NationalLibraryOfScotland/medical-history-of-british-india huggingface dataset:
CURATIVE TREATMENT OF SURRA IN EQUINES
97
TABLE II—contd.
Treatment by combined intravenous-intrathecal injections—contd
Serial No.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
Animal
Horse No. 63
Pony No. 85
Pony No. 77
Pony No. 78
Pony No. 86
Pony No. 84
Horse No. 45
Horse No. 70
Pony No. 76
Date of
infectives
inoculation.
14th Nov. 1925
27th Nov. 1925
27th Nov. 1925
27th Nov. 1925
27th Nov. 1925
27th Nov. 1925
5th Oct. 1925 .
4th Sept. 1925
27th May 1925
Dose of "Bayer 205" in grammes
per 1,000 lb. body-weight
Intravenous
5.0 Nov. 24th
5.0 Dec. 5th
5.0 Jan. 4th
2.5 Dec. 5th
2.5 Jan. 4th
Treated as
Ditto.
5.0 Dec. 5th
5.0 Jan. 4th
5.0 Nov. 7th
5.0 Sept. 23rd
5.0 Oct. 23rd
2.5 Dec. 5th
2.5 Jan. 4th
5.0 Mar. 4th
5.0 July 31st
Intrathecal
0.02 Nov. 24th
0.02 Dec. 5th
0.03 Jan. 4th
0.02 Dec. 5th
0.02 Dec. 21st
0.02 Jan. 4th
above
0.02 Dec. 5th
0.02 Dec. 21st
0.02 Jan. 4th
0.02 Nov. 7th
0.02 Sept. 23Td
0.02 Oct. 23rd
0.02 Mar. 4th
0.02 July 30th
Result
Died 14th April
1926 with severe
symptoms of colic
but evidently cied
of
reinfection
with surra.
Died 21st January
1926 of pleuro-
pneumonia.
Cured
Cured
Cured
Cured
Died 12th Novem-
ber 1925 evidently
of surra.
Died 2nd Novem-
ber 1925 evidently
of causes other
than surra.
Died 12th August
1926 evidently of
surra.
Remarks
Relapsed 11th April 1926 with
tryps. in circulating blood up
to 13th April but absent on day
of death. Spinal fluid not
examined.
Infected intrathecally. No para-
sites in blood between drug
injections. Spinal fluid not
examined.
Infected intrathecally.
Never
relapsed during treatment.
Ditto
ditto.
Ditto
ditto.
Ditto
ditto.
Tryps. in spinal fluid as also in
circulation on 7th November
1925. After this date spinal
fluid not examined and tryps.
absent in circulation.
Tryparsamide used for intra-
thecal injection. Tryps. absent
in both spinal fluid and general
circulation since the date of
first injection of the drug.
Relapsed 15th February 1926 and
on 27th April 1926. Centrifuged
cerebrospinal
fluid
showed
tryps. 5 per field on 30th July
1926. The animal had been
infected intrathecally.
An examination of the foregoing Table shows that of the 19 animals treated by
the combined method, 3 died of surra and 2 others died of causes other than surra,
so that, leaving the latter two cases out of consideration, the percentage of recover-
ies amounted to 82.4 (14 out of 17) or, more precisely, 88.2 (15 out of 17), if Horse
No. 63 is regarded as a case of re-infection and not one of relapse. Nine animals
received only single (combined) injections of the drug, and of these, only one
(Horse No. 45) failed to be cured of surra, death in this case having been evidently
due to the invasion of the cerebrospinal system by surra parasites, although these
were not encountered in the circulating blood of the animal prior to death. The
recoveries in the case of animals treated by single injections amounted therefore
to 88.9 per cent. (8 out of 9), Horse No. 63 being regarded, as already mentioned,
98 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY [ III, I
as having died of re-infection. Ten animals received repeated injections of the
drug, and of these 2 (Mare No. 57 and Horse No. 28) relapsed shortly after receiving
the first injections, whilst in the case of 7 out of the remaining 8 animals, the
second injections were given before they had passed the full length of the period
during which relapse might have occurred. Mare No. 57, which showed the para-
sites in the blood 45 days after the first combined injection, has been regarded
here as a case of relapse, although, in reality, it might have been a case of re-
infection, in view of the fact that " from one month to two months after the last
injection one may see a relapse in the infections if the treatment has not been
completely successful" [Edwards, quoted by Williams, 1929], and again, it is stated
that '' the animal treated is resistant to re-infection for almost a month to six
weeks afterwards but subsequently may become re-infected " (Ibid). Pony
No. 76 represents a case which is somewhat different from the others in that it
originally received only intravenous injections of the drug. Nevertheless, it would
seem more appropriate to include this animal in the category of those treated by
the combined method. Mare No. 68 and Horse No. 70, although included in the
foregoing Table, received only tryparsamide for their intrathecal injection, which
drug has been found by repeated trials at Muktesar to have little effect on infec-
tions due to T. evensi, so that these two cases may be regarded as having received
only intravenous injections of " Bayer 205 ". It is of interest to note that both
of these cases were considered cured, although one eventually died of causes other
than surra.
