318 



displacement. There are certain peculiar signs accomj)anying the 

 occurrence of the accident while an operation is in progress which 

 should at once excite the suspicion of the surgeon. In the midst of 

 a violent struggle the patient becomes suddenly quiet; the movement 

 of a sharp instrument which at first excited his resistance fails to 

 give rise to any further evidence of sensation; perhaps a general 

 trembling, lasting for a few minutes, will follow, succeeded by a cold, 

 profuse perspiration, particularly between the hind legs, and fre- 

 quently there will be micturition and defecation. Careful examina- 

 tion of the vertebral column may then detect a slight dex)ression or 

 irregularity in the direction of the spine, and there may be a diminu- 

 tion or loss of sensation in the i^osterior part of the trunk while the 

 anterior i)ortion continues to be as sensitive as before. In making 

 an attempt to get upon his feet, however, upon the removal of the 

 hobbles, only the fore part of the bodj' v>-ill respond to the effort, a 

 degree of paraplegia being present, and while the head, neck, and 

 fore j)art of the body will be raised, the hind quarters and hind legs 

 will remain inert. The animal may perhaps succeed in rising and 

 probably may be removed to his stall, but the disiDlacement of the 

 bone will follow, converting the fracture into one of the complete 

 kind, either through the exertion of walking or by a renewed attempt 

 to rise after another fall, before reaching his stall. By this time the 

 paral3'^sis is complete, and the extension of the meningitis which has 

 become established is a consummation soon reached. 



To say that the prognosis of fracture of the body of the vertebra is 

 always serious is to speak very mildly. It were better ijerhaps to say 

 that occasionally a ease may recover. Fractures of the transverse 

 processes are less serious. 



Instead of stating the indication in this class of cases as if assum- 

 ing them to be medicable, the question naturally becomes rather a 

 query : ' ' Can any treatment be recommended in a fracture of the body 

 of a vertebra? " The only indication in such a case, in our ojiinion, is 

 to reach the true diagnosis in the shortest possible time and to act 

 accardingly. If there is displacement, and the existence of serious 

 lesions may be inferred from the nervous symptoms, the destruction 

 of the suffering animal appears to suggest itself as the one conclusion 

 in which considerations of policy, humanity, and science at once unite. 



If, however, it is fairly evident that no disi)lacement exists; that 

 pressure upon the spinal cord is not yet present ; that the animal with 

 a little assistance is able to rise upon his feet and to walk a short dis- 

 tance, it may be well to experiment upon the case to the extent of 

 placing the patient in the most favorable circumstances for recovery, 

 and allow nature to operate without further interference. This may 

 be accomplished by securing immobility of the whole body as much as 

 possible, and especially of the suspected region, by placing the patient 

 in slings, in a stall sufficiently narrow to preclude lateral motion, and 



