SURGICAL TREATMENT OF COLICS 71 



temperature is sometimes very high as this disorder may- 

 be associated with overheating of the body. 



Treatment. — The pathognomonic symptoms are 

 found in the course of the treatment, which consists of 

 the prompt washing out of the stomach with the stomach 

 tube and pump. The contents which usually flow out as 

 soon as the tube reaches the cardiac orifice are blood 

 stained with the exudates from the inflamed mucous 

 membrane. It is sour and flows out in sufficient quan- 

 tity to afford an immediate relief. As the tube enters 

 the stomach the patient, till then in great agony, im- 

 mediately stands quiet. 



The volume of solids evacuated from such a stomach 

 is always small and can in no way account for the 

 patient's agony. The extreme pain is the pain of in- 

 flammation and not entirely of engorgement as in acute 

 indigestion. The stomach should be well washed out by 

 alternate instillation and aspiration of hot water until 

 the reflux is clear and then several gallons of hot water 

 are injected to fill the stomach and guard against a too 

 sudden reaction of the gastric circulation. 



In these cases we also use the alum solution to prevent 

 laminitis. One-half of a grain of strychnine is helpful, 

 and in twenty hours a small dose of linseed oil is given 

 to prevent the constipation that otherwise may follow 

 two days later. 



Acute Dilatation of the Stomach 



Acute dilatation of the stomach is a sequel of the above 

 disorders and is due to an exhaustion of the muscles 

 from the severe and especially from the prolonged 

 stretching to which the stomach was subjected. In some 



