An Address on THE ACUTE ABDOMEN

Managing the Animal with an Acute Abdomen

Peritonitis is inflammation of the peritoneal cavity. It may be primary (e.g., hematogenous infection of the peritoneum as in feline infectious peritonitis) or secondary (i.e., resulting from chemical or septic contamination of the peritoneal cavity) and may be generalized (i.e., diffuse) or localized (i.e., only a small portion of the abdomen is involved). Chemical peritonitis is caused by the...

The Acute Abdomen

[Acute abdomen].

The Acute Abdomen.

The Acute Abdomen*

“For the abdominal surgeon it is a familiar experience to sit, ready scrubbed and gowned, in a corner of the quiet theatre, with the clock pointing midnight. ...In a few minutes the patient will be wheeled in and another emergency laparotomy will commence. This is the culmination of a process which began a few hours previously with the surgeon meeting with and examining the patient, reaching a ...