Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Textbook Bistatic Sar System and Signal Processing Technology 1St Edition Robert Wang Ebook All Chapter PDF
Textbook Bistatic Sar System and Signal Processing Technology 1St Edition Robert Wang Ebook All Chapter PDF
https://textbookfull.com/product/sweet-potato-processing-
technology-1st-edition-cheng-wang/
https://textbookfull.com/product/peanuts-processing-technology-
and-product-development-1st-edition-qiang-wang/
https://textbookfull.com/product/bioactive-factors-and-
processing-technology-for-cereal-foods-jing-wang/
https://textbookfull.com/product/fundamentals-of-signal-
enhancement-and-array-signal-processing-1st-edition-jacob-
benesty/
https://textbookfull.com/product/signal-processing-for-
neuroscientists-drongelen/
https://textbookfull.com/product/photonic-signal-processing-
second-edition-binh/
https://textbookfull.com/product/random-signal-processing-1st-
edition-shaila-dinkar-apte/
Robert Wang
Yunkai Deng
Bistatic
SAR System
and Signal
Processing
Technology
Bistatic SAR System and Signal Processing
Technology
Robert Wang Yunkai Deng
•
123
Robert Wang Yunkai Deng
Department of Space Microwave Remote Department of Space Microwave Remote
Sensing System, Institute of Electronics Sensing System, Institute of Electronics
Chinese Academy of Sciences Chinese Academy of Sciences
Beijing Beijing
China China
The development of bistatic synthetic aperture radar (SAR) can date back to the
earliest days of radar. After the invention and demonstration of the monostatic radar
principle in the late 1930s, bistatic SAR entered into the silent phase despite of
multiple recovery during last decades. Only in recent ten years, bistatic SAR
received increasing interest and a number of spaceborne bistatic and multistatic
radar missions have been suggested, some of which are now under development or
in planning, the most successful representative is the bistatic TerraSAR-X tandem.
The space distribution between the transmitter and receiver improves the
capability, reliability, and flexibility of the SAR system, which in turn makes it a
promising and useful supplement to a classical monostatic SAR system. Many
advantages in bistatic SAR beyond our imagination have been investigated,
including frequent monitoring, resolution enhancement, reduced vulnerability for
military applications, reduced costs using existing illuminators of opportunity with
several receive-only systems, and also the possibility of forward-looking or
backward-looking SAR imaging, global high precise digital elevation model
(DEM) measurement and urban infrastructure monitoring. To exploit these
advantages, many engineers and scientists have devoted themselves to the devel-
opment of bistatic SAR system designing, signal processing, and elaborate post
processing.
This book reviews the development of bistatic SAR and strives to make a
comprehensive framework of it and devoted to presenting the typical processing
algorithms for the bistatic SAR signal. This presentation proceeds from a systematic
and unitary point of view, starting from fundamental principles, and deriving
variant processing algorithms in the bistatic SAR operational modes.
This book is organized into eight chapters. Chapter 1 focuses on the funda-
mentals of the bistatic AR system, including the development history, the bistatic
SAR imaging geometry, and the signal model with the two-dimensional resolution.
At last, bistatic radar equation and bistatic RCS are illustrated. This chapter is
preliminary to the following deeper analysis and provides the readers with an
overview of features, capabilities, and limitations of the SAR system. Chapter 2
presents three kinds of two-dimensional bistatic point target reference spectrum,
v
vi Preface
including Loffeld Bistatic Fomular, the method of series reversion, the extended
Loffeld Bistatic Fomular, and the bistatic spectrum based on the two-dimensional
principle of stationary phase. Chapter 3 focuses on the azimuth-variant bistatic SAR
signal processing, while Chap. 4 presents the frequency domain imaging algorithm
for the azimuth-invariant configuration. Chapter 5 describes a unique hybrid bistatic
SAR configuration, the one-stationary bistatic SAR mode. The fast back-projection
algorithm, the modified azimuth-nonlinear chirp scaling algorithm, and the polar
format algorithm are derived and demonstrated in detail. Synchronization is a
challenging task for the bistatic SAR system to implement. In Chap. 6, the beam
synchronization, time synchronization, and phase synchronization schemes are
presented and analyzed. In Chap. 8, a bistatic interferometry SAR mission example
is given. The system design and interferometric performance analysis of a twin
L-band satellite configuration are represented in detail. At last of Chap. 7, the
multistatic multibaseline interometric experiment (MC-InSAR) is presented,
including the imaging geometry, system configuration, and baseline design, the
interferogram.
