Prostate gland.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Prostate Gland, chestnut-shaped male organ located next to the bladder and
surrounding the urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the
penis). The prostate gland produces a secretion known as prostate fluid that
makes up most of the liquid part of semen, which is discharged from the penis
during sexual orgasm. Measuring about 3 cm (about 1.2 in) across, the prostate
gland is composed of both glandular tissue that produces prostate fluid and
muscle tissue that helps in male ejaculation. Prostate fluid also helps to keep
sperm, which is found in semen, healthy and lively, thereby increasing the
chances that fertilization will occur.

There are a variety of prostate disorders that commonly afflict men of all ages.
The most common prostate disease is benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), a
noncancerous condition of unknown cause. It occurs in approximately 70 to 80
percent of men as they reach their 70s and 80s. In BPH, the prostate gland can
increase in size from 20 g (0.71 oz), which is the average size of the prostate in
younger men, to as large as 150 g (5.31 oz). As the prostate grows, it constricts
the urethra, possibly causing a partial obstruction of the bladder. Such
obstruction may lead to bladder wall thickening and urination problems.
Symptoms such as frequent urination, nighttime urination, a feeling of urgency to
urinate, difficulty emptying the bladder, and a weak urinary stream are the most
common problems men encounter from prostate enlargement.

There are several treatment options for BPH, including medications that either
shrink the prostate gland or relax the smooth muscle in the prostate gland to
alleviate the obstruction of the bladder. The standard surgical procedure for
removing the enlarged tissue in the prostate is called transurethral resection of
the prostate (TURP). During this procedure, the surgeon uses an endoscope, a
tube equipped with a small television camera and a sharp instrument, to cut away
the excess prostate tissue.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in elderly men and the second most
common cause of cancer-related death in men. Prostate cancer causes few if any
symptoms in its early stages, but as it progresses it can lead to difficulties with
urination and bleeding in the urinary tract, and the cancer can spread to other
areas of the body. Prostate cancer may be detected by digital rectal examination.
Testing for abnormally high blood levels of the protein known as prostate-
specific antigen (PSA) is also used to diagnose the disease. Prostate cancer is
treated using hormones, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgical procedures.

Prostatitis is an inflammatory condition of the prostate that is most common in

men ages 20 to 50. There are two broad classes of prostatitis: nonbacterial and
bacterial. Nonbacterial prostatitis is the most common form of prostatic
inflammation. It causes pelvic pain, problems with urination, discomfort after
ejaculation, and lower back pain. The cause of nonbacterial prostatitis remains
unclear but possible sources include viruses, prostate muscle spasm, backflow of
urine through prostate ducts, and psychological disturbances. Recent evidence
suggests that nonbacterial prostatitis may be caused by bacteria that are present
in the middle of a prostate but cannot be detected by conventional diagnostic
techniques.

Patients with nonbacterial prostatitis are treated with medications ranging from
antibiotics to antispasmodics; less often, medications that relax the muscle in the
prostate gland are administered. The success of such treatments varies widely,
and in many cases men must live with the symptoms of prostatitis.

In bacterial prostatitis, which may be sexually transmitted, a bacterial infection in

the prostate gland leads to infection, swelling, pain, and difficulty in urinating; the
penis may release bacterial fluid, and blood may appear in the urine. In some
cases bacterial prostatitis can cause a severe infection throughout the body,
producing a dangerously high fever. Bacterial prostatitis is treated with antibiotics
but sometimes all the infection cannot be eliminated from the prostate gland,
and some men develop a chronically infected prostate.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Apis mellifica: Stinging pain during urination that is worse when the final drops
are passing is a strong indication for this remedy. Discomfort may also involve
the bladder. The prostate area is swollen and very sensitive to touch. The person
may feel worse from heat and from being in warm rooms, with improvement
from being out in open air or from cool bathing.

Causticum: Urine loss when the person coughs or sneezes often indicates a
need for this remedy. Once urine has started passing, the person may feel
pressure or pulsation extending from the prostate to the bladder. Causticum is
also indicated when sexual pleasure during orgasm is absent or diminished.

Chimaphilla umbellata: This remedy is often helpful when the prostate is

enlarged, with urine retention and frequent urging. The person may have the
feeling that a ball is lodged in the pelvic floor, or experience pressure, swelling,
and soreness that are worse when sitting down.

Clematis: This remedy is often indicated when swelling of the prostate seems to
have narrowed or tightened the urinary passage. Urine usually emerges slowly, in
drops instead of a stream, with dribbling afterward.
Lycopodium: This remedy may be helpful if urine is slow to emerge, with
pressure felt in the prostate both during and after urination. The prostate is
enlarged, and impotence may also be a problem. People who need this remedy
often suffer from digestive problems with gas and bloating, and have an energy
slump in the late afternoon.

Pulsatilla: Prostate problems with discomfort after urination and pains that
extend to the pelvis or into the bladder (often worse when the man is lying on
his back) suggest a need for this remedy. There may also be a bland, thick, yellow
discharge from the penis. Pulsatilla is usually suited to emotional individuals who
want a lot of affection and feel best in open air.

Sabal serrulata: A frequent urge to urinate at night, with difficulty passing urine,
and a feeling of coldness in the sexual organs, suggest a need for this remedy. It
is sometimes also used in lower potencies for urinary incontinence in older men.
This remedy is made from saw palmetto which is also used as an herbal extract
for similar prostate problems.

Staphysagria: This remedy may be indicated if a man feels burning pain in his
urinary passage even when urine is not flowing, and urine retention is
troublesome. Men who are likely to respond to Staphysagria are often
sentimental and romantic, and may also have problems with impotence (most
often caused by shyness).

Thuja: When the prostate is enlarged, and the person has a frequent urge to
urinate, with cutting or burning pain felt near the bladder neck, this remedy may
bring relief. After urine passes, a dribbling sensation may be felt. A forked or
divided urine stream is sometimes seen when this remedy is needed.

Schuessler's twelve tissue remedies of

biochemistry.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

CALCAREA FLUORICA

This substance is found in the surface of the bones, enamel of the teeth, elastic
fibers and the skin. A disturbance, or deficiency, in the molecules of this element
is shown by lumpy, more or less hard, growths, horny growths, hard crusts with
cracked hands, hardened mammary glands, or other parts. Osseous (bone)
tumors from injuries, glandular swellings, cataract of the eye, gum boils,
displacement or relaxed uterus, sagging abdomen, hardened exudations,
hćmorrhoidal knots, varicose veins, and all diseases originating in the elastic fibre
and bone covering, which is practically the same thing.

This remedy has proved curative in hard swellings on the bones, varicosis,
varicose veins, whitlow, induration of testicles, suppuration, psoriasis, prolapsus
uteri, internal piles, ozćna, eczema, knots, gout, defects in enamel, backache,
corneal diseases, cataract of the eye, after-pains, bone bruises, catamenia, cough
etc., where the above general conditions prevail.

CALCAREA PHOSPHORICA

This element is found in all cells, especially the bone cells, and, therefore, is
necessary, in the normal formation of new cells. Its absence, or disturbance, is
shown in anćmic states; the weakened conditions following acute diseases;
delayed formation of bones in the young; in the knitting of broken bones.
Broadly speaking, it is the remedy for weaklings, the ill-nourished, the very young
or old, for rickets, chlorosis, open fontanelles, pains accompanied by
formication, numbness, cramps, cold sweat, convalescence, convulsions of
teething children; stunted children, unhealthy obesity and for the many named
and unnamed disease states that have their origin in, and are accompanied by,
these general conditions. It has been called the Cell-Wall Salt.

This salt has proved curative in cancer, catarrh, chlorosis, "green sickness,"
consumption, rickets, curvature of the spine, spinal weakness, open fontanelles,
hydrocephalus, bow legs in children, scrofula, albuminuria, anćmia, diseased state
of bones, broken bones, convalescence, convulsions, emaciation, painful gums,
dentition, headache, leucorrhśa, perspiration (excessive), night-sweats,
rheumatism, scrofulous ulcers, clammy feet and hands, tonsils chronically
swollen, etc., when the above geneal conditions prevail.

CALCAREA SULPHURICA

In his later years, Schuessler was inclined to omit this element from his list of
"tissue remedies," but the experience of physicians familiar with it is against
doing so, for while its sphere is limited, it has been, as stated by Schuessler,
"successfully used in many diseases," but he adds, "it does not enter into the
constant constitution of the organism," from which it might be inferred that at
times other remedies are temporarily useful. Calcarea Sulphurica is useful
generally in suppurations, of pus mixed with blood, yellowish discharges from
eyes, ears and nose, of this character; boils, carbuncles, wounds, expectoration,
pimples, scabs skin diseases, sores, etc., etc. Yellow-coloured suppuration, or
discharge, especially if tinged with blood, a general swelling of soft parts
threatening pus, or an established vent oozing pus is a call for Calcarea
Sulphurica.

This salt has proved curative in ear diseases with matter streaked with blood,
diarrhśa, boils, abscess, ulcers, carbuncles, festering sores or hurts, pimples,
oozing scabs, herpes, catarrh, suppurating glands, etc., when the above-named
conditions prevail.

