126 



VETERINARY PATHOLOGY. 



grated material maj' be carried away by leucocytes or may 

 pass into the blood stream. 



(B) Infective softening is an infective degenerative process, 

 the result of bacterial invasion into the thrombus. The source 

 of bacteria, that infect thrombi, is usually from the blood or 

 lymph. Suppuration or liquefaction is the resulting change. 



'J'he removal of the degenerative products may be accomplished 

 either by the blood stream or by the leucocytes. The outcome 

 of infective softening is likely to be much more serious than 

 wlien simple softening occurs. 



3. Organization. If the thrombus does not undergo degen- 

 eration it usually becomes organized, but it may become calci- 

 fied. \'ery soon after a thrombus is formed the fibrin con- 

 tracts as it does in the blood clot, thus reducing the size of the 

 thrombus, and if it was a complete or occluding thrombus the 

 reduction may be sufificient to allow the circulation to be re- 