This book can be useful to scientists and engineers working in the bistatic SAR
signal processing field, and more generally to all the remote-sensing community.
I hope that the readers could appreciate this book and give their constructive
criticisms to this book.
We are indebted to many our colleagues and friends, not only for strong reviews of
various chapter of this book, but also principally for contributions for technical
environment and achievements.
We are certainly grateful to Prof. Otmar Loffeld, Prof. Joachim H.G. Ender,
Dr. Holger, Dr. Ingo Walterscheid, Mr. Thomas Espeter, and Dr. Jens Klare.
Robert Wang is certainly indebted to Prof. Yunkai Deng and Prof. Zhimin
Zhang who have supervised him in the area of spaceborne SAR Imaging, and
certainly indebted to Prof. Otmar Loffeld and Prof. Joachim H.G. Ender who bring
him an invaluable chance to work in the corresponding topic in this book. We also
would like to thank Dr. Yew Lam Neo very much for giving us very helpful
suggestions to improve the book.
We give special recognition to Heng Zhang, Yue Liu, and Lixin Wu who
participated in the early organizational stages of this book. A number of graduate
students in the Department of Space Microwave Remote Sensing System at IECAS,
including Yunfeng Shao, Huifang Zheng, and Ning Li, Guodong Jin, Chuang Li,
helped by making available illustrated material.
Finally, special thanks go to our families for their support, patience, and toler-
ance of our intense, irregular working schedules.
vii
Contents
ix
x Contents
This section contains a list of the major symbols used in Chaps. 1–8.
c Speed of light, meters per second
f0 Carrier frequency, hertz
BS Bandwidth of the system, hertz
k Wavelength corresponding to the carrier frequency, meters
t Range time, seconds
s Azimuth (slow) time, seconds
s0R Zeros Doppler instant time corresponding to receiver, seconds
s0T Zeros Doppler instant time corresponding to transmitter, seconds
RR ðsÞ Slant range corresponding to receiver in time domain, meters
RT ðsÞ Slant range corresponding to transmitter in time domain, meters
Rb ðsÞ Slant range for bistatic configuration in time domain, meters
R0R Slant range of closest approach to receiver, meters
R0T Slant range of closest approach to transmitter, meters
vR Platform velocity of receiver along flight path, meters per seconds
vT Platform velocity of transmitter along flight path, meters per seconds
qr Ground range resolution, meters
qa Azimuth resolution, meters
f Range frequency, hertz
fs Azimuth frequency, hertz
fss Azimuth frequency shift, hertz
scb Composite beam center crossing time, seconds
Ta Synthetic aperture time, seconds
hSR Squint angle of receiver at the composite beam center crossing time,
radians
hST Squint angle of transmitter at the composite beam center crossing
time, radians
Dfdop Doppler bandwidth, hertz
r RCS of target
wðsÞ Antenna beam pattern in azimuth direction
xiii
xiv Symbols
Abstract Bistatic SAR (BiSAR) has been developing for 40 years, and it is still a
topic of much discussion in the field of radar. BiSAR is a SAR system whose
transmitter and receiver are spatially separated. This separation improves the sys-
tem’s capability, reliability and flexibility, making it a promising and useful sup-
plement to a classical monostatic SAR system. BiSAR draws researchers’ attention
due to its unique advantages over the traditional monostatic SAR, including frequent
monitoring, resolution enhancement, reduced vulnerability for military applications,
reduced costs using existing illuminators of opportunity with several receive-only
systems, and also the possibility of forward- or backward-looking SAR imaging.
Bistatic SAR is receiving more and more attention due to these advantages. This
chapter focuses on the fundamentals of the BiSAR system. We first review the
history of BiSAR, including the important BiSAR mission ever taken with their
interesting results. We then present bistatic SAR imaging geometry and the signal
model. We derive and explain the two-dimensional resolution. Finally, we illustrate
the bistatic radar equation and bistatic radar cross section (RCS).
Monostatic SAR was well developed by the 1990s. Attention then returned to
bistatic SAR due to its unique advantages over monostatic SAR.
