140 



THE VENOMS OF CERTAIN TH AN A T PH IDE ^E. 



SLOW POISONING. 



Effects of Venom upon the Tissues of the Living Animal. 



No. of 



Animal 



Form and quantity 



Time of 



Local lesion. 



Condi- 



Changes in internal organs. Kemakks, 



expt. 



used. 



of venom, and 

 where introduced. 



death. 



' 



tion of 

 blood. 





20 



Pigeon 



Copper globulin, 



13 



Large, dark gan- 



Liquid 



Subpericardial ecchymoses and 









2 c. c. (equal to 1 



hours 



grene like swell- 



and 



pericardial effusion. Red tinged 









gram fresh venom) 





ing of chest ; 



dark 



serum in peritoneal cavity. Heart 









injected into pec- 





muscle disinte- 





empty. Lungs and pleura full 









toral muscle 





grated 





of ecchymoses. All the organs 

 congested 





21 



Rabbit 



Unknown, but very 



9 days 



Dark gangren- 



Liquid 



Numerous minute "hemorrhages be- 



All these autopsies 







miniUe quantity 





ous swelling 



and 



low serous membranes, seen also 



were made immedi- 







of Crotalus venom 







dark 



at base of brain in right posterior 



ately or quite shortly 







injected in back 









fossa. The organs rather anaemic 

 and softened 



after death. 



22 



White 



Crotalus venom, 



2 days 



Hemorrhagic 



Slightly 



Organs congested, softened ; noth- 



For changes in blood, 





rat 



dry, £ grain in- 



and 7 



peritonitis 



coagu- 



ing else peculiar found ; small, 



see details in text. 







jected into abdo- 



hours 





lable, 



loose, red clot in right side of 









men 







dark 



heart 





23 



Cat 



Crotalus venom, 



9 days 



Skin slough over 



Liquid 



All internal organs softened and 









dry, 1 grain in- 



and 2 



local lesion, 



dark, ill 



highly ecchymosed and congested. 









jected into right 



hours 



which is dark, 



smelling 



Feces and urine bloody. Hemor- 









thigh 





hemorrhagic, 

 and gangrenous 





rhage at base of brain, and min- 

 ute blood specks in pericardium. 

 Heart quite atrophied and softened 





24 



Pigeon 



Quantity unknown, 



14 days 



Atrophy, with 



Liquid 



Hemorrhages indicated by deposits 



For further details 







injected into pec- 





pigmentation of 



and 



of blood pigment in the tissues. 



of the histological 







toral muscle 





the pectoral 

 muscle injected 



very 

 dark 



All the organs in a state of atro- 

 phy and softened, resembling 

 acute yellow atrophy in man. 

 Serous sacks all distended with 

 bloody serum. Heart empty, and 

 although contracted quite soft 



changes, see text. 



N. B. — Gangrenous 

 changes in the local 

 lesion are usually 

 more pronounced in 

 the "Slow" than in 

 the Rapid form of 

 venom poisoning. 



The following lesions may be mentioned as peculiar to retarded or slow poison- 

 ing : Rigor mortis often absent. The blood, usually diffluent, is very dark and 

 does not readily acquire the scarlet-red color when exposed to the air. There 

 are prominent blood-stained effusions in all the serous sacks. (Plate V.) Urine 

 and faeces often bloody. Hemorrhages beyond the local lesion much more conspicu- 

 ous than in the rapid poisoning. The remote lesions of slow poisoning resemble 

 very much (morphologically) the primary local lesion, but are not so extensive or 

 so well defined. In general the conditions of slow venom poisoning resemble those 

 of acute septic poisoning. It is very often impossible to draw a distinct line between 

 the manifestations of rapid and slow poisoning, nevertheless the division is in prac- 

 tice convenient. 



One case of very protracted slow poisoning was observed in a pigeon which had 

 been injected with venom in the pectoral muscle. (See Experiment 24, Table 

 Slow Poisoning.) 



Instead of the usual gangrenous change there was seen in this case after the 

 lapse of two weeks a decided dry atrophy of the muscular tissue about the wound. 

 Its fibres were greatly diminished in size as compared with the opposite unaffected 



