CHAPTER II. 



DISEASES ATTRIBUTED TO WOUND INFECTION. 



§ II. Lesions which may be caused by several 

 organisms that are recognized as distinct maladies. It 

 has already been stated that the lesions following wound 

 infections may be brought about by a variety of bacteria and 

 also that certain of these disease processes are sometimes 

 recognized as distinct maladies. There are a number of affec- 

 tions which belong to this class. From some of these, such as 

 botryomycosis, a supposedly specific organism has been isolated 

 and described. A number of workers, however, have found 

 that other bacteria may produce apparently the same morbid 

 conditions. The more important of the aiTections which seem 

 to be directly traceable to wound infection will be briefly de- 

 scribed in the light of recent investigations. It should be 

 stated, however, that the amount of work that has been done 

 on these subjects is not sufficient to preclude the possibility of 

 a specific etiological factor, but rather to suggest the lines 

 along which valuable and more conclusive findings may be 

 expected in the future. 



I. 



§ 12. Botryomycosis. This name has been given to a 

 variety of lesions found more commonly in the horse but oc- 

 curring also in cattle, swine and other animals. The thickened 

 spermatic cord (scirrhous cord) which sometimes follows cas- 

 tration is the most common form of this disease. Practitioners 

 often designate as botryomycosis certain closed abcesses occur- 

 ring in the subcutaneous or intermuscular tissue. Abscesses 

 and nodules found in the internal organs have been included 

 under this caption. Several investigators have isolated from 



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