Consequently, research on bistatic SAR boomed at the dawn of the 21st century,
with the rapid development of timing precision, communication technique and
navigation technique. In 2002, articles on bistatic SAR started to appear at the
International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS), and the
symposium has included a topic area on it every year since. The same has occurred
at the European Conference on Synthetic Aperture Radar (EUSAR) since 2004.
Moreover, a variety of articles on bistatic SAR were published in many types of
journals, and a number of experiments on bistatic SAR were performed. Research
on bistatic SAR is in its spring.
Several famous bistatic SAR systems have since been designed. These are
described below.
(1) ESR/ADAS
G. Yates et al. first performed an airborne bistatic SAR experiment in the UK in
September 2002. The experimental system was funded by the Ministry of Defence
(MOD) Corporate Research Programme and designed by QinetiQ Malvern. In the
experiment, they used an enhanced surveillance radar (ESR) mounted on a
BAC1-11 airplane as the transmitter/receiver, and an airborne data acquisition
system (ADAS) mounted on a helicopter as the receiver [2]. These two radars were
about 2 km apart; both worked in the X band with the same center frequency and
bandwidth. The system worked in the spotlight mode. Figure 1.1 shows the
schematic of the ESR/ADAS system.
The main purpose of this experiment was to study the effects introduced by the
changing bistatic angle, incidence angle and velocity of the platform on the bistatic
SAR image. The data from the different imaging geometries were recorded.
Figure 1.2 displays part of a focused image obtained by the ESR/ADAS system.
Based on these data, bistatic SAR images at different bistatic angles were obtained
to demonstrate the feasibility of the high-resolution bistatic SAR system and
analyze the characteristics of the bistatic SAR image.
(2) E-SAR/RAMSES
In March 2003, the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) in
Germany and the National Office for Aerospace Studies and Research (ONERA) in
France cooperated to perform an airborne bistatic SAR experiment in Nimes, a city
in the south of France [3–5]. In this experiment, the researchers intended to test the
performance of the spaceborne bistatic SAR system, namely the famous
TerraSAR-X, and find solutions for serious design problems in bistatic SAR sys-
tems, such as the synchronization problem.
The radars used in this experiment were the E-SAR system produced by DLR
and the RAMSES system designed by ONERA. The E-SAR was mounted on a
Dornier DO228 airplane and the RAMSES was mounted on a Transall C160. These
two radar systems both worked in the X band with center frequency 140 MHz
apart. Each platform was equipped with a GPS and an INS to record parameters
during the flight and implement synchronization and motion compensation.
The schematic of the E-SAR/RAMSES system is shown in Fig. 1.3c. The details of
the two imaging geometries in this experiment are as follows.
ONERA imaging geometry: The two planes flew in parallel in the cross-track
direction for about 2 km and the geometry is shown in Fig. 1.3a. The main purpose
was to test the effect of the bistatic angle on the bistatic SAR image.
DLR imaging geometry: The two planes flew in a line. The RAMSES followed
the E-SAR by 30 m and the geometry is shown in Fig. 1.3b. The main purpose of
this mode was to test the performance of the spaceborne bistatic SAR system.
In both situations, bistatic SAR images of good quality were obtained, and the
three-dimensional topographic map was obtained using the vertical baseline.
The imaging result obtained by the E-SAR/RAMSES system is shown in Fig. 1.4.
This experiment demonstrated that the bistatic SAR could image in both the
along-track and vertical baselines, and that this system offered a possibility for
interferometry.
(3) AER-II/PAMIR
In November 2003, the Forschungsgesellschaft für Angewandte
Naturwissenschaften (FGAN) conducted similar experiments with two bistatic SAR
systems [6–8]. In this experiment, the Airborne Experimental Radar II (AER-II)
was mounted on a Dornier 228 as a transmitter and the Phased Array
z
(a) (b) z
y
y
x x
(c)
z
Fig. 1.6 Image obtained by AER-II/PAMIR system (left) and optical image (right) (cf. [7])
1.1 Introduction to BiSAR Development 7
Fig. 1.8 a Bistatic SAR image processed by a bistatic backprojection algorithm. b Digital
orthophotograph captured in 2005. Copyright by Landesamt für Vermessung und Geoinformation
Bayern (cf. [11])
Fig. 1.10 Comparison of an image detail of a the bistatic imagewith TerraSAR-X and PAMIR
b Monostatic image with PAMIR, c Monostatic image with TerraSAR-X.(cf. [11])
frequency of 9.65 GHz. The effective composite exposure time in azimuth was 6 s.