Reference may be made here to a small trial recently carried out upon two
ponies at Muktesar to test the efficacy of the intravenous-intrathecal method of
treatment. The two ponies were of the same lot as six others treated by intrave-
nous injection alone and to which reference has been made earlier in this note (p. 90),
all the eight animals having received their infective inoculations on the same date,
that is, on 30th September 1931. Of the two ponies treated by the combined
method, one received two and the other three injections of the drug, and both
recovered from the infections, although one died, shortly after, of causes other than
surra.
During the past 5 years, the intravenous-intrathecal method of treating
equine surra has been given extensive field trials by the Army Veterinary Depart-
ment in India. The first trial was carried out at the Mona Remount Depôt in
1927, when 51 horses and 3 mules were treated by the method, and out of these,
46 horses and all the 3 mules were cured [Williams 1929]. Three further outbreaks
of the disease, all of which occurred in 1928, were dealt with by the same method
of injection and the results, as summarized by Williams (l.c.), were as follows :-
" An infantry battalion in the Malakand — 8 mules treated; all cured. In Burma¬
CURATIVE TREATMENT OF SURRA IN EQUINES
99
13 mules treated ; 10 cured, 3 developed paralysis during treatment and were
destroyed. Bombay — 1 charger cured. To sum up, the total number of animals
in the four outbreaks mentioned above was 76, out of which 68 (or 89.5 per cent.)
were cured, and, according to the Administration Report of the Army Veterinary
Services in India for 1928-29 (p. 7), none of the animals declared as cured in the
Mona outbreak relapsed during a post-treatment observation period of about one
year. In the same Report, mention is made of 45 further cases of equine surra,
and of these, " 18 were destroyed as the condition of the animals did not warrant
treatment, one died under treatment and 26 [96.3 per cent.] were cured". In the
Report for 1929-30 (p. 8), mention is made of 40 cases of equine surra — " 39 in
the Burma Independent District amongst mules and 1 amongst horses in Southern
Command". Of these " 31 were treated with Naganol by the combined method",
and out of these ''24 [77.4 per cent.] were cured, 5 died and 2 were destroyed. In
the remaining 9 cases, the condition and age of the animals were such that treat-
ment was not warranted".
The recent Reports of the Civil Veterinary Department of Bihar and Orissa
mention occasional cases of equine surra having been treated with Naganol in that
province, and, so far as can be gathered, the combined method of injection was
adopted in all the cases treated. The following extracts are of interest as being
illustrative of the extent to which drug intervention is likely to prove useful under
the ordinary field conditions in India :—
Report for 1927-28.—8 cases of surra were reported. Out of these, 5 died,
1 was destroyed and 2 were cured with Naganol.
Report for 1928-29.—5 cases were reported. Of these, 3 died and 2 were cured.
"The Mounted Military Police horses, while on their way back from Jamshedpur,
were successfully treated by Naganol injection."
Report for 1929-30.—Four cases of surra were reported. I died before treatment
and the others were cured with Naganol.
Report for 1930-31.—Seven cases of surra were reported. Four died before treat-
ment ; one—an advanced case—died soon after treatment, and the remaining 2 were
cured with Naganol.
IV.—THE RELATIVE EFFICACY OF THE INTRAVENOUS AND THE INTRAVENOUS-
INTRATHECAL METHOD OF TREATMENT.
From what has been stated in the foregoing sections, there would appear to be
on record hardly any comparable figures to allow of any definite conclusions being
drawn as to the relative advantages of the intravenous and the intravenous-intra¬
thecal method of using " Bayer 205 " in the treatment of natural cases of equine
H
100 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY [III, I
surra, and the immediate desideratum in this connection is the publication, by field
veterinary workers in India, of precise statistical data bearing on this question.
If, however, as is believed to have been the case, all of the 354 ponies that are
reported to have been cured in the Punjab (ante) were treated with " Bayer 205 "
administered intravenously alone, then these results compare favourably with those
obtained by the Army Veterinary authorities in India from the adoption of the
combined method of injection, for, whilst in the latter case the percentage of
recoveries varied from 77.4 to 96.3, the recoveries in the Punjab cases amounted to
91.4 per cent., whilst, according to the figures kindly supplied by the Director of
Veterinary Services, Punjab, the percentage of cures obtained in that province
from the use of this drug during the past 6 years was 87 (3,534 out of
4,055; ante).
