Sôbre a patogenia da Grangrena gasona

Abstract

<abstract language="eng">Since von Hibler gas grangrene has been considered a local infection with systemic symptoms. When we consider some of the symptoms of gas gangrene, those of the central nervous system are in evidence beeing similar to those observed in tetanus and botulism. It is likely therefore that gas gangrene intoxication and the disease caused by it are of neurotoxic nature. With Almeida Cardoso and Araujo Costa we were able to demonstrate lesions in the central nervous system of animals wich had been intoxicated during a short period of time as well in those with intoxication of longer duration. In acute intoxication, after intracreneal inoculation, severe alterations were seen within 20 to 30 minutes in the cells of the spinal cord, specially in motor cells and also in some cells of the posterior cord and spinal bulb. The changes consisted in chromatolysis and picnosis and were more marked in animals intoxicated with Clostridium histolyticum and Cl. perfringens toxines. Myelin sheet was unchanged. in delayed intoxication with greater and repeated dosis lesions of the central nervous system (brain, protuberance, medula ablongate and medula spinal) were observed. They consisted in hyperemia, perivascular hemorrages in white and grey substances, oedema, accumulation of glia cells with enlarged and hyperchromatic nuclei, fragmentation of the myelin sheet and balooning degeneration of the described by Spielmeyer. Such changes were found in the swollen and hemorragic zones and were generally similar to those found in the acute type of Spielmeyer 9acute swelling and liquefation). Other changes found sometimes were agglutination of Nissl's bodies, sinous appearence of the dendritic endings, shruncken cells of Spielmeyer and neuronophagy around "ghost" cells. In short the changes..