Special report on the cause and prevention of swine plague : results of experiments conducted under the direction of Dr. D. E. Salmon ... / by Theobald Smith.

  • United States. Bureau of Animal Industry.
Date:
1891
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Special report on the cause and prevention of swine plague : results of experiments conducted under the direction of Dr. D. E. Salmon ... / by Theobald Smith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    animal or make cultures, being engaged in other work at the time. An- other fact which led to the supposition that this disease was different from the disease which appeared later in the other animals of this lot was told by the owner. Nos. 405 and 400 were the only pigs which had not been confined in pens, and which, therefore, may have been ex- posed to infection on the farm which did not reach the penned animals. At the time No. 406 died (February 1), the other animals appeared well. Some of these were distributed into small pens by themselves and fed different doses of cathartics. Meanwhile no other animal of this lot died until 15 days later, when 403 died. The following table gives information concerning the rest: Pigs. Date of death. He marks. No. 406 No. 403 No. 405 No. 402 No. 404 Feb.1 Feb. 16... Feb. 18... Feb. 19... Intestinal ulcers. Ventral lobes of lungs diseased ; croupous inflammation of large intestine. Extensive pneumonia and pleuritis ; croupous inflammation of large intestine. Slight pneumonia; croupous inflammation of large intestine. Not affected. As regards the bacteriological examination the following may be said: No. 406. None made because disease supposed to be bog cholera. No. 403. Noue made for same reason. No. 405. Swine-plague bacteria found in lungs; other organs not examined. No. 402. Bouillon cultures made from pleural shreds, spleen, liver, and blood. Gelatine cultures made from blood and liver. Nearly all the cultures from No. 402 contained a large spore-bearing bacillus which I have frequently found since then in cases of swine dis- ease having hemorrhagic lesions. Cultures from the liver and blood contained also swine-plague bacteria which were isolated by rabbit inoculation. It will be noticed that in the later cases. Nos. 403, 405, and 402, the large intestine was the seat of a peculiarly intense inflammation, ac- companied by the exudation of circumscribed masses of fibrin easily lifted away from the mucosa, leaving a paler, slightly depressed spot showing no necrosis of tissue. In the rectum this exudate formed a continuous sheet also easily removable. It might be claimed that the feeding of a dose of aloes or salts may have caused this peculiar intestinal inflammation. This claim, however, is effectually disposed of by case No. 407. This animal, one of the same herd, had not been taken from the neighboring farm. It was found dead February 22, and brought to the Station for examination. The notes of this case are reproduced because it must be considered the most trustworthy of all. No. 407. Pig of medium size, white ; skin of abdomen, chest, neck, and back deeply reddened. Fat abundant, slightly reddened along the liuea alba. Superficial inguinal glands slightly enlarged ; spleen dotted with elevated blood-red points.* * These points are found in spleens of healthy swine.