The transmitter was above the Rhine valley near the city of Bonn [12]. The optical
and processed bistatic SAR image are shown in Fig. 1.11.
Fig. 1.11 Images of Rhein, Germany. a Optical image from Google Earth. b BiSAR image (cf. [12])
10 1 Fundamentals of Bistatic SAR
The Center for Sensor Systems started the HITCHHIKER project in 2009. The
goal was to develop a passive high-resolution receiver system to perform a series of
bistatic experiments using the German TerraSAR-X system as illuminator to
demonstrate the feasibility of high-resolution bistatic imaging with a stationary
receiver [13–15].
The receiver system was augmented in 2010 to make it a fully functional bistatic
one-pass interferometer to acquire high-resolution DEMs. It was further upgraded
in 2011 with the integration of a modular and flexible high-bandwidth transmitter
component, making it a fully operational active bistatic or monostatic radar sensor.
The results are shown in Fig. 1.12, with the image in radar coordinates at the top
and the ground coordinates at the bottom. The horizontal coordinate in the radar
coordinate image is the bistatic range to the targets, which is approximately twice
the ground distance. The vertical scaling was chosen to match the ground
Fig. 1.12 Top image shows the focused bistatic SAR image in radar coordinates. The bottom
image shows the focused bistatic SAR image in Cartesian ground coordinates. The interferometric
phase present in this image represents differences of the target height to the SRTM-3 DEM, which
is used during processing. The QR code leads to a map of the target area (cf. [13])
1.1 Introduction to BiSAR Development 11
Fig. 1.13 a Bistatic reflectivity of the scene. b Obtained DEM using the bistatic backscattering
and forward-scattering interferometric data. c Height difference between the DEM produced using
the bistatic data and the DTM
instant transient velocity was about 7600 m/s and the antenna was steered in ST
mode with a steering span of 4.4°. By adapting the beam pointing of the receiver
antenna, a maximum composite footprint was obtained. Due to the effect of the
curved satellite orbit, the estimated equivalent velocity in monostatic midrange is
7.361 km/s. The SS-BiSAR imagery was collected in a backscatter geometry. The
focused BiSAR image is shown in Fig. 1.14.
Benefiting from the very high-resolution (VHR) of TerraSAR-X in
staring-spotlight (ST) mode, more details and a better interferometric phase error
can be expected from the multichannel bistatic InSAR experiment. However,
challenges also arise due to the specific geometry and limited device performance.
First, the synchronization errors introduced by multiple channels cause a serious
impact on the interferometric application. Second, the methods in traditional
interferometric flow are not suitable for the bistatic InSAR configuration. Hence, a
complete approach is proposed, which includes the multichannel synchronization
1.1 Introduction to BiSAR Development 13
strategy and modified interferometric steps. In this study, the DEM reconstruction
for urban and mountain areas and the analysis was carried out, based on the use of
the complete approach. The multichannel results agree well with GPS observations,
which demonstrates that the experimental configuration and the approach have
satisfactory potential. The height profile reconstruction of the build in the scene is
shown in Fig. 1.15b.
Due to the separation of the transmitter and the receiver, the imaging process of
bistatic SAR is quite different from that of monostatic SAR. With the development
of bistatic SAR systems and the implementation of a variety of bistatic SAR
experiments, bistatic SAR imaging algorithms have made great progress in recent
years.
In 1991, Soumekh first proposed a range migration algorithm (RMA) for the
bistatic SAR configuration with a parallel track and equal velocity of the transmitter
and receiver [1]. The geometry model used in this algorithm is relatively simple. In
this geometry, the targets are supposed to be placed in the same plane with the
transmitter and receiver. The signal expression of each target in the central line of
the scene in the Doppler domain can be attained under the assumption that the wave
beam angle is small. This algorithm is proposed by extending the RMA algorithm
in monostatic SAR.