Coming to the question of the treatment of artificial cases of surra, one notices
that out of 10 animals (inclusive of Mare No. 68 and Horse No. 70 injected intra¬
thecally with tryparsamide but exclusive of Horse No. 19 and Pony No. 74) treated
during 1925-26, at Muktesar, by the simple intravenous injection of " Bayer 205 "
at the rate of 5 grammes per 1,000 lb. body-weight (Tables I and II), 9 (or 90
per cent.) were considered definitely cured of the disease, whilst, in the case of
animals treated by the combined method, the recoveries amounted to 88.2 per cent.
Judged by these results, there would seem little to choose between the two methods
and, in addition, the results of the recent trials carried out upon 8 experimental cases
of surra, at Muktesar (pp. 90 and 98) would appear to point to the conclusion that
the intravenous method alone is capable of yielding equally good results as those
obtained by the combined method, for recoveries were obtained in all of the 6
horses treated by the " intravenous alone " method, as also in the two others
treated by the combined method.
To sum up, while the introduction of the intravenous-intrathecal method has
registered a definite advance in the treatment of equine surra as being,
well calculated to prevent the occurrence of relapses, the method represents, in
reality, an extension rather than a supersedence of the simple intravenous form of
treatment, in that the combined method is indicated only in actual cases of cere-
brospinal involvement, as determined by the presence of parasites in the spinal
fluid, or " when outwardly visible symtoms of typical surra are quite manifest; "
in other cases, " complete cure can often be obtained by administering the intraven-
ous injection of the treatment alone, but successful treatment in such event is
achieved in very early cases of infection " [Edwards ; quoted by Williams, 1929].
Even as a method designed to prevent relapses, the success of the combined form
of treatment will depend upon the extent to which it would be legitimate to accept
the view that it is only the cerebrospinal region from where relapse strains originate,
CURATIVE TREATMENT OF SURRA IN EQUINES
101
for Yorke [1921] would seem inclined to regard it as probable that the general
circulation in subjects apparently cured of trypanosomiasis may later be re-invaded
by strains originating not only from the cerebrospinal system but also from the
tissue spaces and circulation back washes. However, in the absence of definite
experimental evidence in support of Yorke's statement, it does not seem necessary
to depart from the conventional practice of regarding the spinal canal as the only
seat of origin of relapse strains.
The main problem that requires elucidation at the present moment relates,
therefore, not to the genesis of relapse strains but to whether " Bayer 205 " does not
possess the requisite degree of " penetrability ", so as to be capable of finding its
way into the spinal canal even when the drug is introduced intravenously alone into
the general circulation. Edwards [1928] has already obtained results pointing to
the conclusion that " Bayer 205 " is endowed with such properties (ante), whilst the
experience of later workers has also shown that in the treatment of clinical cases
of equine surra, a single intravenous injection of " Bayer 205 ", at the rate of
5 to 8 grms. per 1,000 lb. body-weight, is usually capable of effecting a cure
under field conditions in India and in a great majority of such " cured " cases, no
relapse has been found to occur during a post-treatment observation period extend-
ing over a year or more. If these findings are confirmed by future experience,
then the problem of controlling surra will have been solved in a manner consistent
with, the requirements of field workers in India, for in that event the treatment
will involve neither the technicalities of the intrathecal puncture nor the multipli-
city of injections entailed by the combined method.
REFERENCES.
Abdulla Khan (1932). A Brief Note on Surra, Its Diagnosis and Treatment. Punj. Vet. Journ.,
February, pp. 1-8.
Baermann (1922). Die Behandlung der Surra mit "Bayer 205 ". Beihefte z. Arch. f. Schiffs-u.
Trop.-Hyg.,26, 73-123. [Abstr. in Trop. Vet. Bull., 11, 2-3; 1923.]
(1923). Die Behandlung der Surra mit " Bayer 205." II Mitteilung. Arch. f. Schiffs-v
Trop.-Hyg., 27, 210-217. [Abstr. in Trop. Vet., Bull., 12, 5-6 ; 1924.]
Bakker (1925). Notes on Surra in Padang Sidempoean. Ned.-Ind. Bladen v. Diergeneesk. en.
Dierendeelt, 37, 153-177. [Abstr. in Trop. Vet. Bull., 13, 76-78; 1925.]
