THE STOMACH AND INTESTINES 185 



another solution to be adopted at the discretion of the 

 surgeon. 



Prognosis. — The prognosis when the hardened fa;ccs can 

 be removed by the spoon alone is good, the only after-treat- 

 ment necessary being the injection for a few days of some 

 emollient antiseptics, such as chinosol and oil, or chinosol, 

 glycerine, and water. When the case has progressed so far 

 that laparotom}', enterotom}-, or enterectomy have become 

 necessary, the prognosis is grave, because, as a rule, the 

 patient is debilitated from inability to take proper nourish- 

 ment and from absorption of septic materials. Death from 

 collapse ma}' occur within a few hours afterwards, and in 

 one case met with death occurred suddenly four da)'s after- 

 wards from invagination and strangulation of the bowel, a 

 large piece of the health)- portion having pushed its way 

 into the dilated portion ^\■here the obstruction had existed 

 before the latter had had time to contract and recover its 

 tone and normal size. At the same time, the operation is the 

 one \\-hich gi\-es the patient the best chance of recovery, and 

 the author has known it to be successful in two ^'ery typical 

 instances, in each of which the dogs had enormous masses 

 of concretion which had been accumulating for many days.^ 

 The bowel of one patient (an Aberdeen terrier) was per- 

 severingly massaged for full}' three-quarters of an hour before 

 the whole mass could be broken down and removed. 



After-tvcatincut. — It is sometimes most difficult to get the 

 bowel to recover its normal tone. The case above mentioned, 

 in which invagination occurred four days after operation, is 

 an instance of this. 



For the first twenty-four hours the patient, when the bowel 

 has not been opened, should receive a little dilute brandy 

 and some preparation of strychnine in milk, Benger's Food, 

 Plasmon, or some farinaceous food, every four hours, and the 



1 Journal of Comparative Pathology and Therapeutics, vol. xii., p. 

 261 ; Veterinary Record, vol. xvii., p. 492. 