A back-projection algorithm (BPA) is a common imaging algorithm using a
match filtering method to process a signal in the time domain [28]. It not only can
have good imaging quality without any approximation but also can be applied to all
kinds of bistatic SAR configurations. In the imaging process, it just needs to utilize
14 1 Fundamentals of Bistatic SAR
(a)
(b)
Fig. 1.15 The DEM reconstruction results for the urban area. The buildings are marked by the
black boxes
the response function of the target point to match the signal. However, this algo-
rithm has poor processing efficiency. It takes too much time and is usually
impracticable. Several fast BP algorithms have recently been proposed. Ding [29],
proposed an algorithm whose complexity can be reduced from OðN 3 Þ to
OðN 2 log2 N Þ. Though the speed has been increased, computation is still
time-consuming.
Rigling et al. [30] developed the polar formation algorithm (PFA) in a monos-
tatic SAR to apply to the bistatic SAR in 2004. It can focus well, especially in
spotlight mode, in all kinds of bistatic SAR configurations. This algorithm can
focus well by performing a coordinate rotation and accomplishing two-dimensional
1.1 Introduction to BiSAR Development 15
formula derivations. A monostatic SAR algorithm is then fine for the compensated
signal. On this basis, several algorithms have been proposed. In [38], the bistatic
SAR is considered as a monostatic SAR that transmits and receives the signal in the
middle point of the baseline of the bistatic SAR. In [39] and [40], the bistatic SAR
is considered as a monostatic SAR, which transmits and receives the signal at the
intersection point of the bistatic angle bisecting line and the bistatic base line. These
methods work well when the bistatic base line is short, the slant angle is small and
the scene is not large. Otherwise, a serious two-dimensional spatial-variant will be
introduced to the imaging process, making it more difficult for imaging by these
monostatic equivalent methods.
Hence, we are still a long way from finding a more adaptive and effective
imaging algorithm for the bistatic SAR.
(1) Interferometry
In general, it is necessary to record two coherent signals with two separate
antennas for interferometry. For monostatic SAR, there are usually two methods for
interference measurement. One is to fly twice along the same flight path. However,
the difficulty of this method increases due to problems such as achieving the same
flight path and achieving timing coherence. Another one can also install two
antennas on the same SAR system. During one flight, two groups of coherent
signals can be gotten. However, the size of the platform limits the length of the
interferometric baseline, which can influence the resolution in the height mea-
surement. However, for bistatic SAR, the above restrictions can be circumvented
due to the flexible configurations of the two antennas. Figure 1.16 shows the high
resolution and accuracy DEM acquired by TanDEM-X.
(2) Surface Feature Recognition
Bistatic SAR can obtain the RCS of the target in different directions by adjusting
the beam pointing of the transmitter and receiver. This will not only help to acquire
the surface roughness and dielectric constant, but will also contribute to studying
the scattering mechanism of the surface clutter. Figure 1.17 shows the RCS of a
fighter aircraft at different bistatic angles. Since the RCS changes with the bistatic
angle, bistatic SAR helps to enhance the capability of image classification and
recognition. In addition, bistatic SAR can avoid strong backward scattering on the
tops of buildings in urban areas, lower the image dynamic range and improve the
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the moving target.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
PERITONITIS IN BIRDS.
Causes. These are in the main those which operate in the horse
and need not be repeated. In cattle, however, the affection is to a
large extent the result of abdominal tuberculosis, while in sheep it is
a constant result of advanced distomatosis. Gellé says it is common
in working oxen, which are turned out, hot and perspiring, to pass
the night in cold and wet.
Symptoms. The belly is enlarged and pendent, bulging out back of
the ribs, with fluctuation and dullness on percussion. The animal is
in very low condition, the mucosæ pale or yellowish white, the eyes
dull and sunken, panting and palpitations may be roused on the least
exertion, and swellings often appear along the lower aspect of the
body and between the branches of the lower jaw. In distomatosis it is
common to find dropsy of the chest, pallor and attenuation of the
skin, complete absence of the subcutaneous fat (paperskin), and
great emaciation and weakness. Ova of the distoma can be found in
the fæces. (See distomatosis). By turning the sheep on its back or
setting it up on its croup the percussion dullness will be made to
shift, always to the dependent part of the abdomen.