FERRUM PHOSPHORICUM

This element is contained in the red blood corpuscles and possesses "the
property of attracting oxygen" from the inhaled air. Any disturbance in this salt is
shown primarily by relaxed muscular tissue with inflammation, fever, heat,
congestion, throbbing, swelling, with the innumerable succeeding ills. From its
character Ferrum Phosphoricum is necessarily almost always the first remedy
required in every attack of acute illness. It is the first in every itis, from bronchitis
on through the list to tonsillitis. It is of the blood and is, as Rademacher said, a
"universal remedy." It precedes and then the other remedies follow in acute ills.
In longseated ills, this remedy does not always hold true. It is also required in
some anćmic conditions and those following loss of blood.

This remedy has proved curative in bronchitis, gastritis, laryngitis, mastitis,

nephritis, pericarditis, periostitis, phlebitis, pleuritis, tonsillitis, as a primary
remedy; abscess, rheumatism, hćmorrhages (red blood), boils, catarrhal colds,
congestions, inflammations, coughs, croup, deafness, diarrhśa, earache,
erysipelas, swellings, gonorrhśa, gum-boils, hćmorrhoids, nose-bleed, fever,
headache irritations, neuralgia, palpitation, pleurisy, quinsy, scarlet fever, sprains,
wounds, etc. when the indications noted above are in evidence.

KALI MURIATICUM

This element, or salt, is chemically related to fibrine. Like Ferrum Phosphoricum,

it is found in almost all cells. "It will dissolve white, or grayish-white, secretions
of the mucous membranes and plastic exudations," consequently it is called for
in catarrh, croupous, and all plastic exudations of mucous membranes that are
white or grayish-white. It almost always follows Ferrum Phosphoricum for the
secondary conditions or states succeeding inflammation. It is indicated in the
white or grayish, coated tongues, in catarrh and diseases showing that peculiar
colour of the exudations of the mucous membranes. It is especially useful in ear
diseases, catarrh of the middle ear and closed Eustachian tubes, cracking noises,
deafness, etc.; coughs, hoarseness and bronchial troubles; sluggish liver, light-
coloured stools, lung diseases showing characteristic coloured expectoration.
Like Ferrum Phosphoricum, it is a useful inter-current remedy in many cases.

This salt has proved curative in abscess, adhesions, rheumastism, asthma,

bronchitis, congestions, "colds," catarrh, coryza, constipation, cough, croup,
deafness and ear diseases, chancre, diarrhśa, diphtheria, dropsy, dyspepsia,
eruptions, exudations, excoriations, gastritis, gonorrhśa, hćmorrhage of dark,
clotty blood (Ferr. Phos., bright blood), headache, hoarseness, whooping cough,
indigestion, liver diseases, lung diseases, measles, meningitis, menstruation,
mumps, orchitis, pimples, pleurisy, childbirth fever, fevers secondary stage, pains
rheumatic, scarlet fever, sick headache, stomach derangements, swellings without
fever, sycosis, throat diseases, quinsy, mucous ulcerations, vomiting dark blood,
diseases of mucous membranes, etc., when the above-named conditions in
general prevailed.

KALI PHOSPHORICUM

This is the chief "nerve salt," and is found in the brain cells, and nerve fluids, the
blood plasma (white corpuscles) and the inter-cellular fluids. A disturbance, or
deficiency, in the normal state of this physiological element shows, mentally, in
despondency, anxiety, fearfulness, weak memory, mental decay, mental and
physical break-down, neurasthenia, hypochondria, hysteria, insomnia, night
terrors, irritability, insanity and paralysis; also in septic conditions, typhus, scurvy,
ulcerations and physically degenerated states, generally, foul states and
discharges, gangrene, blackish, thin blood, putrid conditions. Decay generally,
mental and physical.

This salt has proved curative in nervousness, neurasthenia, anxiety, gloom,

morbidness, depression, brain-fag, loss of memory, sleeplessness, delirium
tremens, horrors, dread, epileptic fits, hypochondria, hysterias, insanity, nervous
diseases, paralysis, night terrors, palpitations, exhaustion, softening of the brain,
sexual weakness, septic states, typhus, typhoid, gangrene, black small-pox,
appendicitis, amenorrhśa, asthma, blood blackish but thin, Bright’s disease,
cancer, chancre, cholera, croup, cystitis, deafness, diabetes, diarrhśa, dysentery,
diphtheria, eczema, epilepsy, nose-bleed, headache, hćmorrhage blackish and
thin, rickets, putrid sore throat, sciatica, sepsis, spinal diseases, suppurations foul,
etc. when the above-named conditions are present.

KALI SULPHURICUM
Like Ferrum Phos. This salt aids in effecting the transfer of the inhaled oxygen.
It is found in nearly all the cells containing iron. Any abnormality or deficiency is
shown physically, by a sensation of weariness and heaviness, with chilliness,
headache, pains in the limbs, or vertigo. The malaise is worse when patient is
confined in rooms, and from warmth and is better in the open, or in cool, air. It
is called for in desquamation following diseases like scarlet fever, measles, etc.,
scaly skin, yellowish eczemas, dandruff, etc. It is indicated in conditions of the
mucous membranes, exudations, discharges, secretions and tongue, when the
colour is distinctly yellow or yellowish.

Has been successfully prescribed in bronchitis, catarrh, albuminuria, diphtheria,

dropsy, vertigo, asthma, ear diseases, whooping cough, syphilis, tuberculosis,
stomach catarrh, anćmia, rheumatism, opthalmia, lupus, eczema, skin diseases,
measles, menstruation, leucorrhśa, indigestion, diarrhśa, disorders of the eye, etc.,
when general characteristics and general indications as above are shown.

MAGNESIA PHOSPHORICA

This salt, or element, is found in the blood-cells, muscles, brain, spinal marrow,
nerves, bones and teeth. A disturbance, or deficiency, of it is shown in sharp
pain, cramps and paralysis. The patient is better from warmth and gentle but
from pressure, but worse from a light touch or jar. Its diseases take the form of
neuralgia, toothache, faceache, convulsions, fits, cramps, colics, spasms, palsy,
trembling, twitching, hiccough, tetanus and similar conditions. Its pains are likely
to be of a lightning like character. It is the opposite to the other great nerve
remedy, Kali Phos., which betokens degeneration and decay, while Mag. Phos. is
generally evidenced by acute pain.

It has been successfully prescribed in neuralgia, sharp pain, cramps, agina

pectoris, chorea, St. Vitus’s dance, epilepsy, colic, convulsions, cough, whooping
cough, diplopia, dysentery, faceache, toothache, labour pains, menstrual colic,
colic, ovarian neuralgia, puerperal convulsions, laryngismus stridulus, palsy,
spasmodic retention of urine, spasmodic conditions, stricture, squinting, teething,
tetanus, trembling, etc., when general conditions indicate a deficiency of this salt,
as noted above.

NATRUM MURIATICUM

When there is a disturbance or deficiency of the molecules of this salt, which

attracts water, the water which should go to the cells remains in the intercellular
fluids and hydrćmic states ensue, that may be shown in various ways; patients tire
easily, are chilly, have cold extremities and often an abnormal craving for salt.
Malnutrition, emaciation, secretions of clear, watery fluid, tears, or clear, watery
mucus. Clean, frothy tongue. Watery blisters and blebs. Coryza, clear, watery or
frothy; watery eyes and much sneezing. Waterbrash, heart-burn. Intermittent
fever; Dropsy. Puffiness; Mucous membranes may be abnormally dry.

This remedy has proved curative in intermittent fever, coryza, chlorosis,

"whites,", leucorrhśa, leukćmia, chlorosis, adynamic states, aphthć, asthma,
bronchitis, catarrhs, coughs, effusions, hay-fever, headache, diarrhśa, watery
blisters, constipation, deafness, watery brash, house-maid’s knee, hydrocele,
neuralgia, pleurisy, rheumatism, sycosis, etc., when the general conditions of
Natrum Mur. are in evidence, as noted above.

NATRUM PHOSPHORICUM

This salt is found in the cells of the blood, muscles nerves, brain and intercellular
fluids. A departure from the normal in it is characterized generally by "sourness,"
an excess of lactic acid; sour eructations, or vomiting, or diarrhśa in infants or
adults; acidity; uric acid conditions, rheumatism of the joints, gout. Discharges
from the eyes, or sores, are yellow and creamy; tongue yellow; throat and tonsils
are covered with yellow, creamy coating. Dyspepsia, sour or acid. Perspiration
smells sour. An anti-acid.

This salt has proved to be curative in indigestion, acid stomach, flatulence, sour
risings, nausea, vomiting, worms, loss of appetite, diarrhśa, headache, heart-burn,
intermittent fever, morning sickness, scabs yellow, sores etc., when the general
conditions noted-above are present.

NATRUM SULPHURICUM

The action of this salt is the reverse of that of Natrum Mur., whose action is to
attract the needed water to the cells; Natrum Sulph., on the contrary, eliminates
waste matter and water. When there is a disturbance in its action, it is shown by a
tongue of yellowish green or a dirty brown; discharges the same general colour;
biliousness; bitter taste; vomiting, of bitter water or bile; bilious diarrhśa; bilious
fever; "yellow fever;" soreness in the region of the liver; jaundice. Worse from
wet weather, dampness, moisture, etc. Better in dry and warm surroundings.

