470 
CURVATURE OF THE SPINE. 
An army horse, the subject of fracture between the fourth and fifth sacral 
vertebrae, showed a swelling as large as a man’s fist over the sacrum, and 
suffered from rolling gait, paralysis of the tail, and difficulty in passing faeces. 
After five weeks’ rest in slings, the swelling increased to the size of a child’s 
head, and became harder ; seven months later the animal could carry a light 
rider ; but as sacral paralysis gradually set in, the animal had finally to be 
killed. Post-mortem examination revealed the presence of a callus as large as 
a child’s head, and fresh bleeding into the vertebral canal. 
Treatment. Treatment is seldom justifiable in fracture of the sacrum 
accompanied by complete paralysis, or if attempted, must be confined to 
preventing decubitus. When, in consequence of complete paraplegia, 
the animals lie continously, the usual precautions must be taken. The 
discharge of faeces and urine requires to be assisted. In repeatedly 
using the catheter, the precautions recommended on p. 879 must be 
borne in mind. 
Fractures of the caudal vertebrae, with severe local bruising or crush¬ 
ing, necessitate amputation of the tail; in compound fractures it is 
generally the quickest method of cure. Only in valuable horses is it 
worth while resorting to antisepsis or the application of dressings. 
III.—CURVATURE OF THE SPINE. 
The most frequent form of this disease is hollow-back, a condition 
known as lordosis. 1 Curvative upwards is called kyphosis, 2 and towards 
the side skoliosis. 3 Simultaneous curvature upwards and sideways is 
termed kypho-skoliosis. 
One class of these abnormalities arises during intra-uterine life. 
Animals born crippled are generally at once killed. Marked curvature 
of the spine, immediately after birth, has been often seen in pigs ; Rehrs 
noticed curvatures (hump-back) during rhachitis. Pigs also suffer from 
curvature of the spine in consequence of being trodden on by other 
occupants of the sty. Piitz describes kypho-skoliosis in an eighteen 
months’ foal. The dorsal vertebrae were bent towards the right, the 
lumbar vertebrae towards the left, and the back was depressed in places. 
The condition described by Preusse (kypho-skoliosis) in a foal appears to 
have been congenital. Yives noticed a horse in which the lumbar 
vertebrae were bent downwards almost at a right angle, and the thorax 
and abdomen were so depressed that the latter almost touched the 
ground. A tree had fallen on the animal’s back, causing symptoms of 
vertebral fracture. After some time recovery took place, but the 
vertebral column remained bent. 
(p) Aop5a><ris=curvature. 
( 2 ) Ku<£a>(m=crookedness. 
( 3 ) crKoAtcocm=crookedness. 
