G. R. VISWANATHAN
241
TABLE I
The fluorine content of water samples
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
1
2
3
4
1
2
1
Taluks
Koilkuntla
Sirvel .
Cumbum
Markapur
Dhone .
Kurnool .
Nandyal .
Podili .
Dersi .
Kanigiri .
Gudur .
Anantapur
Kalyandrug
Vinukonda
Total .
Flouride content in sample
Nil or
trace
Under
1 p.p.m.
1 to 3
p.p.m.
Over 3
p.p.m.
I. Kurnool District
6
. .
. .
1
. .
. .
. .
23
10
7
2
1
8
2
25
8
7
4
1
1
. .
1
1
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
II. Nellore District
. .
. .
. .
. .
2
1
. .
. .
12
8
1
1
3
7
. .
. .
III. Anantapur District
. .
1
1
1
1
. .
. .
. .
IV Guntur District
. .
8
1
59
1
70
. .
12
Total
55
19
14
7
2
9
2
17
16
1
1
2 2
2
149
The table shows that nearly 58 per cent of
the affected villages contain one to three parts
or more of fluorine per million. In one village
of Nellore district the stream water was found
to contain 13.85 p. p. m. of fluorine. The analysis
of water from certain 'curative' villages has
revealed a flourine content less than 0.5 p. p. m.
Increased diuresis and pronounced pathologi-
cal changes in kidney suggested that the high
concentration of fluorine ingested with water
had some deliterious effect on this organ when
passed through urine, but twelve samples of
urine sent for the detection of fluorine at the
Imperial Veterinary Research Institute, Izat-
nagar, revealed nothing of significance. Samples
of teeth from the affected animals were analysed
at this Institute with the results quoted below.
The material forwarded by you has been anlysed for
their fluorine content which appears to be somwhat
higher than that in normal calves as reported by some
Western workers
Field investigations reveal that there might
be several factors, all exercising their effects on
the etiology, occurrence and the progress of the
disease. The endemic areas are known to be
related to certain type of rock formation im-
parting to the soil, water and the herbage a
higher concentration of fluorine and a state of
unbalance with regard to Ca and P. When the
affected animals are removed to certain "cura-
tive'' villages where these soil and herbage
abnormalities do not exist, they develop freedom
from the disease.
Although it is not unlikely that the animals
in these localities suffer from a mild form of
hypophospherosis, certain epizootological factors
suggest that the condition described in this
paper may be looked upon as fluorine intoxica-
tion. These are (1) spontaneous cure of clinical
cases when removed to certain "curative"
villages, where the soil, herbage and water con-
tains a normal amount of fluorine, (2) the pre-
sence of mottling and brown pigmentation toge-
ther with the chipping tendency of enamel of
teeth. This feature is characteristic of human
fluorosis, (3) in cattle enzootic areas of this
disease in the Presidency human beings are also
known to suffer from skeletal and dental
abnormalities as described by Shrott et al
[1937].
TREATMENT
So far any form of treatment has not been
found effective in advanced cases of the disease
although cases in early stage are amenable to
treatment. Mention has already been made of
certain "curative" villages where the general
practices are paddy cultivation, irrigation from
tanks and less ground-nut cultivation. Animals,
when taken to these villages during early stage
of the disease, show gradual improvement with-
out any treatment.
This is attributed to a
change over from a brackish water to rain or
soft water of these villages.
(a) Curative. During the year 1934-35,
Mahajan, in Hyderabad, treated some cases with
sterilized bone meals and reports encouraging
results as no further cases occurred when he
visited the same tract again after five months.
He advocated this treatment both as curative
and preventive. In this Presidency, bone-meal
was first tried in Joladarsi village of Koilkuntla
Taluk in Kurnool district in the year 1934-35.
The affected animals were given each one ounce
of bone-meal per day for six months and com-
plete recovery was observed in two animals thus
treated. On another occasion, seven animals in
Cuddapah and thirteen in Kurnool district were
treated with bone-meal given in doses of two
ounces daily to each animal. As a result of this
treatment in about two months from the admi-
nistration of bone-meal, the animals in the early
stage of the disease showed rapid improvement.
In well-advanced cases with marked anatomical