444 VETERINARY SURGICAL THERAPEUTICS. 
the pteceding ; they generally occupy the obturator foramen. Rey, 
Serres, Jouannin and many others have published cases of: it. Nocard, 
in the Archives of Alfort (1876), has written an article on them. There is 
no deformation of the croup, but ordinarily the lameness offers special 
characters ;. the leg is moved in abduction ; the animal walks as if suffering 
from severe sprains of the loins; he always has difficulty to get up (Rey). 
Later, there appear amyotrophies of the thigh and hip; the callus fills the 
obturator foramen, compresses and atrophies the posterior crural nerve, 
which animates the inferior part of the ischio-tibial muscles and also the 
obturator nerve, distributed to the muscles of the internal face of the 
thigh ; the adductors and flexors of the leg are paralyzed, the leg is moved 
in describing a circumference outwards by the exaggerated action of the 
abductors; the thigh alone flexes, the remainder of the leg follows the 
movement, but is moved without flexion. 
Rectal examination rarely leaves the diagnosis uncertain. In some 
cases, death is produced by the rupture of the obturator vessels; in 
others, the atrophic manifestations which we have mentioned. prevent re- 
covery. Sometimes the callus diminishes in great proportion the 
diameter of the pelvis, and mares which have been treated cannot be used 
for reproduction. However, recovery is possible, from the fact that the 
fragments are held in place by powerful ligaments and muscular attach- 
ments and have no tendency to displacement. The therapeutics consists. 
only in immobilization in the slings. In the case of Levrat, the right 
ischium was fractured near the cotyloid cavity; after two. months the 
mare was able to walk; a month later she was working on the racing track 
free from lameness ; the following year she was used as a brood mare and 
delivered several colts. 
In case of fracture of the zschiatic tuberosity, the loosened bony piece is. 
pulled downwards by the ischio-tibial muscles; the result is a peculiar 
deformity of the croup: flattening at the height of the ischial tuberosity 
and an abnormal projection on a level with the articulation. In some 
case$ this fracture gives rise to a displacement, a “luxation ” forward of 
the posterior portion of the long vastus. (See Muscular Luxations.) 
VIT.— Femur. 
Frequent in all species, fractures of the femur involve the diaphysis or 
the epiphysis. Many cases are related of compound, and comminuted. 
fractures of the diaphysis. Greeve has made the autopsy of a cow where 
the femur was crushed in eighty-five Pieces. 
Fractures of the meck are quite common. Fromage de Feugré, Rigot, 
Leblanc, Gurlt, Williams, Percivall, Gamgee, Nocard, Pourtanel, have 