This remedy has proved curative in biliousness, bilious colic, jaundice, liver
disorders, bilious headache, sick headache, vomiting bile, eructations bitter,
diabetes, diarrhśa, dropsy, intermittent fever, yellow fever, dengue, swamps fever,
coast fever, vertigo, etc., when the above-mentioned general conditions are
shown.
SILICEA

Silicea is a constituent of the connective tissue, the skin, hair and nails.
Disturbances in this element are closely connected with pus formation and
fistulous openings; the skin is unhealthy and easily suppurates; the nails are dry
and brittle and the hair falls out and is dry; perspiration is offensive, the feet emit
a bad smell, and so do the arm-pits; atrophy of parts. Internal chilliness, sensitive
to cold air, wants to wrap up warm. In headache must wrap up the head warm.

This element has proved curative in fistula, boils, carbuncles, gouty deposits,
rheumatism, hip joint disease, running sores, indurations, perspiration of the feet,
pus secretions of a rather watery nature, suppurations, styes, ulcers, whitlows,
chilblains, headache, etc., where the above general conditions are present.

NOTE :

Name of diseases are given for convenience only. The seat of the disease lies in
the aberrance of some one or more of the twelve tissue constituents, which may
be manifested in different forms, according to the constitution of the individual
affected. Pathology, and a true reading of the meaning of the signs, or symptoms,
of the disease, must be the guide to a true biochemic prescription. Diseases
bearing the same name vary as greatly as do the members of a family and
something more than correct nosology, classification, is needed for a curative
prescription.

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Reference:

"A Guide To The Twelve Tissue Remedies Of Biochemistry" by E. P. Anshutz.

 Diseasewise suggested homœopathic
remedies.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

*Abortion at 2nd or 3rd month* Cimicifuga, Sabina, Secale cornutum.

*Abortion from debility* Aletris, Helonias.

*Abortion from traumatism* Arnica.

*Abortion threatened* Blumia odorata, Caulophyllum, Helonias, Viburnum.

*Abscess* Myristica.

*Acne* Berberis aquefolium, Juglans regia.

*Addison's disease* Adrenalin.

*Adenoids* Agraphis nutans.

*Adiposity* Calotropis, Fucus vesiculosus, Phytolacca Berry.

*After-pains* Caulophyllum.

*Agalactea* Ricinus communis, Urtica Urens.

*Ague* China.

*Albuminuria* Apis mellifica, Cannabis Sativa.

*Alcoholism* Avena sativa, Nux vomica, Quercus, Sulphuric acid.

*Alopecia* Pix liquida, Thuja occidentalis, Ustilago maydis.

*Amenorrhœa* Ashoka janosia, Gossypium, Pinus Lambertina, Pulsatilla.

*Anæmia* China officinalis, Ferrum phoshoricum.

*Anasarca* Apis mellifica, China officinalis, Convalleria majalis, Digitalis.

*Angina pectoris* Amyl nitrite, Cactus grandiflorus, Cratægus, Spigelia.

*Ankylostomiasis* Carduus marianus.

*Anorexia* Chelidonium, China officinalis, Gentiana lutea, Hydrastis.

*Aphonia* Borax.

*Aphthæ* Hydrastinum muriaticum, Kali muriaticum.

*Apoplexy* Aconitum napellus, Laurocerasus.

*Appendicitis* Bryonia alba.

*Arteriosclerosis* Allium sativum, Cactus grandiflorus, Digitalis, Sumbul,

Thiosinaminum.

*Arthritis* Caulophyllum, Urtica urens.

*Ascarides* Abrotanum.

*Ascites* Adonis vernalis, Apis mellifica, Apocyanum, China officinalis,

Digitalis.

*Asthma, cardiac* Convalleria majalis, Iberis, Strophanthus.

*Asthma* Blatta orientalis, Grindelia, Lobelia inflata, Passiflora, Pothos, Senega.

*Atrial fibrillation* Digitalis.

*Atrophy* Oleum Jecoris.

*Azoturia* Senna.

*Backache* Phosphoric acid, Berberis vulgaris, Chelidonium, China officinalis,

Lobelia inflata.

*Barber's itch* Thuja occidentalis.

*Bed-sores* Calendula officinalis, Echinacea, Hypericum.

*Biliousness* Carica pappaya., Chelidonium.

*Bladder (irritable)* Berberis vulgaris, Eupatoreum purpureum, Senega,

Solidago, Vesicaria communis.

*Blood pressure - high*Cratægus, Rauwolfia serpentina, Veratrum album.

*Blood pressure - low* Avena sativa, Cactus grandiflorus, Ginseng.

*Bone affections (bruised)* Symphytum.

*Bradycardia* Apocynum, Digitalis.

*Brain fag* Phosphoric acid.

*Breast, shrivelled* Sabal serrulata.

*Bright's disease* Apocynum, Terebinth.

*Bronchitis (chronic)* Ammonium carbonicum, Senega.

*Bronchitis* Bryonia alba, Justicia adhatoda, Solidago.

*Bronchopneumonia* Ammoniacum gummi.

*Bronchorrhœa* Ammoniacum gummi, Balsamum peruvianum, Eucalyptus.

*Bruises and contusions* Arnica montana, Calendula officinalis, Hamamelis.

*Bubo* Bufo rana.

*Burns* Cantharis, Urtica urens.

*Bursæ* Benzoic acid, Ruta graveolens.

*Calculi (biliary)* Berberis vulgaris, Chelidonium, China officinalis,

Chionanthus, Cholesterinum.

*Cancer bladder* Taraxacum.

*Cancer gastric* Geranium, Ornithogalum.

*Cancer mammæ* Bryonia alba.

*Cancer pains* Euphorbium.

*Cancer rectal* Hydrastis, Ruta graveolens.

*Cancer tongue* Fuligo ligni.

*Capillary stasis* Echinacea.

*Carbuncle, urethral* Thuja occidentalis.

*Carbuncles* Ledum palustre.

*Cardiac dropsy* Adonis vernalis.

*Cardiac dyspnœa* Aspidosperma.

*Catalepsy* Cannabis indica.

*Cataract* Cineraria maritima.

*Catarrh, chronic* Eucalyptus.

*Cellulitis* Apis mellifica, Rhus toxicodendron.

*Cheyne-Stokes Respiration* Grindelia.

*Chillblains* Agaricus.

*Cholelithiasis* Chionanthus, Hydrastis.

*Cholera* Camphora, Coffea mocha, Trychosanthis dioica.

*Chordee* Agave, Yohimbinum.

*Chorea* Agaricus muscaris.

*Cicatrices* Thiosinaminum.

*Cirrhosis of liver* Carduus marianus, Chelidonium, China officinalis.

*Climacteric flushings* Amyl nitrite, Sanguinaria.

*Colitis* Cynodon dactylon.

*Colic (renal) * Berberis vulgaris, Hydrangea, Ocimum canum, Pareira brava,

Sarsaparilla, Solidago, Urtica urens.

*Collapse* Aconite radix, Camphora, Hydrocyanic acid, Kali cyanatum.

*Cold sores* Camphor.

*Condylomata* Thuja.

*Conjunctivitis* Euphrasia.

*Constipation in children* Abroma augusta radix, Hydrastis, Senna.

*Convulsions* Œnanthe.

*Coryza* Eucalyptus, Ocimum canum.

*Cough, dry* Mentha piperata, Laurocerasus.

*Cough, hoarse* Verbascum.

*Cough, laryngeal* Capsicum.

*Cough, phthisical* Allium sativum.

*Cough, spasmodic* Belladonna.

*Cracked lips* Condurango.

*Croup* Aconite, Sanguinaria, Spongia.

*Cyanosis* Laurocerasus.

*Cystitis* Equisetum, Pareira brava, Vesicaria.

*Cysts* Apis mellifica.

*Dandruff* Badiaga, Cochlearia, Thuja occidentalis.

*Deafness* Hydrastis, Mezereum, Verbascum.

*Debility* Aletris farinosa, Helonias indica, Phosphoric acid.

*Delirium tremens* Apocynum, Capsicum, Rananculus bulbosus.

*Dentition* Terebinth.

*Diabetes insipidus* Alfalfa, Phosphoric acid.

*Diabetes mellitus* Abroma augusta radix, Arsenic bromatum, Syzygium

jambolanum, Uranium nitricum.

*Diarrhœa* Achyranthus, Ægle marmelos, Chapparo, Cynodon dactylon.

*Diphtheria* Apis mellifica, Echinacea.

*Dipsomania* Capsicum.

*Dissecting wounds* Echinacea.

*Drooling* Trifolium.

*Dropsy thirst, without* Apis mellifica.

*Dropsy* Ægle folia, Apis mellifica, Apocynum, Bœrhavia diffusa, Thlaspi.

*Dropsy, cardiac* Adonis vernalis.

*Dropsy, hepatic* Liatris spicata.

*Dropsy, renal* Urea.

*Dropsy, thirst with* Apocynum.

*Duodenal ulcer* Ornithogalum.

*Dysentery* Ægle marmelos, Aloe, Atista indica, Cephalandra indica, Cynodon

dactylon, Holarrhena antidysenterica.

*Dysmenorrhœa* Abroma augugta radix, Ashoka, Viburnum opulis.

*Dysmenorrhœa, membranous* Xanthoxyllum.

*Dyspepsia, atonic* Abies nigra, Anacardium.

*Dyspepsia, nervous* Anacardium.

*Dysphagia* Cajuputum.

*Dyspnœa* Aspidosperma, Senega.

*Earache* Mullein Oil, Plantago.

*Ear discharge* Mullein Oil.