Diagnosis. From rupture of the bladder it is distinguished, by its
occurrence in females as well as males, by the absence of fever, and
of the complete suppression of urine and emptiness and tenderness
of the bladder which characterize the latter. Liquid drawn from the
abdomen has no urinous odor. From hydrometra, pyometra, and
hydramnios it is distinguished by the fact that the water accumulates
in the lower part of the abdomen, and is not confined to the womb.
On rectal exploration the outline of the empty womb is made out.
Lesions. Besides the lesions described for solipeds, one finds in
cattle, tuberculosis of the liver, spleen, and lymph glands, and
extensive clusters of tubercles on the peritoneum. In sheep the white
branching lines on the back of the liver may indicate the distension
of gall ducts infested by distomata.
Treatment does not differ from that recommended for solipeds. In
tuberculous cases, sanitary considerations demand the destruction of
the animal and disinfection of the carcass. In distomatosis treatment
must be preventive, as the distomata are difficult to reach with
vermifuges.
ASCITES IN CARNIVORA.
Causes: obstructed flow of blood in hepatic, portal or renal veins, or in vena
cava, renal, heart, liver or splenic diseases, pulmonary congestion, asthma,
tuberculosis. Symptoms: pot-belly, hollow above, drooping back and loins, flat
percussion sound and fluctuation, change of position changes area of flatness,
anæmia, debility, scanty urine, diarrhœa, no fever. Diagnosis: absence of fever,
general fluctuation changing its seat by turning the patient, not confined to a given
organ like the bladder or womb. Lesions: quantity and composition of liquid,
lesions of primary diseases. Treatment: Correct if possible the primary disease,
evacuate the liquid, compress on abdomen, iodine solution for irrigation, saline
purgatives, diuretics, pilocarpine, bitters, iron, sunshine.
Causes. Ascites is generally the result of some obstruction to the
return of blood from some abdominal organ, but may also come from
renal disease, or hydroæmia in which general dropsy is likely to
occur. The dog is specially subject to heart disease, and disease of the
right heart (tricuspid insufficiency, dilatation, hydro-pericarditis,
fatty degeneration, etc.) throws the blood back on the whole venous
system and the extensive and dilatable portal veins are especially
liable to suffer. Diseases of the liver, so common in pampered house
dogs, still more directly block the portal circulation and induce
ascites. Tumors in the liver or spleen or in the lymph glands of the
porta act in this way, also cirrhosis, tuberculosis, cancer, hepatic
congestion, and degeneration. Constrictions of the vena portæ by
false membranes the result of former peritonitis must also be
recognized. As more distant causes, must be named obstruction to
the pulmonary circulation, as in congestion, asthma, tuberculosis
and diseases of the left heart. Seventy-eight cases were traced as
follows: to diseases of the heart and pericardium, 10; to tuberculosis,
8; to pleurisy, 4; to malignant tumors of the liver and lung, 2; to
hepatic disease without heart lesion, 3; to cancer of the liver, 1;
(Cadiot).
Symptoms. Enlargement of the belly is marked and peculiar, the
liquid accumulating below, pushing outward the lower ends of the
ribs, and making the lower part of the abdomen baggy while the
upper part, under the lumbar transverse processes, is flattened or
hollow. The back and loins droop forming a concavity superiorly, so
that the belly may almost drag on the ground. On palpation this
pendent abdominal sac gives the sensation of a mobile fluid without
the usual firm outlines of the intestinal masses, and when percussed
it gives out a flat, dull sound and produces a fluctuation or shock at
the opposite side of the abdomen. In the upper part of the abdomen
over the hollow flank more or less resonance is found. If the animal
is made to stand on his hind limbs the saccular dilatation and
flatness on percussion are in the region adjoining the pelvis; if held
up by its hind limbs they are transferred to the epigastric and
hypochondriac regions and the respiration is seriously interfered
with; if turned upon his back, the resonance is obtained on the linea
alba and at each side, while the percussion dullness is next to the
vertebræ. The clearness of the fluctuation is in ratio with the amount
of liquid present.
As in other animals, there are anæmia, pale mucosæ, poor
condition, thin, dry, unhealthy skin, weak pulse, irritable heart and
interference with respiration proportionate to the amount of liquid.
The urine is scanty, and there may be diarrhœa.
