Imperforate oviduct usually occurs in the lower part of its course, the tube being connected with the cloaca by a short, fibrous cord. In the case of a very valuable bird it may be incised and the walls of the duct may be brought down and fixed to those of the cloaca.
Polypi of the oviduct may seriously impede laying, and start obstruction and impaction. The seat of the tumor having been ascertained, it may be seized and twisted off by a snare. An elastic wire is passed through a small metallic tube so that a loop protrudes large enough to pass over the polypus. When fixed around the pedicle, it is tightened, and the tissues twisted through.
Egg Impaction in the Oviduct. From weakness or lack of tone in the bird, by inflammation and loss of contractile power in the oviduct, by stricture of the duct as a sequel of inflammation or abrasion, by congenital narrowing, by weakening of the oviduct through constant laying, by excessive size of the egg, by double yolked eggs, by presentation of a large egg with its thick end first, or by an egg with broken shell, the oviduct may be rendered incapable of passing the egg on and out, and as others continue to press down from above an excessive and dangerous impaction ensues. The bird refuses food, mopes around with ruffled feathers and drooping head, wings and tail. The region of the anus and in front of it hangs downward and feels firm and solid, and the oiled finger introduced into the cloaca comes in contact with the impacted mass. The bird strains violently but ineffectually and rubs its anus on the ground. The swelling goes on steadily and rapidly increasing, and the bird becomes more prostrate and hopeless. Sometimes the overdistended and congested oviduct gives way and the eggs escape into the abdomen. Reul has counted as many as 24 eggs that had thus escaped into the abdominal cavity. Or without rupture of the oviduct, the soft eggs pack together into a solid, dry yolk-like mass, the watery parts having been pressed out or absorbed. In bad cases this may weigh 1½ lb. in the hen (Weber). In the way of treatment the cloaca and oviduct should be thoroughly lubricated with a bland oil, which might be injected with a syringe, so as to pass it, if possible, around the impacted egg or mass. By careful manipulation the egg may now be brought away. If the thick end is presented it is sometimes possible to turn it so that the thin end will come first. Should all fail the egg may be broken and its contents together with the other impacted matter may be dislodged with a looped wire or small spoon. The oviduct should be lubricated for some time with a bland antiseptic oil (olive oil and boric or salicylic acid). In obstinate cases the abdomen and oviduct may be laid open and both evacuated of any egg matter that may be present. After suitable antisepsis the wounds in the oviduct and abdominal walls are to be sutured. If there appears to be danger of the further early descent of eggs into the weakened oviduct the ovary may be removed.
Eversion of the Oviduct. This appears at times as a result of the intromission of the penis (ducks) being shown immediately after copulation as a pink, lax membrane one or more inches long, dragging from the anus. In other cases it appears to result from the paresis that occurs in old birds from prolonged laying, or from inflammation and impactions. It may appear abruptly or gradually, and after a few hours becomes the seat of exudation, swelling and redness, forming a pyriform mass. In some cases it is carried out around an egg which does not glide through its canal and may be felt through its walls, and through its terminal opening. A partial eversion may take place as an invagination into the cloaca, without showing externally. When an egg is impacted, or when the protruded organ is inflamed and swollen, violent straining continues, which tends to aggravate the condition, and the bird gets rapidly exhausted, resting on its breast, later upon its back, and dying in convulsions.
In slight cases following copulation, the vermicular movement of the duct, of the cloaca and anus may serve to secure speedy spontaneous reduction. In the partial cases, of eversion into the cloaca, the free local use of oil, may secure the passage of the presenting egg and the return of the oviduct. If necessary the egg may be broken and its shell thoroughly extracted. This last method is imperative when the egg enclosed in the oviduct has already passed through the anus. The oviduct should then be cleansed in tepid water, and laudanum, oiled and returned.
Inflammation of the oviduct is a common condition resulting from debility, from impaction of an egg or of egg-material, from scratching with the shell of a broken egg, and from microbian invasion. The frequent passage of large eggs is an accessory cause, and the egg becomes an important factor in the maintenance and aggravation of the inflammation. The mucosa becomes red, dry, infiltrated, thickened and friable, and the muscular coat increasingly paretic. The egg, becoming impacted, and subjected to constant pressure in the vain efforts at expulsion, hinders circulation and nutrition, and favors necrotic and ulcerative processes, and too often the fragile membranous walls yield, and the mass drops into the abdominal cavity. Short of this, the exudate at a particular point, the main seat of inflammation, contracting in undergoing organization, forms a distinct stricture, which renders the further laying of fully formed eggs difficult or impossible, and further impaction, inflammation and rupture may follow. Sometimes the irritation causes undue peristalsis in the anterior and less actively inflamed part of the tube, and the eggs are laid prematurely without albumen or without shell, yet with much effort and suffering. Or the bowels become irritable and a profuse diarrhœa sets in, hastening the exhaustion of the patient.
Treatment should be applied early. A cooling diet of vegetables or slops, the careful removal of all irritating contents from the oviduct, and its frequent injection with bland oils medicated with mild antiseptics (boric or salicylic acid, or potassium permanganate) will usually serve a good purpose.
HYDROMETRA AND PYOMETRA.
Cause: chronic metritis, tumors, microbian infection. Symptoms: ill-health, low condition, vulvar swelling or discharge, swelling and fluctuation of womb. Rectal exploration. Treatment: evacuate liquid, disinfect womb and passages, creolin, iodine.
As a rule these conditions belong to obstetrics and would not come under the scope of this volume, but when in chronic cases, with closure of the neck of the womb, the liquids accumulate and distend the uterus, they may deserve mention in a medical work.