*Ecchymosis* Arnica.

*Eczema* Alnus rubra, Anacardium, Juglans cinerea.

*Elephantiasis* Hydrocotyl.

*Emphysema* Lobelia inflata.

*Empyema* Arnica.

*Enteritis, acute* China officinalis.

*Enuresis* Equisetum, Rhus aromatica, Verbascum.

*Epididymitis* Sabal serrulata.

*Epilepsy* Œnanthe crocata, Passiflora.

*Epistaxis* Ambrosia, Bryonia alba, Hamamelis, Millefolium.

*Epithelioma* Thuja occidentalis.

*Erysipelas* Apis mellifica.

*Erythema nodosum* Apis mellifica.

*Erythema* Antipyrine.

*Eustachian deafness* Hydrastis.

*Exophthalmic goitre* Lycopus, Pilocarpinum.

*Exudative pleurisy* Abrotanum.

*Eyes, inflammation* Euphrasia, Ruta graveolens.

*Fever* Acetanilidum, Ferr phos, Gnaphelium.

*Fever, typhoid* Baptisia, Phosphoric acid.

*Fibroids* Thlaspi, Trillium.

*Fissures* Condurango, Graphites, Ledum palustre.

*Flatulence* Asafœtida.

*Freckles* Badiaga.

*Gall stones* Berb vulgaris, China officinalis, Chionanthus.

*Ganglion* Ruta graveolens.

*Gangrene* Echinacea.

*Gastritis* Arsenic album.

*Gastric ulcer* Geranium, Ornithogalum, Urtica urens.

*Gastroenteritis* Lactic acid.

*Gleet* Guaicum, Thuja occidentalis.

*Globus hystericus* Asafœtida.

*Goitre* Fucus vesiculosus.

*Gonorrhœa* Cannabis sativa, Vesicaria communis.

*Gout* Ledum palustre, Urtica urens.

*Gravel* Coccus cacti, Hydrangea, Solidago, Urtica urens.

*Hæmatemesis* Ficus religiosa, Hamamelis, Ipecac.

*Hæmaturia* Cannabis sativa, Ficus religiosa, Millefolium, Ocimum canum,

Thlaspi.

*Hæmoptysis* Acalypha indica, Erigeron, Geranium, Millefolium.

*Hæmorrhages* Adrenalin, China officinalis, Hamamelis, Millefolium, Sabina,

Trillium.

*Hæmorrhoids* Æsculus hippocastanum, Aloe, Dolichos, Ficus religiosa,

Hamamelis.

*Hallucinations* Antipyrine.

*Hay fever* Ambrosia, Pothos fœtidus.

*Headaches, anæmic* China officinalis.

*Headaches, bilious* Chionanthus.

*Headaches, bursting* Glonoine.

*Headaches, congestive* Aconite, Glonoine.

*Headaches, nervous* Chionanthus.

*Headaches, sick* Sanguinaria.

*Heart hypertrophy & dilatation* Cactus grandiflorus, Cratægus,

Strophanthus.

*Heartburn* Geranium.

*Heart affections, palpitations* Cratægus.

*Heart failure* Adon vernalis.

*Hectic fever* Baptisia.

*Hepatitis* Carduus marianus, Chelidonium.

*Herpes labialis* Capsicum.

*Hiccough* Ginseng.

*Hoarseness* Verbascum.

*Hookworm* Chenopodium.

*Hydrocephalus* Apocyanum, Hedera Helix.

*Hydrothorax* Adonis vernalis.

*Hysteria* Crocus sativa, Ignatia, Passiflora.

*Impotence* Ægle folia, Agnus castus, Ashwagandha, Turnera, Yohimbinum.

*Influenza* Eucalyptus, Eupatorium perfoliatum.

*Insomnia* Avena sativa, Passiflora, Piscidia.

*Intermittent fever* Atista indica, Andersonia, Cephalandra indica, Chininum

sulph, Chirata, Desmodium, Eupatorium perfoliatum, Lucas aspera.

*Jaundice* Carica pappaya, Chelidonium, Chionanthus, Digitalis, Kalmegh,

Myrica, Podophyllum.

*Kidneys (congestive) * Chimaphila umbellata, Terebinth, Vesicaria, Uva ursi.

*Labour pains false* Caulophyllum.

*Labour, retained placenta* Caulophyllum.

*Labour, hæmorrhage, after* Trillium.

*Lectophobia* Cannabis sativa.

*Leprosy* Calotropis, Hydrocotyle.

*Leucoderma* Hydrocotyle, Psoralea corylifolia.

*Leucorrhœa* Ashoka, Caulophyllum, China officinalis, Hydrastis.

*Leucorrhœa, acrid* Hydrastis.

*Leucorrhœa, blackish* China officinalis.

*Leucorrhœa, bland* Fraxinus americana.

*Leucorrhœa, bloody* China oficinalis, Thlaspi.

*Leucorrhœa, offensive* Carbolic acid.

*Leucorrhœa, profuse* Hydrastis.

*Leucorrhœa, stringy* Hydrastis.

*Lice* Staphysagria.

*Lithiasis* Benzoic acid, Berberis vulgaris, Hydrangea, Ocimum canum,

Solidago, Thlaspi, Urtica urens.

*Liver (congestion) * Berberis vulgaris, Bryonia alba, Carduus marianus,

Chelidonium, Carica pappaya.

*Lumbago* Berberis vulgaris.

*Malaria* Alstonia, Chirata.

*Malnutrition* Alfalfa, Gentiana lutea.

*Marasmus* Alfalfa, Oleum jecoris.

*Mastitis* Phytolacca.

*Meniere's disease* Chenopodium.

*Menorrhagia* Ashoka, China officinalis, Ficus religiosa, Sabina.

*Menstruation, delayed* Ashoka, Caulophyllum.

*Menstruation, painful* Abroma augusta radix, Ashoka, Viburnum opulis.

*Menstruation, profuse* Ficus religiosa, Trillium.

*Mental weakness* Avena sativa, Ashwagandha.

*Milk leg* Hamamelis.

*Miscarriage, repeated* Ashoka, Viburnum opulis.

*Miscarriage, threatened* Sabina, Viburnum opulis.

*Morning sickness* Aletris farinosa, Symphoricarpus racemosus.

*Morphine habit* Avena sativa.

*Mountain sickness* Coca.

*Mumps* Pilocarpine.

*Muscæ volitantes* Cypripedium.

*Myocarditis* Digitalis.

*Myositis* Arnica.

*Nævus* Thuja occidentalis.

*Nephritis* Apis mellifica, Berberis vulgaris, Cantharis, Eucalyptus, Terebinth.

*Nettle rash* Apis mellifica, Hygrophilia, Strophanthus.

*Neuralgia* Sanguinaria.

*Neuralgia, periodic* Cedron.

*Neurasthenia* Avena sativa, Arnica, Cypripedium, Phosphoric acid.

*Neurasthenia, gastric* Anacardium, Gentiana.

*Neuritis* Hypericum.

*Night blindness* Physostigma.

*Night sweats* Chamomilla, Phosphoric acid, Pilocarpine.

*Obesity* Fucus vesiculosus, Phytolacca berry.

*Œdema* Apis mellifica, Digitalis.

*Osteomalacia* Phosphoric acid.

*Otitis media* Chenopodium.

*Otorrhœa* Hydrastis.

*Ovarian cyst* Apis mellifica.

*Ovaritis* Xanthoxyllum.

*Oxaluria* Berberis vulgaris, Senna.

*Ozæna* Hydrastis.

*Palpitations* Adonis vernalis, Cactus grandiflorus, Convalleria, Digitalis, Iberis

amara.

*Paresis* Badiaga.

*Paresis, pneumogastric* Grindelia.

*Paresis, respiratory* Lobelia inflata.

*Pemphigus* Caltha palustris.

*Pericarditis* Digitalis.

*Periostitis* Apis mellifica, Asafœtida.

*Peritonitis* Apis mellifica, Apocynum, Lycopodium.

*Pharyngitis, follicular* Æsculus hippocastanum, Hydrastis, Sanguinaria.

*Phlebitis* Hamamelis.

*Phthisis* Acalypha indica.

*Phthisis, laryngeal* Drosera.

*Pleurisy* Aconite, Apis mellifica.

*Pleurisy, effusion stage* Abrotanum, Kali iodatum.

*Pleurodynia* Bryonia alba.

*Pneumonia* Chelidonium.

*Polypi* Sanguinaria, Thuja occidentalis.

*Polypi, nasal* Teucrium.

*Polyuria* Phosphoric acid, Rhus aromatica, Uranium nitricum.

*Proctitis* Aloe.

*Prosopalgia* Cactus grandiflorus.

*Prostatitis* Sabal serrulata, Thuja occidentalis.

*Prostatic hypertrophy* Chimaphila umbellata, Hydrangea, Sabal serrulata.

*Pruritus* Carduus marianus.

*Psoriasis* Arsenic bromatum, Chrysarobinum.

*Purpura* Hamamelis.

*Pyæmia* Echinacea.

*Pyelitis* Chimaphila umbellata, Terebinth, Uva ursi.

*Pyorrhœa* Plantago, Terminalia chebula.

*Ranula* Thuja occidentalis.

*Raynaud's disease* Cactus grandiflorus, Secale cornutum.

*Rheumatism* Kalmia, Thuja occidentalis.

*Rheumatism, chronic* Oleum jecoris.

