DISEASES OF THE LIVER.
In veterinary and medical works the diseases of the liver have been accorded a minor place, ill in keeping with the great physiological importance of the organ. If the function of the liver were circumscribed by the mere secretion of bile there would be some excuse for the apparent neglect, as the gland is so deeply situated and so much enveloped in surrounding organs that physical exploration is difficult and somewhat unsatisfactory, and the one symptom of jaundice was long relied on as indicating hepatic disorder.
Taking into account all the varied functions of the liver we realize the wide-reaching nature of its physiological influence and the extensive and varied effect of its disorders. We can also deduce, with greater or lesser certainty, the existence of hepatic disorders from the morbid conditions of the blood or of organs, the functions of which are inter-dependent with those of the liver. To elucidate the subject it is well to trace some of the most prominent functions of the liver; the following considerations are submitted.