Bubberman (1931). Bekämpfung von Trypanosomiasen in Nederländish-Indien. 11th Internat.
Vet. Cong. London, 3, 600-613.
Bubberman, Douwes & Van Bergen (1925). The Use of " Bayer 205 " in Equine Surra in the
Dutch East Indies Veeartsenijkundige.
Mededeeling, No. 50. Dept. v. Landbouw,
Nijverheid en Handel, Buitenzorg. 64 pp. [Abstr. in Trop. Vet. Bull., 13, 73-76 ; 1925.]
Edwards (1928). The Chemotherapy of Surra (Trypanosoma evansi infections) of Horses and
Cattle in India. Mem. Dept. Agric. India, Vet. Ser., 4, 1-100.
II 2
102 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY [ III, I
Hornby (1931). Control of Animal Trypanosomiasis. 11th Internat. Vet. Cong. London, 3,
614-631.
Howard (1926). A Note on Treatment of Equine Trypanosomiasis (Surra) in the Field in India.
Vet. Journ., 82, 105-110.
Kahan Singh (1927). Annual Report of Camel Specialist, Sohawa, for the year 1925-26, pp. 3-8.
Kahan Singh (1928). Report on the Work performed by the Officer in Charge of the Camel
Specialist's Office, Sohawa, for the year 1926-27. Dept. Agric. Punj. Vet. Bull. No. 18,
pp. 7-21.
Rodenwaldt & Douwes (1922). Employment of "Bayer 205" for the Treatment of Surra in
Horses in the Dutch East Indies. Ned.-Ind. Bladen v. Diergeneesk en Dierenteelt, 33,
1-79. [Abstr. in Trop. Vet. Bull., 11, 45-50 ; 1923.]
Williams (1929). The Treatment of Surra (Trypanosomiasis) of Equines in India by Intravenous-
Intrathecal Injections of Bayer 205. Journ. Roy. Army Vet. Corps., 1, 37-42.
Yakimoff, Amanschuloff, Arbusoff, and Schurawleff (1929). Die Pferdetrypanosomose in Russland.
Dent. Tierärzt. Woch., 37, 293-295.
Yorke (1921). Recent Work on the Treatment of Sleeping Sickness: A Critical Review. Trop.
Dis. Bull., 18,155.
PLATE X.
Ventral view of Gastrodiscus secundus from an Indian elephant × 10.
THE TREMATODE PARASITES OF THE INDIAN ELEPHANT,
ELEPHAS INDICUS*
BY
G. D. BHALERAO, M.Sc.,
Heminthologist, Imperial Institute of Veterinary Research, Muktesar.
(Received for Publication on 21st March 1932.)
(With Plate X.)
CONTENTS.
1. FASCIOLA JACKSONI
....
2. PSEUDODISCUS
COLLINSI
3. PSEUDODISCUS IIAWKESI
4. PFENDERIUS PAPILLATUS..........
5. GASTRODISCUS SECUNDUS..........
PAGE
103
105
108
111
112
Through the courtesy of Mr. F. Ware, Director, Imperial Institute of Veteri-
nary Research, Mutesar, an opportunity was afforded recently to study some in-
teresting parasites from the Indian elephant. It is my pleasant duty to acknowledge
my indebtedness to Mr. F. Ware for placing at my disposal most willingly all his
collection of parasites from the Indian elephant, as well as a series of sections of
Pseudodiscus collinsi and P. hawkesi. I am also indebted to Mr. H. Cooper for a
collection from Assam and to Dr. Gupta of Toungoo, for a collection from an
elephant in Burma.
Fasciola jacksoni (Cobbold, 1869).
Synonymy.—Cladocælium elephantis Diesing, 1858.
Distomum elephantis Diesing, 1858.
Distomum jacksoni Braun, 1892.
Distomum jacksonii Braun, 1892.
Fasciolopsis jacksoni Looss, 1899.
The material available for study consists of about half a dozen specimens
collected at Toungoo, Burma, and about a dozen from Assam.
Cobbold [1869] recorded the occurrence of this parasite from an Indian
elephant. Many writers have since then observed the presence of this parasite in
an elephant both in Burma and India, the references to whom are given in the
subsequent part of this paper. Cobbold originally placed this parasite among the
species of the genus Fasciola, but Looss [1899] proposed to place it among the
members of the genus Fasciolopsis. This confusion in regard to the generic identity
* Paper road before the Medical and Veterinary Section of the Indian Science Congress, Bangalore,
1932. (In part.)
