PSEUDOMEMBRANOUS PHARYNGITIS IN CATTLE.
Most common in calves. Inoculations successful on rabbits, mice and sheep. Bacillus: its cultural characteristics. Predisposing causes. Symptoms: nasal mucosa congested; false membranes; snuffling, wheezing breathing; painful, rattling cough; agonized expression; salivation; bowel disorder. Course. Duration. Lesions; intense congestion and false membranes. Treatment: as for horse; special antiseptics; solvents; anodynes; tracheotomy.
This has appeared especially in calves, and though apparently readily transmissible among the young, it rarely attacks aged cattle. Cadeac and others inoculated it on guinea pigs and rabbits without success. Dammann, on the other hand, had his inoculated rabbits die in twenty-four hours with hemorrhages in the seat of inoculation. Löffler inoculated it hypodermically on mice and produced extensive infiltration of the entire walls of the abdomen, and often of the peritoneum including the surface of the liver, kidneys and intestines, on which was formed a thick, yellowish exudate containing the microbe. Damman claimed to have successfully inoculated the sheep as well.
Causes: Microbe. Löffler found in the deeper layers of the exudate a long delicate bacillus, five or six times as long as broad, and about half the thickness of the bacillus of malignant œdema. Several bacilli were usually joined so as to form long filaments. These failed to grow in nutrient gelatine, or sheep blood serum, but grew readily in the blood serum of the calf.
Beside the specific microbe Cadeac enumerates as predisposing causes: sudden chills, rapid changes of temperature, suppression of perspiration, inhalation of irritant gases, swallowing of irritant liquids, and traumatic injuries.
Symptoms. The nasal mucosa is violently congested, reddened, thickened, and covered at intervals by false membranes which block the normally narrow passages and produce snuffling, wheezing, and difficult breathing. The throat is swollen, and tender, the slightest touch producing a painful gurgling cough which leads to the discharge of mucopurulent matter, shreds of false membrane and even blood. These membranes may be seen on the nose or mouth. There is high fever, rapid, small pulse, cyanosed mucous membranes, pinched countenance, and usually open mouth, pendant tongue and drivelling saliva. There may be either constipation or diarrhœa.
The course of the malady is rapid, death sometimes supervening in 24 to 48 hours. Recovery and convalescence may be prompt, or the disease may last for weeks.
Lesions. The congestion is intense and may invade the mouth, nose, pharynx, larynx and bronchia, with at intervals the patches of yellowish white false membranes. These may be soft and diffluent when recent, and tough and resistant when of longer standing. The deeper layers are often bloodstained. Preitsch has seen them extend to the gullet, paunch and manifolds, and attended with considerable ulceration of the subjacent mucous membrane.
Treatment. This does not differ materially from that recommended for the horse. Among the additional antiseptics employed have been, iodoform, oil of turpentine, sulphide of calcium, silver nitrate and coal tar. To loosen and detach the false membranes ipecacuan and sulphates of soda and magnesia have been largely resorted to. Papayin and pepsin might be tried. Also as anodynes digitalis, morphia, aconite and belladonna. Finally tracheotomy has been employed when asphyxia seemed imminent.