272 GENERAL THEBAPEUTICS FOR VETERINARIANS 



of his experiences in the Berlin Horse-shoeing School, agrees with Schmidt 

 and Roder that passive hypersemia, when properly employed in suitable cases, 

 is to be regarded as a good healing method in veterinary medicine. Eberlein 

 and Braun"* have cured four cases of inflammation of the temporomaxdllary 

 articulation in the horse with Klapp's aspirator. 



Uses. — The external use of water for healing pmposes is in 

 many cases similar to the use of the cutaneous irritants (see p. 148). 

 The indications for the emploj^nent of hydrotherapy are, however, 

 more numerous than for the use of cutaneous irritants. More- 

 over, the water is often preferred to these drugs because of the 

 simplicity of its application and the cheapness of the hydropathic 

 apparatuses. The most important diseased conditions treated 

 with water are the following: 



1. Local surgical affections of the skin, subcutis, tendons, 

 tendon sheaths, muscles, joints, bones, and Ijrmph glands. The 

 application of cold water is indicated only in active hyperemia 

 and in entirely fresh, acute inflammatory conditions in these parts. 

 On the other hand, warm, moist appUcations or cataplasms are 

 indicated in all subacute and chronic inflammations, in passive 

 hyperaemia and in extravasations in the parts named. This is 

 true especially of fluid and solid exudates, indurations, old swellings 

 and thickenings of the skin, subcutis, tendons, articulations, bones 

 and muscles, and also of purulent inflammations and ripening 

 abscesses. The moist heat in these cases dilates the vessels, accel- 

 erates the disturbed and sluggish blood and lymph circulation, 

 promotes metabolism and resorption, softens hard inflammatory 

 products, encourages the outwandering of white blood-cells (phago- 

 cytosis, histolysis), accelerates connective tissue formation and 

 cicatrization and stimulates the formation of antitoxins. 



2. General febrile diseases. The antipyretic action of cold 

 water in the form of cold poultices, irrigations, douches, baths, 

 fomentations and rectal infusions depends upon the withdrawal of 

 heat; the cold must continue to operate for a long time, however, 



'° Braun, Die Saugbehandlung nach Klapp bei der Arthritis purulenta des 

 KiefOTgelenks des Pferdes. Monatshefte ftir prakt. Tierheilkunde, 1912. 



