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The facial expression of an animal suffering the throes of tetanus, azoturia, or acute synovitis, is readily recognized by the experienced eye, and upon physiognomy alone, in many instances, may the opinions regarding prognosis be based. Particularly is this true where death is a matter of minutes, or at most is only a few hours distant.

The destruction of cartilage may be secondary to disease of the synovial membrane or of the subjacent bone. When the disease begins as a synovitis, the synovial membrane spreads over the articular surface, fuses with the cartilage and eats into it, causing defects or holes which are spoken of as ulcers.

A number of cases have been recorded in which arthritis deformans has followed upon antecedent disease of the joint, such as pyogenic or gonorrhœal synovitis, upon repeated hæmorrhages into the knee-joint in bleeders, and in unreduced dislocations in which a new joint has been established.

Open navicular joint does not occur, as a rule, except by way of the solar surface of the foot, and the introduction of active and virulent contagium is certain to happen; consequently, an acute synovitis quickly resulting in an intensely septic and progressively destructive arthritis soon follows in perforation of the capsule of the distal interphalangeal articulation. Etiology and Occurrence.

In the secondary stage, a synovitis with serous effusion is not uncommon, and may affect several joints. Syphilitic hydrops is met with almost exclusively in the knee; it is frequently bilateral, and is insidious in its onset and progress, the patient usually being able to go about.

Its consideration properly belongs to discussions on practice or obstetrics and diseases of the new born, and it has received careful attention and is discussed at length in these works. A second form of metastatic arthritis is met with in strangles. Strangles occurs in the young principally and is not a frequent cause of synovitis or arthritis in the adult animal.

It usually subsides in two or three weeks under rest, but tends to relapse. An acute synovitis with peri-articular phlegmon is most often met with in the elbow, but it occurs also in the knee and ankle. There is a sudden onset of severe pain and swelling in and around the joint, with considerable fever and disturbance of health.

Excepting in cases of acute inflammation attending synovitis of these parts, no lameness marks its existence and in chronic cases of synovial distension the service of affected animals is not interfered with. These distensions constitute unsightly blemishes and they are treated chiefly for this reason.

Reference is here made to the chronic inflammations of the synovial membrane of joints, of tendon sheaths and of bursæ chronic synovitis, teno-synovitis and bursitis; of the fibrous tissues of joints chronic forms of arthritis; of the blood vessels chronic forms of endarteritis and of phlebitis and of the peripheral nerves neuritis.

There occurs the usual facial manifestations of pain the tense condition of the facial muscles and the fixed eye and nostril are in evidence. In cases where there exists a synovitis or where a very limited portion of the articulation is involved, a somewhat different clinical picture is presented.