Diagnosis. From advanced or chronic peritonitis it is distinguished
by the history or evidence of diseased liver, heart, or kidney, the
absence of hyperthermia or abdominal tenderness, and the absence
in the ascitic fluid, extracted with a hypodermic needle, of blood
globules, or leucocytes in numbers, of false membranes, of excess of
salts, or of a tendency to coagulate firmly.
From overdistended bladder it is diagnosed by its slow, and
gradual development, and the change of fluctuation to the most
dependent part no matter what position is given to the patient,
whereas the tense bladder can be felt through the abdominal walls,
extending forward from the pelvis under all circumstances.
From ruptured bladder there is the same distinguishing feature of
slow development, the absence of symptoms of uræmic poisoning, of
tenderness of the bladder, and of suppression of urine, and also of
the urinous odor in the ascitic liquid obtained with the hypodermic
needle.
From advanced gestation the differentiation is found in the general
diffusion of the swelling and fluctuation, which is not confined as in
gestation to the mobile uterine horns, with a series of enlargements
each containing a solid nodular fœtus.
From hydrometra and pyometra there are the same
pathognomonic differential features of the general diffusion of the
swelling among the intestines, and its accumulation in one
fluctuating mass at the most dependent part of the abdomen.
Tympany of the bowels causes uniform drumlike resonance, and
the swelling does not sag and fluctuate in the lower part of the
abdomen.
Abdominal obesity in old dogs gives the rounded swollen
abdomen, but there is an entire absence of the pendulous and
fluctuating features, and when punctured with the hypodermic
needle it furnishes no fluid.
From tuberculosis it is distinguished by the absence of nasal
discharge, or of tubercle bacilli in such discharge, or in the ascitic
fluid, and the latter inoculated on guinea pigs or rabbits does not
cause tuberculosis. The tuberculin test may also be resorted to.
Lesions. The liquid exudate has been found to amount to 30 or 40
quarts in large dogs (Hordt). It is often clear and translucent, of
amber tint, though in some cases it is slightly opaque, or reddish
yellow. It may remain fluid after extraction or again it may form a
loose jelly. It may be red in case of soft tumors or other neoplasms.
The liquid is very watery but may contain a considerable amount of
fatty globules or granules, and a few epithelial cells and leucocytes.
The peritoneum is pale or in advanced cases dull white from fatty
degeneration of the epithelium.
Treatment. The first consideration is the removal of the cause. If
this is a mere vicious action of the peritoneum, or the presence of a
thrombus, or of operable tumor, or even of curable disease of the
liver or kidneys, success may be hoped for, while in dilatation of the
heart, insufficiency of the cardiac valves, irremediable disease of the
lungs, liver or kidney, or malignant or inoperable tumor no such
result can be hoped for.
Apart from the removal of the cause the first indication is to
evacuate the liquid and this may be done with a large hypodermic
needle or small cannula and trochar inserted by preference on or
near the linea alba while the animal is in a standing position. Skin
and instrument should be rendered thoroughly aseptic, and a
bandage should be wrapped round the abdomen and gradually
tightened as the liquid escapes. This to a large extent obviates the
tendency to faint, or to cerebral anæmia which has caused sudden
death in a number of cases. It also to some extent counteracts the
sudden effusion of blood in the abdomen, which is at times
determined by the sense of vacuity.
Injection of a solution of iodine (tincture of iodine 1 pt., iodide of
potassium 1 pt., boiled water 20 pts.) has been employed sometimes
with success, but in other cases it has roused a fatal inflammation. It
is best adapted to a simple morbid, relaxed state of the peritoneum.
Saline purgatives (sulphate of soda or magnesia) are especially
useful in constipated cases and should be pushed in continuous
action, as far as the strength of the animal will warrant. By depletion
from the portal system they oppose the tendency to mechanical
transudation, while by rendering the portal blood more dense they
strongly solicit endosmosis from the adjacent peritoneum.
Diuretics have been used extensively and with benefit. They may
prove injurious in a kidney that is already the seat of irritation and
yet after all be the least of two evils. In some cases instead, the
resulting dilution of a dense and irritating urine is directly soothing
to the tender kidney. Saltpeter (10 to 15 grs.), acetate of soda (15 to
30 grs.), squills (1 to 2 scr.), may be repeated so as to keep up a free
action. Pilocarpine (subcutem) (¹⁄₁₀₆ to ¹⁄₃₀ gr. daily), has removed
the ascitic fluid in 14 days (Zahn), but its action is always to be
dreaded in a weak system, or with a diseased heart, or lungs.