*Rheumatism, gonorrhœal* Thuja occidentalis.

*Ringworm* Chrysarobinum, Sepia.

*Scabies* Balsmum peruvianum.

*Sciatica* Viscum album.

*Scurvy* Agave, Citric acid, Hamamelis.

*Sepsis* Echinacea.

*Somnambulism* Artemisia vulgaris.

*Spermatorrhœa* Agnus castus, Avena sativa, Damiana, Ginseng, Ocimum

canum, Yohimbinum.

*Spleen affections* Azadirachta indica, Asafœtida, Ceanothus, Carica pappaya,

Calotropis, Kalmegh, Leucas aspera, Luffa actangula, Quercus.

*Sterility* Agnus castus, Thlaspi, Turnera.

*Stings* Apis mellifica, Ledum palustre, Urtica urens.

*Stomach dilatation* Hydrastinum muriaticum.

*Subinvolution* Fraxinus americana.

*Sycosis* Thuja occidentalis.

*Synovitis* Apis mellifica.

*Syphilis* Guaicum.

*Syphilis, latent* Calotropis.

*Tachycardia* Cactus grandiflorus, Convalleria, Cratægus, Digitalis, Iberis

amara.

*Tape worm* Cuprum oxidatum nigrum, Filix mas.

*Tape worm* Filix mas.

*Tetanus* Passiflora.

*Thread worm* Turpentine oil, Chelone.

*Tobacco craving* Daphne indica.

*Toothache* Plantago.

*Traumatism* Arnica, Bellis perrenis, Calendula officinalis, Hamamelis,

Hypericum, Ledum palustre, Ruta graveolens, Symphytum.

*Tumours* Hydrastis, Thuja occidentalis.

*Typhoid* Abroma augusta radix, Baptisia, Bryonia alba, Phosphoric acid.

*Ulcers* Calendula officinalis, Carbolic acid, Echinacea.

*Urethral carbuncle* Eucalyptus.

*Urethritis* Cantharis.

*Uric acid diathesis* Ocimum canum.

*Urticaria* Antipyrine, Apis mellifica.

*Uterine displacement* Fraxinus americana.

*Uterine tumours* Thlaspi.

*Vaginismus* Cactus grandiflorus.

*Varicose veins with rapid reducers* Glonoine.

*Varicose veins with arterial lesions* Adrenalin.

*Varicose veins* Hamamelis.

*Venous stasis* Æsculus hippocastanum.

*Warts* Thuja occidentalis.

*Well's disease* Chelidonium.

*Whooping cough* Drosera.

*Worms* Santoninum, Filix mas.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Mother tinctures (External Use).

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Chrysarobinum *Acne 1* Locally as a cerate, 4-8 grains to the ounce, of

vaseline.

Echinacea *Acne 2* Can be applied on face mixed with any facial cream.

Ichthyolum *Acne rosacea* Externally used as an ointment with Lanoline 20 to

50 per cent.

Cinnamonum *Antiseptic 1* 3-4 drops in 2 quarts of water and should be used

as a douche.

Echinacea *Antiseptic 2* Bed sores, Carbuncles, Insect-bites, Gangrene.

Eupatorium Aromaticum *Aphthæ* Aphthous disease of mouths of infants.

Used as a mouth wash.
Hydrastinum Muriaticum *Aphthous ulcers* To be used locally in the
strength of 10 grains to 8 ounces.

Jaborandi *Baldness* Mix it with hair oil and apply it. It can be mixed with
Arnica mother tincture also to get a better result.

Cedron *Bites* For insect stings and snake bites.

Adrenalin *Bleeding 1* To plug the internal bleeding surface, as in epistaxis to

stop the bleeding immediately. 1 : 1000 solution.

Ferrum Phos *Bleeding 2* To arrest bleeding. Hæmorrhages are bright red and
occur in pale, anæmic subjects liable to local congestions.

Mag Sulph *Boils* Small eruptions all over the body that itch violently.

Arnica Montana *Bruises, contusions, ecchymosis* Skin surface is not broken.

Apis Mellifica *Burns and scalds 1* With burning and stinging.

Cantharis *Burns and scalds 2* Relieves raw burning pain and promotes
healing, covers acute nephritis. One gram of the tincture to one ounce of water is
to be applied externally.

Momordica Balsamina *Burns* Used externally as a liniment and poultice.

Scrophularia Nodosa *Cancer, glands* For cancerous glands locally.

Citric Acid *Cancer, pains 1* Used as a mouth wash for cancer pains.

Lupulus *Cancer, pains 2* Painful cancer.

Cineraria Maritima *Cataract* One drop 4-5 times a day should be instilled in
the eyes for several months.

Momordica Balsamina *Chapped hands* Used externally as a liniment and

poultice.

Ichthyolum *Chilblains* Use locally as an ointment.

Cineraria Maritima *Corneal opacities* Especially after trauma.

Hypericum *Corns* Painful corns. It should be applied 2 to 3 times per day. It

can be applied on painful acne also.

Balsamum Peru *Cracked nipples* Single application as a cerate is sufficient.

Badiaga *Dandruff 1* Dandruff where scalp is dry, sore, tetter-like.

Cochleria Armoracia *Dandruff 2* When applied locally, it cures dandruff.

Cantharis *Dermatitis* With blister formation.

Chrysarobinum *Eczema 1* Where the eruptions are crusty, under which pus
oozes.

Ichthyolum *Eczema 2* Chronic eczema, scaly and itching.

Apis Mellifica *Erysipelas 1* Sensitiveness and swelling of skin with rosy hue.

Cantharis *Erysipelas 2* Vesicular type with burning and itching.

Mag Sulph *Erysipelas 3* Apply locally a saturated solution. Acts as an

antiphlogistic and antipruritic.

Arnica Montana *Falling of hair* Mix with hair oil and apply it.

Hamamelis *Fissures 1* Use distilled extract locally.

Ratanhia *Fissures 2* With great constriction of anus and knife-like stitches.

Badiaga *Freckles* Can be used externally.

Ruta Graveolens *Ganglion* Apply tincture locally.

Ceanothus *Hair tonic* Use externally. Especially for persons with splenic
affections.

Capsicum *Herpes labialis* Apply one drop of mother tincture.

Cantharis *Herpes zoster* Herpes with raw, burning pains. Apply an ointment
made with the 3x potency.

Chrysarobinum *Herpes* Herpes tonsurans where lesions tend to become

confluent.

Apis Mellifica *Insect bites* Especially bee-stings.

Psoralia *Leucoderma* It should be applied on patches and the patient is

advised to take sunheat, in the morning for 10-15 minutes. If there is itching, it
should be stopped immediately.

Staphysagria *Lice* Lice infestation on head.

Phytolacca *Mastitis* Mammæ hard and very sensitive.

Bellis Perrenis *Nævi* Apply on affected parts.

Sanguinaria *Nasal polyp* It is best for nasal washing. When there is a nasal
polyp, or deviated nasal septum. Take seven drops, mix with half a cup of water
and take nasal wash.

Chloralum *Offensive foot sweat* Bathe feet with one percent solution.

Argentum Nitricum *Ophthalmia* Ophthalmia with abundant, purulent

discharge. Locally apply a 2 grain to 1 ounce solution.

Mag Sulph *Orchitis* Should be used locally in the proportion of 1:4 in water.

Ratanhia *Piles* Piles burning like fire, temporarily relieved by cold water.

Teucrium Marum Verum *Polyp* Nasal polypi. Dry powder should be used.

Arnica Montana *Premature greying of hair* Apply locally.

Menthol *Pruritus 1* Especially used in pruritis vulvæ.

Symphytum *Pruritus ani* Use locally.

Borax *Pruritus pudendii* Use locally in pruritis vulvæ.

Mentha Piperata *Pruritus vaginæ* Apply externally.

Chrysarobinum *Psoriasis 1* Crusty eruptions which tend to become

confluent.

Ichthyolum *Psoriasis 2* Externally used as an ointment with Lanoline 20 to 50

per cent.

Phytolacca *Pyorrhœa* As a mouthwash for pyorrhœa alveolaris and for

offensive breath.

Balsamum Peru *Rhagades* Promotes granulation.

Ichthyolum *Rheumatic joints* A solution of equal parts of Ichthyol and water

is warmed and applied to the affected joint and covered with heated cloths,
outside of which is impervious to evaporation.

Alstonia Scholaris *Rheumatic pains* Apply locally.

Chrysarobinum *Ringworm 1* Of the scalp.

Oleum Jecoris *Ringworm 2* Locally in ring-worm and nightly rubbing. Apply
plain oil at bedtime. Before application the part must be washed well with soft
soap.

Balsamum Peru *Scabies 1* Apply locally a solution prepared in the ratio of

1:40. All parts are gently rubbed with it at night and a bath taken in the morning.

Ichthyolum *Scabies 2* Apply externally.

Thiosinaminum *Scar tissue* Dissolves scar tissue. Keloids.

Ranunculus Bulbosus *Sciatica* Apply tincture to heel of affected leg.

Mag Sulph *Septic conditions* Add one part of tincture to 4 parts of water and
apply locally.

Eupatorium Aromaticum *Sore nipples 1* Tincture should be applied locally.

Graphites *Sore nipples 2* Locally used as a cerate.

Phytolacca *Sore throat* Take 5 drops, mix with half a cup of water and gargle.

