172 



GLANDERS 



Macroscopic and microscopic agglutination of Bacterium mallei ivith 

 horse serum by the use of killed and living cultures. 



The method as pointed out by Schiitz and Miessner is a 

 macroscopic one. It depends upon the precipitation of the 

 agglutinated masses of bacteria. Normal horse's serum 

 agglutinates glanders organisms in high dilutions as deter- 

 mined microscopically. This, however, does not appear to be 

 of diagnostic value. 



Disposition of reacting horses. The question arises 

 whether animals found by the help of mallein or the agglutin- 

 ation test to be glandered ought to be immediately slaughtered. 

 Nocard said no. The experience of the last few years goes to 

 prove that among the animals that react there are some which, 

 when removed from the infected center and thereby withdrawn 

 •from all chance of new contamination, recover. "We ought 

 therefore," he continues, "to confine ourselves to the destruc- 

 tion of those which in addition to the reaction, present some 

 clinical indication of the disease, such as ulceration of the nose, 

 indurated glands, suppurative lymphatics or other pronounced 

 manifestation of the disease. The animals showing physical 

 signs of infection must simply be removed from among the 

 healthy horses and subjected from time to time, say every two 

 months, to the mallein test. If afly of these should eventually 

 show the clinical signs of glanders, it should be slaughtered 

 at once. On the other hand, those animals which have stood 

 two successive doses of mallein without reacting ought to be 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



