopical examination of the sediment one 

 finds a great number of Gram positive streptococci in long 

 chains. The condition does not present the symptom fever. 



Prognosis. — The condition is seldom fatal. High 

 fever, especially when gangrene is a complication, is very 

 dangerous. 



The infection certainly diminishes the functional ca- 

 pacity of the diseased quarter more or less. 



Following an acute infection of short duration, how- 

 ever, the functional capacity completely returns to normal, 

 due to the insignificance of sclerosis. 



The chronic infection tends toward complete destruc- 

 tion of function. The parenchyma of the quarter under- 



