DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY. 
491 
The management of the intestinal tract following gastrectomy 
is worth considering and the proper method of handling such 
cases can only be learned by experimenting in that line. The 
only case of gastrectomy that we have ever seen performed was 
undertaken by a human surgeon who was familiarizing himself 
with the technique of the operation by experimenting upon a 
dog for the purpose of using such interference upon a patient 
whom he suspected of having a cancer of the stomach, which 
might require a complete resection of the stomach, dhe dog 
died three weeks after the operation from an overdose of mor¬ 
phia given to relieve pain caused by indigestion, and his patient 
(a man) never rallied enough to withstand the operation. 
Partial Gastrectomy or Pylorectomy , is more commonly in¬ 
dicated than gastrectomy, and has been successfully used in 
diseases of the pylorus, such as cicatricial stenosis, ulcer and 
cancer of the pylorus. According to statistics given by Wini- 
water and Gussenbauer the majority of cancers of the stomach 
are located in the pyloric portion and seldom extend into the 
duodenum, and the results of 70 pylorectomies. on human sub¬ 
jects compiled by McArdle ( Dublin Journal of Medical Sc ., 
June , i88y) are as follows : 24 died from the operation ; 14 from 
peritonitis and septic infection ; and 32 recovered ; some of 
which were reported well three or four years after the operation. 
Thus far no statistics of gastrectomy or pylorectomy have been 
gathered by veterinarians. 
Operation .—The operation is more easily described than 
executed ; the arrest of haemorrhage is not an easy factor; and 
the isolation of part or entire organ requires careful manipula¬ 
tion. The procedure may be divided into the following steps, 
viz.: 
( a ) Celiotomy. 
( b ) Isolation of part or entire stomach. 
( c ) Resection of part or entire stomach. 
( d ) Anastomosis or approximation. 
O) Celiotomy. —The incision into the cavity is made along 
the linea alba and only large enough to explore the epigastric 
and hypochondriac regions, and when the condition is ascei- 
tained the incision may be made large enough to facilitate the 
operation required 5 when necessary an incision may be made 
at right angles to the first one which will give more 100m to 
manipulate the structures involved in the operation. 
( J ) Isolation of Part or Entire Stomach. —This part of the 
operation is the most difficult, and before attempting to use the 
