PARTURIENT PARESIS. 
399 
of the arterial blood stream is then undoubtedly changed. It 
is iiot^ however^ increased, bnt on the contrary becoynes markedly 
lessened. But the etiology is quite otherwise than the circula¬ 
tory changes which accompany parturition. The cause is in 
part a paralysis of the cardiac muscular tissue. The chief 
symptom of the malady is paralysis. In extreme grades of the 
disease, the heart often becomes paralyzed to such a degree that 
its impulse against the chest walls can scarcely be recognized 
at all. In consequence of the depressed cardiac action and the 
dimished arterial blood pressure, cerebral anaemia very natur¬ 
ally supervenes because the blood stream for the reasons named 
becomes slower, especially at the peripheral parts. 
The enfeebled condition of the heart and the depressed ar¬ 
terial blood pressure explains also the fact that the peripheral 
parts, especially the horns, ears and legs, as well as the body 
surface, is frequently found to be very cold. At times the epi¬ 
dermis is even shriveled. The faeces in the posterior part of 
the rectum are often desiccated, the oedema which exists in the 
udder vanishes rapidly. Some fatal endings have been noted 
immediately after phlebotomy. In many cases albuminuria 
exists. There might occur here the apparent possibility of at¬ 
tributing the desiccation of the peripheral parts of the body as 
well as the posterior part of the rectum rather to a failure of 
the secretion of moisture than of the absorption of it. 
When, however, it so frequently occurs after an attack of 
milk fever that feces of the normal consistence and humidity 
are found at a distance of about two feet forward within the 
rectum, and in the hinder parts of which only dry balls and fre¬ 
quently only dry crusts exist, which adhere to the mucous 
membrane, so one must come to the conclusion that just prior 
to their passage into the most posterior part of the rectum the 
dry pellets and incrustations were normal in consistence and mois¬ 
ture, but became dried up through the absorption of moisture. 
It has been time and again noted by various observers 
that a mammary oedema very evident at the beginning of 
*Miekdahl; Tidsskrift for Veterinarer. Bd. 21 S, 288. 
