GOUT. PODAGRA. ARTHRITIS URICA. 



Definition. Affects birds, dogs, perhaps pigs. Causes : excess of nitro- 

 genom foud, imperfect oxidation, impaired metabolism and elimination. 

 Susceptibility of birds in confinement. Xanthin bases. Nuclein. Hepatic 

 torpor. Contracted kidney. Affects tissues of little vascularity. Lesions : 

 chalky deposits around joints, and in internal organs. Solubility of biurate 

 of soda in synovia, serum, etc. Symptoms : arthritis, joint tenderness, 

 resting on breast, hard or fluctuating swellings, desquamation, ulceration, 

 chalky urates Diagnosis : test for biurate. Treatment : less albuminoid 

 diet, eliminating salts, colchicum, piperazin, surgical and antiseptic dress- 

 ing. 



Definition. An arthritis characterized by periodical exacerba- 

 tions, by the deposit of sodium biurate in and around the joints 

 and at times in other parts of the body, and by more or less con- 

 stitutional febrile disturbance during the paroxysms. 



Animals susceptible. Among the lower animals the disease has 

 been noticed almost exclusively in birds, which even normally 

 excrete so much uric acid that the liquid may be semi-solid as 

 found in the cloaca or in the droppings. While this is a consti- 

 tutional peculiarity in the bird yet it is enhanced in connection 

 with an abundant diet of rich nitrogenous materials, as in forced 

 feeding, and in old animals in which the eliminating action of 

 the kidneys is more or less impaired. Ebstein has shown that 

 gout can be produced in birds by tying the ureters. All domesti- 

 cated birds, chickens, turkeys, pigeons, ostriches, geese, ducks, 

 Guinea fowl, have been found to suffer. A case of gout has been 

 reported in a dog, and Pradal has described it as existing in 

 swine, but the symptoms given are more in accord with articular 

 rheumatism. 



Causes. The causes of gout are overfeeding especially on 

 highly concentrated nitrogenous food, acid sweets, and in turn 

 sweet and acid alcoholic drinks, an excess of uric acid in the 

 blood and tissues, imperfect oxidation of albuminoids, impaired 

 metabolism, imperfect elimination of uric acid, and impaired in- 

 nervation. Probably no single morbid condition is in itself 

 sufficient to induce the disease but a combination of several, un- 

 questionably operate in many cases. 

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