ATROPHY OF THE HEART. 367 



sound there; but the two do not consist of a reduplicated 

 second sound, but of the sound and the bruit, which are 

 heard separately, the one short and terminating at its usual 

 time, the other prolonged." 



Percussion enables us to determine the extent to which 

 the heart is enlarged, as its position is indicated by dulness, 

 which is, of course, detected over a wider surface as the heart 

 increases in size. It is not easy to be very accurate in deter- 

 mining the extent of general enlargement the heart has 

 suffered in the horse. This is more readily accomplished in 

 the dog, but in none of our animals so satisfactorily as in 

 man, in whom an expert physician will mark with a pen pre- 

 cisely the limits to which the heart has extended beyond the 

 natural space it should occupy in the thorax. 



In simple hypertrophy the pulse is often regular, full, and 

 strong. It is small and feeble in the rare cases of hyper- 

 trophy which are classified under the third head mentioned 

 above, of concentric hypertrophies. 



Hypertrophy of the heart is a malady which progresses 

 slowly, though it soon prevents an animal performing any 

 hard work, and being used for fast riding or driving. It 

 predisposes to other maladies, such as pulmonary congestion, 

 active hsemorrhage, &c. 



Treatment Judicious management, so far as moderating 

 diet, restricting the amount of work, and allowing ample 

 periods of rest, includes most of what can be done to relieve 

 an animal suffering from hypertrophy of the heart. Leblanc 

 states that hypertrophy of the heart is frequently met with 

 in broken-winded horses, and he has observed the best effects 

 in these from the daily administration of small doses of 

 arsenic. I can confirm -this statement. 



