736 
CONTRIBUTIONS TO VETERINARY MEDICINE. 
by diminishing the mass of blood, it proportionally diminished the 
stimulus that promoted all these shifting irritations.” 
Now, whether an excess of nutritive matter in the blood is ever 
an immediate cause of acute rheumatism or not, is a question 
which I decline to enter upon; certain it is, however, that a ple¬ 
thoric state of the system highly predisposes it to acute inflamma¬ 
tory attacks: in horses this is particularly exemplified in the pro¬ 
duction of lymphatitis : the least scratch or abrasion of the skin of 
the extremities produces a most violent inflammatory attack, appa¬ 
rently over the whole limb ; and it is only by promptly reducing 
the system that the affection can be subdued. Lameness in the 
horse from rheumatism is, I am certain, more common than is 
generally suspected. I have had, and am having regularly, num¬ 
bers of cases brought to me where the animals evince lameness 
when trotting, sometimes in a fore and sometimes in a hind limb, 
yet no lesion can be detected either in the synovial capsules or 
elsewhere. If the lameness be severe, I treat constitutionally ; if not 
severe, I simply advise warmth and gentle labour. Its commence¬ 
ment, at times, is very insidious : lameness is manifested, perhaps, 
in a fore limb, and, upon examination, a little puffiness is detected 
down the course of the flexor tendons, or confined to the fetlock 
joint, for which is prescribed a few days’ rest, and the application 
of cold water bandages, or a strong stimulating liniment; in the 
course of a day or two, and sometimes in the course of a few hours, 
similar phenomena present themselves in the other limb. The ani¬ 
mal now becomes feverish, and the disease spreads, producing 
extensive swelling of the knees, tendons, fetlocks, and, occasionally, 
even the shoulder joints. In some cases, at this stage of the dis¬ 
ease, the patient will lie constantly; in others, again, the standing 
position will be obstinately maintained. A very common cause is 
that of washing the limbs with cold water when the animal is in 
a strong state of perspiration, and allowing them to dry of them¬ 
selves. If the constitutional energies are vigorous, and the treat¬ 
ment prompt and judicious, recovery generally takes place in six 
or eight days; but if the animal is neglected, or the treatment not 
proper, the disease may linger for a long time, and the limbs remain 
permanently thickened. It is a very common affection in cows 
and fancy bred dogs, particularly when they are fat.and in a ple¬ 
thoric state. In Case I, the disease exhibited a close resemblance 
to rheumatic gout in the human subject; the synovial membranes 
were affected, and the synovia when exposed I found to be thick 
and turbid, conditions which I find described as being observed by 
surgeons in the joints of human beings who had suffered severely 
from rheumatic gout. 
Another point which l must, m conclusion, touch upon is, that 
