“A report of feeding and injection experiments on dogs after the establishment of the Eck fistula”

Abstract

The fistulous opening between the portal vein and the inferior vena cava was made in six dogs by Dr. J. E. Sweet. Observations were made as to the behavior of the animals when fed on a diet of proteid food. One typical experiment may be summarized as follows: During eleven days on a mixed diet there were no abnormal symptoms. On the four succeeding days beef meal and milk were fed, with the result that on the fourth day pronounced ataxia, loss of sight and hearing, complete anesthesia, and catalepsy were observed, recovery occurring on the next day. After fasting for 24 hours the animal was placed on a diet of fresh lean beef. In five days a recurrence of the above symptoms was noted. The death of the animal occurred on the fifty-ninth day of the experiment, after the dog had undergone a loss of 42% of his weight. Autopsy showed a fistulous opening 2 cm. in length and no collateral circulation. In other cases the symptoms described occurred only after the addition of Liebig's extract to the meat diet.

The administration to normal dogs of sodium carbamate either by mouth or by intravenous injection, gave rise to none of the symptoms observed by Pawlow and associates.