Platanus *Tumors* Tarsal tumours.

Hamamelis *Ulcerations* With bruised soreness of the affected parts.

Alstonia Scholaris *Ulcers 1* Should be used externally.

Hydrastis Canadensis *Ulcers 2* Locally apply tincture or fluid extract.

Geranium Maculatum *Ulcers, atonic* Atonic and foul ulcers. To destroy the
pyogenic membrane.

Balsamum Peru *Ulcers, indolent* Raw surfaces of indolent ulcers. To

promote granulation and remove fœtor.

Cistus Canadensis *Ulcers, phagedenic* To arrest fœtid discharges.

Symphytum *Ulcers, sores* Apply externally.

Apis Mellifica *Urticaria* Intolerable itching with intolerance to heat and

slightest touch.

Sabina *Warts 1* Fig-warts with intolerable itching and burning.

Sempervivum Tectorum *Warts 2* Apply tincture or fresh juice of plants.

Thuja Occidentalis *Warts, excrescences* Manifestations of the sycotic
dyscrasia.

Calendula Officinalis *Wounds* Burns, sores, fissures and abrasions. Promotes

granulation and prevents scars.

Sempervivum Tectorum *Wounds, bites* Bites of insects, bee stings, poisoned

wounds.

Cistus Canadensis *Wounds, poisonous* Poisonous wounds. Bites.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Reference: Hompath

Mother tinctures (Internal Use).

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Chrysarobinum *Acne*

Bellis Perrenis *Acne*

Eugenia Jambos *Acne*Acne worse during scanty menses. Acne are very much
painful here.

Echinacea *Acne* Can be applied on face mixed with any facial cream.

Berberis Aquifolium *Acne* Clears the complexion. It is useful in acne, small

pimples, roughness of skin of face etc. It can be given in 6c or 30c potency
internally.

Icthyolum *Acne rosacea*

Chaparro Amorgosa *Acute Diarrhœa, Dysentry* 5 drops with plain water

should be taken every four hourly.
Ricinus Communis *Agalactea* To increase the flow of milk in nursing
women.

Jonosia Asoca *Amenorrhœa* 5 drops mixed with half a cup of water should be
taken twice a day. It gives result in seven days.

Urtica Urens *Angio-neurotic œdema*

Cinnamonum *Antiseptic*

Myristica Sebifera *Antiseptic*

Echinacea *Antiseptic* Bed sores, Carbuncles, Insect-bites, Gangrene.

Borax *Aphthæ*

Eupatorium Aromaticum *Aphthæ* Aphthous disease of mouths of infants.

Jaborandi *Baldness* Mix it with hair oil and apply it. It can be mixed with
Arnica mother tincture also to get a better result.

Sulphur Oil *Barber's itch*

Cedron *Bites* For insect stings and snake bites.

Kali Permanganatum *Bites* Insect bites. Dog bites. Snake bites

Ferrum Phos *Bleeding* To arrest bleeding.

Adrenalin *Bleeding* To plug the internal bleeding surface, as in epistaxis to

stop the bleeding immediately. 1 : 1000 solution.

Hamamelis *Bleeding*

Mag Sulph *Boils*

Bellis Perrenis *Boils*

Acalypha Indica*Bronchiactesis*Dry hard cough is followed by hæmoptysis.

Patient is worse at night and in the morning. Blood may be bright red in the
morning and dark clotted in the afternoon.

Bellis Perrenis*Bruises*

Arnica Montana *Bruises, contusions, ecchymosis* Skin surface is not broken.

Urtica Urens *Burns, scalds*

Cantharis *Burns and scalds* Relieves raw burning pain and promotes healing,
covers acute nephritis. One gram of the tincture to one ounce of water is to be
applied externally.

Apis Mellifica *Burns and scalds* With burning and stinging.

Momordica Balsamica *Burns*

Carbolic Acid *Burns* Which tend to ulcerate.

Condurango *Cancer* Epithelioma of the lips or anus. For the ulcerative stage
of carcinoma cutis.

Scrophularia Nodosa *Cancer* For cancerous glands locally.

Cuprum Sulph *Cancer* Inoperable cases of sarcoma.

Lupulus *Cancer* Painful cancer.

Symphytum *Cancer* Sarcomas of antrum.

Citric Acid *Cancer* Used as a mouth wash for cancer pains.

Cinnamonum *Cancer* Where pain and fœtor are present.

Hydrastis Canadensis *Cancers*

Myristica Sebifera *Carbuncles*

Cineraria Maritima *Cataract*

Momordica Balsamica *Chapped hands*

Oleum Jecoris *Children* For dwarfish children, emaciated and premature

infants.

Icthyolum *Chillblains*

Euphrasia *Conjunctivitis*

Cascara Sagrada *Constipation* Palliative for constipation. 10 to 15 drops

should be taken with plain water at bed time.

Cineraria Maritima *Corneal opacities*

Zincum Sulph *Corneal opacities*

Hypericum *Corns* Painful corns. It should be applied 2 to 3 times per day. It
can be applied on painful acne also.

Balsamum Peru *Cracked nipples*

Cochleria Armoracia *Dandruff*

Badiaga *Dandruff*

Naphthaline *Dermatitis*

Cantharis *Dermatitis* With blister formation.

Syzygium Jambolinum *Diabetes Mellitus* 5 drops should be taken twice a

day after meals. You can take mixture of Syzygium, Cephalandra, Rhus aromatica
and Gymnema Sylvestra for Diabetes Mellitus.

Apocynum *Diuretic* It reduces the swelling on feet. It should be given in 6c

potency.

Mullein Oil *Ear affections* Deafness, pain in the ear, chronic suppurative
otitis media.

Icthyolum *Eczema* Chronic eczema.

Skookum Chuck *Eczema* Chronic eczema and dermatitis.

Graphites *Eczema* Chronic eczema with sticky honey like discharges.

Hydrastis Canadensis *Eruptions* Small-pox like eruptions.

Mag Sulph *Erysipelas*

Apis Mellifica *Erysipelas*

Cantharis *Erysipelas*

Carboneum Sulph *Facial neuralgia*

Arnica Montana *Falling of hair*

Kali Mur *Fissure*

Ratanhia *Fissure*

Hamamelis *Fissures*
Condurango *Fissures* About the muco-cutaneous outlets.

Myristica Sebifera *Fistulas*

Badiaga *Freckles*

Dioscoria Villosa *Gall stone colic* Relieves gall stone colic but here, patient is
better by bending backward.

Ruta Graveolens *Ganglion*

Bellis Perrenis *General soreness*

Icthyolum *Gout*Gouty joints*

Alfa Alfa *Growing child, Nursing mother* It is best for growing children. It
also increases milk secretion in nursing mother.

Terminalia Chebula *Gum diseases*

Erigeron *Hæmaturia*

Hamamelis *Hæmengioma* It is used where there is any local congestion, like

hæmengioma.

Fucus Religiosa *Hæmoptysis 1* There is no specific indications.

Sanguinaria *Hæmoptysis 2* Here sputum is very offensive. There may be

hæmoptysis after suppression of menses.

Ceanothus *Hair tonic*

Terminalia Chebula *Halitosis*

Chrysarobinum *Herpes*

Capsicum *Herpes labialis*

Graphites *Herpes zoster*

Cantharis *Herpes zoster*

Lycopus Virginica *High blood pressure* Controls high blood pressure. 5

drops with half a cup of water, twice a day after meals would control high blood
pressure.
Baryta Mur *High blood pressure* Systolic blood pressure is high and diastolic
blood pressure is low. But it should be given in 3x trituration.

Rhus Toxicodendron *Impetigo*

Apis Mellifica *Insect bites* Especially bee-stings.

Piscidia *Insomnia* Here cause of insomnia is mental worries. 5 to 10 drops

can be taken with half a cup of plain water.

Psoralia *Leucoderma* It should be applied on patches and the patient is

advised to take sunheat, in the morning for 10-15 minutes. If there is itching, it
should be stopped immediately.

Staphysagria *Lice* Lice infestation on head.

China *Liver complaints, gall stone* It is a well known medicine for liver
complaints, but here, it is used to relieve gall stone colic. Patient is better by
bending double.

Chelidonium *Liver tonic* When there is loss of appetite, irregular stools,

liverspots on face and tenderness of liver it is the best medicine. It can also be
taken in 3x potency also.

Viscum Album *Low blood pressure* 5 drops with half a cup of water is
enough to increase blood pressure. It should be taken twice a day after meals.

Phytolacca *Mastitis* Toothache in carious teeth.

Thlaspi Bursa Pastoris *Menorrhagia or Metrorrhagia* It is best to control

uterine hæmorrhage in menorrhagia or metrorrhagia like conditions. Sabina also
should be thought of for this conditions.

Arnica Montana *Muscular stiffness* Resulting from over work, exposure to

cold and dampness.

Bryonia Alba *Myalgia* Especially of the intercostal muscles.

Bellis Perrenis *Nævi*

Sanguinaria *Nasal polyp* It is best for nasal washing. When there is a nasal
polyp, or deviated nasal septum. Take seven drops, mix with half a cup of water
and take nasal wash.

Aquilegia *Nervousness* It is specially for nervous hysterical women. There is

one other medicine Cypripedium, it is also given to nervous hysterical women.
Phytolacca *Obesity*

Fucus *Obesity* Take 5 drops, mixed with half a cup of water, twice a day.

