CHRONIC PERITONITIS IN SOLIPEDS.
Secondary: after acute, or with disease of liver, spleen, kidney, rheumatism, melanosis, lymphadenoma, epithelioma, carcinoma, or sarcoma. Gastric ulcer, infected punctures. Symptoms: poor health, tender abdomen, irregular bowels, slight colic, tense, fluctuating belly, pallid mucosæ, dropsy of sheath, limbs, etc., slight fever. Treatment: remove primary disease: saline laxatives, diuretics, drainage, antiseptic irrigation (boric acid, etc.), abdominal bandage, tonics, derivatives.
Causes. Chronic peritonitis is always a secondary disease, succeeding the acute, or dependent on some other affection of the abdominal organs, as chronic congestion of the liver, or spleen, Bright’s disease, rheumatism, melanosis, lymphadenoma, epithelioma, carcinoma, or sarcoma. Tuberculosis and actinomycosis, so common in cattle, are rare in solipeds. Chronic ulcers of stomach or bowels and injuries and infections from punctures are exceptional causes.
Symptoms. The manifestations of the disease are indefinite, the acute form may have subsided so that the patient is supposed to have completely recovered, a moderate appetite and a certain capacity for work may be present, yet he is easily fatigued, there is some tenderness of the abdomen to pressure, some irregularity of the bowels—constipation and diarrhœa alternating—and occasional slight colics. Some weeks later may be noticed abdominal tension and tympany, with perhaps fluctuation in the lower parts, increasing pallor of the mucosæ, and œdematous swelling of the sheath, mammæ, abdominal walls or hind limbs. To detect fluctuation it is sometimes necessary to introduce one hand into the rectum. When present hyperthermia is slight, but assists in diagnosis from ascites.
Treatment should be directed to the primary disease. As that is too often irremediable the peritonitis will resist all other treatment.
In cases that supervene on the acute form, paracentesis, saline laxatives and diuretics with antiseptics, tonics, and counter-irritants will sometimes succeed. As in the acute form of the disease the removal of the effusion is the removal of the culture fluid, and may be followed by irrigation of the peritoneum with a normal salt solution, or with an antiseptic solution (boric acid or potassium permanganate), 1:20 warm water; Aluminum acetate, 1:2000. Sulphate of soda given to keep up a moderately laxative action, tends to counteract the contraction of the intestine by false membranes, and operates with diuretics in reducing the tendency to exudation or in causing its reabsorption. After removal of the liquid, support by a close (or elastic) abdominal bandage is often of value in preventing further effusion. As tonics, gentian, nux vomica and the iron salts may be profitably employed, and as antiseptics salicylate of soda and iodide of potassium. As counter-irritants mustard and cantharides may be named.