Mesothelioma in a calf.

A 5-month-old Holstein heifer was hospitalized because of progressive abdominal distention and decreased growth rate. It had continued to eat and was alert until 5 days before hospitalization. High BUN and serum aspartate transaminase values, hypoproteinemia, and a stress leukogram were ascertained from clinicopathologic evaluation. Oral electrolyte therapy was begun, but the calf died. Necropsy revealed multiple nodules (0.5 to 6 cm diameter) attached to the peritoneum, throughout the abdominal cavity. The histopathologic diagnosis was mesothelioma.

Acute diarrhea in horses of the Potomac River area: examination for clostridial toxins.

Fecal specimens from horses in Montgomery County, Md, and in Fairfax and Loudoun counties, Va, were examined for Clostridium perfringens type A enterotoxin and for C difficile cytotoxin (92 and 108 specimens, respectively). The toxins were found in feces from horses that had experienced an acute diarrhea syndrome and from clinically normal horses. The toxins did not appear to be primary determinants of the diarrhea syndrome, although they may have contributed to the spectrum of clinical entities observed.