Chloralum *Offensive foot sweat*

Euphrasia *Opacities*

Argentum Nitricum *Ophthalmia*

Mag Sulph *Orchitis*

Phytolacca *Otorrhœa*

Kali Permanganatum *Otorrhœa* Chronic otorrhœa.

Thuja Occidentalis *Piles*

Ratanhia *Piles*

Collinsonia *Piles* Bleeding piles. 5 drops, mixed with plain water should be
given, twice a day. When this medicine fails try Millefolium.

Hamamelis *Piles* Bleeding piles.

Kali Mur *Piles*

Æsculus Hippocastanum *Piles* Non-bleeding, with prolapse, with backache.

Bryonia Alba *Pneumonia*

Lemna Minor *Polyp* Nasal polypi.

Teucrium Marum Verum *Polyp* Nasal polypi.

Hypericum *Post-operative* Relieves post-operative pains.

Arnica Montana *Premature greying of hair*

Syzygium Jambolinum *Prickly heat*

Sabal Serrulata *Prostate enlargement* When micturition is difficult.

Menthol *Pruritus*

Phytolacca *Pruritus*
Symphytum *Pruritus ani*

Borax *Pruritus pudendii*

Mentha Piperata *Pruritus vaginæ*

Icthyolum *Psoriasis*

Chrysarobinum *Psoriasis*

Phytolacca *Pyorrhœa* As a mouthwash for pyorrhœa alveolaris and for

offensive breath.

Sarsaparilla *Renal colic* Right sided renal colic.

Berberis Vulgaris *Renal stone* When there is left sided renal colic, think of
this medicine.

Balsamum Peru *Rhagades*

Alstonia Scholaris *Rheumatic pains*

Rhus Toxicodendron *Rheumatic pains*

Oleum Jecoris *Ringworm*

Chrysophanic Acid *Ringworm, psoriasis, eczema* Where the eruptions are

crusty, under which pus oozes.

Chrysarobinum *Ringworm* Of the scalp.

Sulphur *Scabies*

Balsamum Peru *Scabies*

Icthyolum *Scabies*

Thiosinaminum *Scar tissue*Dissolves scar tissue. Keloids.

Ranunculus Bulbosus *Sciatica*

Bryonia Alba *Sciatica*

Carboneum Sulph *Sciatica*

Mag Sulph *Septic conditions*

Damiana *Sexual tonic* Other name of this medicine is Turnera.

Passiflora *Sleeplessness* It is best for old age people. It can be taken 20 to 60

drops with water at bed time. It also decreases blood pressure, so it is the
medicine for high blood pressure.

Thea *Sleeplessness, Tea habit* It is given for nervous sleeplessness with history
of tea habit.

Badiaga *Sore muscles*

Eupatorium Aromaticum *Sore nipples*

Graphites *Sore nipples*

Phytolacca *Sore throat* Take 5 drops, mix with half a cup of water and gargle.

Rhus Toxicodendron *Sprains*

Bryonia Alba *Stiff neck*

Condurango *Stricture œsophagus*

Badiaga *Swollen glands*

China *Tonic 1* It is to be taken before meal and it acts as a best tonic. Other
tonic is Gentiana + Quassia + Hydrastis. But it should be taken (5 drops each) after
meal. It is the best tonic for Tubercular patients.

Euphrasia *Trachoma*

Argentum Nitricum *Trachoma*

Bellis Perrenis *Trauma* Venous congestion due to mechanical causes.

Platanus *Tumors* Tarsal tumours.

Hamamelis *Ulcerations*

Hydrastis Canadensis *Ulcers*

Hydrastinum Muriaticum *Ulcers* Aphthous ulcers, ulcerated sore throat.

Geranium Maculatum *Ulcers* Atonic and foul ulcers. To destroy the

pyogenic membrane.

Graphites *Ulcers* Chronic ulcers.

Carbolic Acid *Ulcers* Foul smelling ulcers.

Cistus Canadensis *Ulcers* Phagedenic ulcers, to arrest fœtid discharges.

Balsamum Peru *Ulcers* Raw surfaces of indolent ulcers. To promote

granulation and remove fœtor.

Alstonia Scholaris *Ulcers*

Symphytum *Ulcers, sores*

Apis Mellifica *Urticaria*

Urtica Urens *Urticaria*

Hamamelis *Varicose veins*

Sempervivum Tectorum *Warts*

Sabina *Warts*

Kali Permanganatum *Warts*

Thuja Occidentalis *Warts, excrescences*

Ratanhia *Worms* Thread worms.

Sempervivum Tectorum *Wounds* Bites of insects, bee stings, poisoned

wounds.

Calendula Officinalis *Wounds* Burns, sores, fissures and abrasions.

Phytolacca *Wounds* Incised wounds*

Ledum Palustre *Wounds* In cases of punctured wounds to prevent tetanus.

Insect bites.

Cistus Canadensis *Wounds* Poisonous wounds. Bites.

Hypericum *Wounds* Punctured wounds, crushed injuries of fingers. For bites

and stings of animals and insects. Injuries to nerves. Prevents tetanus.

NOTE :
Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for
medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Reference: Hompath

Bronchial Asthma.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

INTRODUCTION

Asthma, disorder of the respiratory system in which the passages that enable air
to pass into and out of the lungs periodically narrow, causing coughing,
wheezing, and shortness of breath. This narrowing is typically temporary and
reversible, but in severe attacks, asthma may result in death. Asthma most
commonly refers to bronchial asthma, an inflammation of the airways, but the
term is also used to refer to cardiac asthma, which develops when fluid builds up
in the lungs as a complication of heart failure. This article focuses on bronchial
asthma.

BREATHING

Every cell in the human body requires oxygen to function, and the lungs make
that oxygen available. With every breath we take, air travels to the lungs through
a series of tubes and airways. After passing through the mouth and throat, air
moves through the larynx, commonly known as the voice box, and then through
the trachea, or windpipe. The trachea divides into two branches, called the right
bronchus and the left bronchus, that connect directly to the lungs. Air continues
through the bronchi, which divide into smaller and smaller air passages in the
lungs, called bronchioles. The bronchioles end in clusters of tiny air sacs, called
alveoli, which are surrounded by tiny, thin-walled blood vessels called capillaries.

Here, deep in the lungs, oxygen diffuses through the alveoli walls and into the
blood in the capillaries, and gaseous waste products in the blood—mainly carbon
dioxide—diffuse through the capillary walls and into the alveoli. But if
something prevents the oxygen from reaching the alveoli, the body’s cells do not
receive a constant supply of vital oxygen, and carbon dioxide builds up to
harmful levels in the blood.

THE ASHTMA ATTACK

Asthma attacks occur when the bronchi and bronchioles become inflamed,
reducing the space through which air can travel through the lungs. This causes
the asthmatic to work harder to move air in and out of the lungs. Asthma attacks
usually begin with mild chest pressure and a dry cough. As an attack intensifies,
wheezing develops and increases in pitch; breathing becomes difficult; and
coughing produces thick, stringy mucus. As the airway inflammation prevents
some of the oxygen-rich air from reaching the alveoli, the cells of the body start
to burn oxygen at a higher rate, actually increasing the body’s demand for
oxygen. The frequency of asthma attacks varies considerably among asthma
suffers. Some people have daily attacks, while others can go months or even
years without having an attack.

Inflammation of the airway occurs when an irritant—such as pet hair or cigarette

smoke—comes into contact with the airway walls. Upon detecting the irritant as
a harmful invader, the body’s immune system sends special cells known as mast
cells to the site of irritation, in this case the airway walls. The mast cells release
histamine, a chemical that causes swelling and redness in a process called the
inflammatory response. Histamine also causes bronchospasms, in which the
muscles lining the airway walls contract repeatedly, causing the airways to narrow
even more. In addition, cells that lubricate the airways with mucus—called goblet
cells—overreact to the inflammatory response by secreting too much mucus.
This mucus clogs the bronchioles, resulting in wheezing and coughing.

CAUSES

Asthma attacks are caused by airway hyperresponsiveness—that is, an

overreaction of the bronchi and bronchioles to various environmental and
physiological stimuli, known as triggers. The most common causes of asthma
attacks are extremely small and lightweight particles transported through the air
and inhaled into the lungs. When they enter the airways, these particles, known
as environmental triggers, cause an inflammatory response in the airway walls,
resulting in an asthma attack.

For some people the environmental triggers are allergens. Allergens are usually
natural substances, such as plant pollen and mold spores, animal dander (tiny
pieces of animal hair and skin), and fecal material from dust mites and
cockroaches. Allergens produce an exaggerated response of the immune system
in which a specific antibody, immunoglobulin E, initiates the inflammatory
response. These same allergens may cause little or no reaction in nonallergic
people.

Asthma also occurs in people who do not have allergies. In these people,
chemical irritants trigger an inflammatory response that is initiated in a different
way than in allergen-triggered asthma. For example, some people are sensitive to
certain common chemical irritants, such as perfume, hairspray, cosmetics, and
household cleaners. Other chemical irritants include industrial chemicals and
plastics, as well as many forms of air pollution, such as exposure to high levels of
ozone, car exhaust, wood smoke, and sulfur dioxide. Current research seeks to
determine whether indoor pollutants also contribute to the development of
asthma.