A supporting bandage on the abdomen is always useful as
counteracting the tendency to vacuity and further transudation.
A course of bitters and iron, and a supporting diet, and out door
life (sunshine) are important elements in treatment.
DISEASES OF THE LIVER.
In veterinary and medical works the diseases of the liver have been
accorded a minor place, ill in keeping with the great physiological
importance of the organ. If the function of the liver were
circumscribed by the mere secretion of bile there would be some
excuse for the apparent neglect, as the gland is so deeply situated and
so much enveloped in surrounding organs that physical exploration
is difficult and somewhat unsatisfactory, and the one symptom of
jaundice was long relied on as indicating hepatic disorder.
Taking into account all the varied functions of the liver we realize
the wide-reaching nature of its physiological influence and the
extensive and varied effect of its disorders. We can also deduce, with
greater or lesser certainty, the existence of hepatic disorders from the
morbid conditions of the blood or of organs, the functions of which
are inter-dependent with those of the liver. To elucidate the subject it
is well to trace some of the most prominent functions of the liver; the
following considerations are submitted.
SANGUIFICATION IN THE LIVER.
The liver is the goal to which most of the products of gastric and
intestinal digestion are carried by the portal vein. In the hepatic cells
large quantities of glycogen, 6 (C6H10O5) + H2O, are stored up after
each meal. This is believed to be derived largely from the
transformation of glucose, (C6H12O6) and laevulose (C6H12O6) which
have been produced from starch in the alimentary canal and
conveyed by the portal vein to the liver. By the liberal use of starch,
glycerine, or the sugars of milk, fruit or cane, (but not mannite, or
glycol, or inosite) the glycogen is very greatly increased (to 12 per
cent. in the fowl), but it is diminished on a purely albuminous diet.
Yet it can be produced from albuminous food, as it is always
increased in the dog after a meal of flesh, and is largely present in the
livers of carnivorous animals that have been fed for a month on flesh
only (Landois). The peptones are therefore decomposed in the liver
with the production of glycogen and such waste products as leucin
and tyrosin, which are finally resolved into urea. A purely fatty diet
diminishes it enormously and during prolonged abstinence it
practically disappears. It passes, not into the bile, but into the
hepatic veins, and the general circulation, where it serves in its
decomposition to generate heat, and probably to hasten cell growth.
In the vegetable and animal world, in the germinating seed, and in
cartilage, muscle and epidermis of the fœtus and in the amnios,
glycogen and glucose are found in abundance. The liver, too, the
great center for the production of glycogen, is relatively much larger
in the young and growing animal, and also in the adult animal which
has great power of assimilation.
Glycogen is always present in the white blood globules so long as
they maintain their vitality and amœboid movements, but when they
die, it is replaced by sugar (Hoppe-Seyler). The red blood globules
give up a ferment which rapidly transforms glycogen into sugar.
Glycogen and sugar are evidently of use in muscular contraction as
they are always diminished in the vessels of contracting muscles
(Sanderson), being converted into lactic acid (Bernard).
Forced muscular movements soon expel glycogen from the dog’s
liver, passing it into the blood, and there the excess of glycogen
dissolves the red blood globules. If glycogen is injected into the
blood, achrodextrin and hæmaglobin appear in the urine (Landois).
Ammonia carbonate and asparagin, or glycin, with a carbhydrate
diet produced in rabbits a considerable increase of glycogen
(Rohmann).
Poisoning by arsenic, phosphorus or antimony destroys the
glycogenic function of the liver, which then fails to respond even to
diabetic puncture of the medulla.
There are important changes effected in the blood globules in
passing through the liver. The leucocytes are increased, the hepatic
veins containing 5 or even 10 times as many as the portal vein
(Bernard, Lehmann, McDonald). Their ratio to the red globules is in
the portal vein 1:524 and in the hepatic veins 1:136 (Hirt). The red
globules undergo marked changes, having, in the hepatic veins, a
smaller size, sharper outlines, less flattening in the disc, a habit of
massing together irregularly in place of adhering in rouleaux, and
they dissolve less readily in water.
REDUCTION OF ALBUMINOIDS.