( 103 )
104 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY [ III, I
of the parasite is due to the lack of the proper anatomical details being available
even up to the present day. Cobbold's original description was too brief and his
figure shows only the alimentary system completely. Evans and Rennie [1909]
have published slightly better figures and have given a little more detailed account
of the parasite, but these authors too are silent upon certain anatomical details of
the parasite which are of importance from the taxonomic standpoint in this group
of animals. The present opportunity is therefore taken to fill up the missing gaps
in the description of the parasite, which might facilitate the task of a systematist.
The worms are pinkish in colour, but appear to be of olive green colour when
filled with bile. When flattened some worms appear to be perfectly round, while
others present a somewhat pear-shaped appearance. In the majority of specimens
there is a tendency for the anterior and posterior ends to curl down ventrally.
In some cases the cephalic end is distinctly set off from the rest of the body and
in such cases the shoulders are very well defined. In others which have a pear-
shaped body the cephalic end cannot be so well distinguished from the rest of the
body and consequently the shoulders appear to be either indistinct or absent.
This indistinct nature of the shoulders or their complete absence in some cases
together with the shape of the ventral sucker and the ignorance regarding the pre-
sence or absence of the receptaculum seminis may have led some observers to
regard it as a member of the genus Fasciolopsis.
The worms measure 12—14* in length and 9—12.5 in breadth. Their thick-
ness in the preserved material is about 1.5—2 in the centre of the body. The whole
body is covered with a thick cuticle beset with close-set alternately transverse
rows of spines. These measure 0.042—0.055 in length and 0.009—0.017 in thick-
ness. They do not present a specially stouter appearance on the dorsal side than
those on the ventral one, as remarked by some authors, nor is this variation in
size noticeable between those at the anterior end and those at the posterior one.
The mouth is situated at the anterior end and is 0.3 wide. It is surrounded
by an oral sucker which is elliptical in shape and measures 0.52—0.64 × 0.33—0.43.
The pharynx is large, situated behind the oral sucker and measures 0.38 — 0.52 ×
0.22 — 0.38. The œsophagus is very short. The intestine is branched both in-
ternally and externally, but the branches on the outer side are more profuse than
those on the inner one.
The ventral sucker is 1.18 — 1.41 × 0.97 —1.07. Its cavity is somewhat
triangular and in some cases a notch is seen posteriorly. The genital pore is si-
tuated at about 2.5 from the anterior end.
* All measurements in millimeters.
TREMATODE PARASITES OF INDIAN ELEPHANT
105
The testes lie centrally in the body, one behind the other. They are very
extensive and occupy nearly half the area of the body. The cirrus sac is pyri¬
form and is situated anteriorly to the ventral sucker. It measures 0.73 × 0.56.
The cirrus is a very long structure and may be coiled in the cirrus sac or may
protrude considerably out of it.
The ovary is a branched structure, lying on the right side of the central line,
immediately anterior to the testes. It measures 1.37 × 1.28. The shell gland
lies centrally, anterior to the testes and measures 1 × 0.74. The receptaculum
seminis is absent. Laurer's canal commences from the oviduct and opens to the
exterior on the dorsal side of the shell-gland. The vitellaria are very extensive,
and, as remarked by Evans and Rennie, occupy nearly two-thirds of the body.
The vitelline follicles are small and are situated in the meshes of the intestinal
branches. The number of acini in each follicle vary from two to four. Trans-
verse vitelline ducts pass at the level of the posterior third of the shell-gland and
form a vitelline receptacle or yolk sac in the centre, measuring 0.14 × 0.1. The
uterine coils lie between the shell-gland and the ventral sucker. The eggs are
operculated and measure 0.110 — 0.120 × 0.05 — 0.662.
Location.—Bile-ducts, duodenum.
Locality.—India : Neumann, 1905, 463.
Burma: Bhalerao, 1926, 192, 194.
Cobbold, 1869, 48 ; 1875, 1.
Chopra & Chandler, 1928, 38.
Evans & Rennie, 1909, 135.
Evans, 1910, 268.
Gaiger, 1910, 69 ; 1915, 71.
Neumann, 1905, 463.
Stossich, 1892, 9.
Railliet, 1924, 591.
Kapurthala State : Singh, 1924, 35.
Assam.
Madras : Cobbold, 1875, 1.
Pseudodiscus Collinsi (Cobbold, 1875.
Synonymy :—Amphistoma collinsi Sonsino, 1895.
Amphistoma collinsii Cobbold, 1875.
Amphistoma collinsii var. stanleyi Cobbold, 1879.
Amphistoma stanleyi Ward, 1895.
Amphistoma stanleyii Cobbold, 1875.
Pseudodiscus stanleyi Stiles & Goldberger, 1910.