Hesmoglobincemia . — Azotcsmia . — Etc. 447 



so that the wliole mass of the circulating blood is speedily re- 

 duced below par, and laid specially open to the action of blood 

 solvents. By the same action the systemic blood is charged 

 with poisons, direct from the food, and fermenting ingesta, and 

 from the overworked spleen and liver whose functions are pro- 

 foundly impaired, and later from other important organs, the 

 healthy functional activity of which can no longer be maintained 

 by the deteriorated blood supplied to them. 



Haemoglobinaemia in dogs has been produced experimentally 

 by the injection of water into the veins the mere dilution of the 

 plasma dissolving out the coloring matter from the red globules 

 (Hayem) ; also by the inhalation of arseniureted hydrogen 

 (Naunynand Stadelman) ; by the ingestion of toluylendiamine, 

 or phosphorus (Afanassiew, Stadelman) ; by snake venom, 

 septicaemia, influenza, contagious pneumonia, petechial fever, 

 anthrax, etc. These cannot be looked on as causes of the acute 

 hsemoglobinsemia in the horse, but they serve as illustrations of 

 changes in the plasma, and poi-sons in the blood determining the 

 escape of haemoglobin from the cells. 



Ralfe recognizes two forms of hsemoglobinsemia in man : 



ist. Thafin which the haemoglobin is simply dissolved out of 

 the blood globules, the solution taking place chiefly in parts ex- 

 posed to cold. 



2d. A more severe form in which the dissolution is general and 

 probably, attended by some destruction of red globules in the 

 liver, spleen and even in the kidneys. The general opinion ap- 

 pears to be that the attacks are due to some nervous disturbance, 

 which causes vaso-motor disorder and it is supposed that there is 

 an exaggerated sensibility of the reflex nervous system. It has 

 been suggested that peripheral irritation causes irritation of the 

 vaso-motor centre, and in turn this causes local asphyxia in the 

 part stimulated, under which conditions the red globules part 

 with their haemoglobin (Roberts). 



Murri holds that the disease depends on an increased irrita- 

 bility of the vaso-motor reflex centre, and the formation, owing 

 to the disorder of the blood forming organs ; of corpuscles unable 

 to withstand exposure to cold or carbon dioxide. 



While it is not a.ssumed to point out the actual poisons of 

 hsemoglobinsemia in the horse the above suggestions may offer 



