Petechial Fever. 149 



From anthrax and emphysematous anthrax petechial fever is 

 distinguished by the absence of the large bacilli of these respective 

 diseases from the exudate. It is not communicable, like anthrax, 

 to the sheep, Guinea pig and rabbit, and does not crackle on 

 manipulation, like emphysematous anthrax. The swellings are 

 much more generally diffused than in anthrax and the hyper- 

 thermia much less. 



Urticaria furnishes a skin eruption which may be indistingu- 

 ishable from the earlier skin lesions of petechial fever, but these 

 lesions are not associated with the petechise in the nasal and other 

 mucosae, and the swellings do not advance to great .sanguineous 

 engorgements, cracks, fissures, necrosis, and deep and extensive 

 sores as in purpura. Urticaria is, moreover, usually traceable to 

 some digestive disturbance and fault in feeding. 



Malignant oedema is usually confined to the seat of the inocula- 

 tion wound and an extension around that, the exudate is very 

 watery and may be mixed with fetid gas bubbles, so as to crepi- 

 tate .slightly, and it contains an abundance of its specific, round 

 ended bacillus, often in chain form. The carcass putrefies with 

 great rapidity. 



Horse pox affecting the pastern and limb with attendant swell- 

 ing is distinguished by the absence of petechise on the mucosae, 

 and by the formation on the affected part of little pea-like papules, 

 which early exude an abundant liquid, the concretion of v^hich 

 on the hairs forms a remarkable yellowish encrustation, embed- 

 ded in the angry red sores beneath. 



Mortality. Prognosis. The mortality has generally averaged 

 about 50 per cent. Much, however, depends on the violence of 

 the attack, and the reduced and worn out condition of the patient. 

 The most hopeful cases are those in which the temperature 

 remains near the normal, the strength and appetite are well sus- 

 tained, the swellings are comparatively slight, and there is no 

 indication of any internal complication. The unpromising symp- 

 toms are : persistent high temperature ; complete anorexia ; great 

 dulness and prostration ; excessive swellings not only cutaneous 

 but in the nose and throat as well ; a marked oozing from the 

 swellings with a tendency to form cracks, fissures and sloughs ; 

 the serious obstruction of breathing and prevention of hsematosis 

 by blocking of the nose, pharynx or larynx by sanguineous and 