Not all triggers are environmental. Aggravations from within the body are known
as physiological triggers and include exercise and infections, such as the common
cold. Sometimes substances that asthmatics eat or drink bring on attacks.
Chemicals found in food or medicine—such as food sulfites found in beer and
wine—and medications such as aspirin and ibuprofen are especially problematic
for many asthma sufferers. Intense emotion, such as crying, shouting, or
laughing, may provoke hyperventilation, a rapid inhalation of oxygen that causes
the airway to narrow. In asthmatics, hyperventilation often results in an attack.
Many asthmatics are especially sensitive to physical exercise in cold weather.

Research suggests that genetic factors may increase the risk of developing the
disorder. Children with a family history of asthma are more likely to develop
asthma than other children. Despite this apparent genetic link, many people
without a family history of asthma develop the disorder, and scientists continue
to investigate additional causes.

DIAGNOSIS

Physicians typically diagnose asthma by looking for the classic symptoms:

episodic problems with breathing that include wheezing, coughing, and shortness
of breath. When symptoms alone fail to establish a diagnosis of asthma, doctors
may use spirometry, a test that measures airflow. By comparing a patient’s
normal airflow, airflow during an attack, and airflow after the application of
asthma medication, doctors determine whether the medicine improves the
patient’s breathing problems. If asthma medication helps, doctors usually
diagnose the condition as asthma.

Identifying the specific trigger of a patient’s asthma is usually more difficult than
the initial diagnosis. Triggers may be easily recognizable and consistent; for
example, a patient may always develop an asthma attack when using a particular
cosmetic or household cleaning product. When the triggers are more difficult to
identify, doctors perform a series of allergy skin tests to help determine whether
allergy triggers are responsible. Skin tests are not conclusive, however, because
patients may have skin reactions to substances that do not necessarily trigger an
asthma attack. Doctors may also use spirometry to evaluate a patient’s airflow
before and after exposure to common triggers. Triggers that decrease airflow
may be responsible for the patient’s asthma.

ALLOPATHIC TREATMENT

Although there is no cure for asthma, effective treatment is available for

preventing attacks and for controlling and ending attacks soon after they have
begun. Asthma medications are taken orally or inhaled in vapor form using a
metered-dose inhaler, a hand-held pump that delivers medication directly to the
airways. There are two kinds of asthma medications: bronchodilators, which
reduce bronchospasm; and anti-inflammatory medications, which reduce airway
inflammation.

Bronchodilators are the most widely used medications for controlling sudden
asthma attacks and for preventing attacks brought on by physical activity or
exercise. They work directly on sites called beta-receptors that are attached to
small muscle bands encircling the airways. When these drugs attach to the beta-
receptors, the muscles relax and the airway dilates. Theophylline is a
bronchodilator that works by relaxing the muscles surrounding the airways.

Anti-inflammatory medications work mainly by interfering with the activity and

chemistry of immune cells, such as mast cells, that cause inflammation in the
airway walls. Anti-inflammatory medications also help relax the airway muscles
that constrict during bronchospasm. Corticosteroids reduce asthma symptoms
by suppressing the immune response, and they often succeed when no other
asthma treatment works. Over time they reduce the sensitivity of the airways to
many common triggers. Long-term use of oral corticosteroids may have severe
side effects, including weakening of the bones and the development of cataract, a
clouding of the lens of the eye. Recent studies suggest that small doses of inhaled
corticosteroids taken in combination with certain bronchodilators may work
equally well while significantly reducing the side effects. Leukotriene modifiers,
another type of anti-inflammatory medication, are taken orally as an alternative
to corticosteroids for the long-term treatment of mild asthma.

Immunotherapy is a treatment option for asthma caused by allergens. This form

of therapy modifies a person’s allergic response by repeated exposure to small
amounts of allergens. The asthmatic is injected periodically with known allergens,
a procedure that trains the asthmatic’s body to react to the allergens differently.
Immunotherapy is especially effective in reducing allergic reactions to dust mites,
animal dander, pollen, and fungi.

To control asthma attacks before they begin, asthmatics can measure their peak
expository flow rate (PEFR), which is a gauge of how fast a person can exhale air
from the lungs. By breathing into a small hand-held device called a flow meter,
an asthmatic can learn when their airways are first starting to narrow. When the
PEFR falls, asthma medication may be needed to prevent an attack. PEFR and
medication should be used under a physician’s guidance.

Asthmatics can also prevent and control attacks by limiting their exposure to
environmental triggers, especially allergens. Frequently cleaning carpeting,
bedding, and household upholstery reduces levels of irritants and allergens in the
home. To prevent asthma attacks, asthmatics should wear a mask while cleaning.
Regularly bathing pets minimizes levels of animal dander in the air. Asthmatics
should take care to avoid pollutants and irritants such as cleaning sprays and
cigarette smoke whenever possible. Seasonal allergies to pollen and mold spores
can be reduced by avoiding the outdoors during peak periods of activity.

HOMŒOPATHIC TREATMENT

Asthma is one of the distressing ailments which are not easy to cure. After using
palliative medicines to overcome an acute attack, one should resort to
constitutional treatment in order to give permanent relief to the patient. The
main constitutional medicines are:

1. Tuberculinum
2. Thuja
3. Natrum Sulph.
4. Medorrhinum
5. Syphilinum

The above medicines are to be given inter-currently in potency not below 200.
No other medicine is to be given for 2 – 3 days before and after. If any of the
above medicines have the desired effect, further drugging of the patient should
be avoided.

Further, in Asthma the diet plays a very vital role. Thus, the use of white flour,
eggs, white sugar, meat, fish, milk, curd and puddings should be avoided.

BREATHING :

Difficult getting air into the lungs. ----- Brom., Iod.

Difficult getting air out of lungs. ----- Chlor., Sul.

In rapid short breaths. ----- Acon., Ant-t., Phos.

Shallow. ----- Acon., Ant-t., Nux-v., Phos.

Wheezy. ----- Ars-a., Cinch., Hep-s., Ipec., Phos.

Rattling. ----- Seneg., Sil.

Rattling and wheezing. ----- Ipec., Seneg., Sil., Squil.

As if air passages were full of smoke. ----- Brom.

With fear of suffocation. ----- Ars-a., Ipec., Sul., Ver.

PERSPIRATION

Easy. ----- Cinch.

Cannot perspire. ----- Cham.

Profuse. ----- Hyper.

COUGH

Chocking. ----- Hep-s.

Loose. ----- Dulc., Nat-s.

Dry. ----- Acon., Ars-a., Bry., Med., Nux-v., Psor.

Violent. ----- Kali-c.

Violent and incessant. ----- Ipec.

Spasmodic. ----- Aral., Cupr., Phos.

Paroxysmal. ----- Nux-v., Samb.

Deep sounding, hoarse. ----- Dros.

< After physical exercise. ----- Dulc.

With: desire but inability to cough. ----- Cham.

With: vomiting. ----- Kali-c., Ipec., Lob.

With: ending with vomiting. ----- Ipec.

With: pain in chest under short ribs. ----- Lob.

With: bleeding from the nose. ----- Dros.

With: must hold chest when coughing. ----- Nat-s.

With: caused by tickling in throat pit. ----- Rumex

EXPECTORATION

Difficult. ----- Alumen, Dulc.

Profuse. ----- Blatta, Grind., Sul.

Worse from. ----- Hyper.

Bloody. ----- Nux-v.

None. ----- Cupr.

BETTER FROM

Rapid walking. ----- Lob.

Stool. ----- Poth.

From being at seaside. ----- Med.

WEATHER

< Change from warm to cold. ----- Dulc.

< Wet and damp. ----- Dulc., Nat-s., Sil.

< Dry cold air. ----- Hep-s., Rumex

< Foggy. ----- Hyper., Kali-c.

< Warm dry weather. ----- Syph.

< Damp weather. ----- Hep-s.

PAIN

In right lower chest. ----- Kali-c

In left lower chest. ----- Nat-s.

In right and then in left lungs. ----- Lyc.

Through upper third of right lung. ----- Ars-a.

Through lung to back. ----- Kali-hyd.

In chest and mammæ. ----- Med.

With burning feeling. ----- Ars-a.

With a constrictive feeling in the chest. ----- Ars-a., Cupr., Ipec., Lach.

With cramplike feeling in cardiac region. ----- Ptel.

ASTHMA WITH

Painful larynx. ----- Med., Phos.

Persistent nausea. ----- Ipec.

Dyspnœa (Shortness of breath). ----- Acon., Dulc., Euc., Ipec., Kali-p., Lach.,
Med., Psor., Sil., Sul.

Hands and face blue. ----- Squil.

Face pale. ----- Sil.

Liability to get colds. ----- Cinch.

TIMING

11 p. m. to midnight. ----- Aral.

Midnight to 2 a. m. ----- Ars-a., Samb.

2 to 3 a. m. ----- Dros., Kali-ars., Samb.

2 to 4 a. m. ----- Kali-c.

3 a. m. ----- Samb.

4 to 5 a. m. ----- Nat-s.

< In morning. ----- Lach.

> Day time. ----- Med.

Always < at night. ----- Aral., Dros., Syph., Tub-bov.

SLEEP

On face in knee/chest position. ----- Med.

Must sit up. ----- Ant-t.

Must sit up as fears suffocation. ----- Ars-a.

Must lie with head high. ----- Ars-a., Cinch.

Must lie flat on back with arms outstretched. ----- Psor.

Sleepless. ----- Chlor.

< Lying down. ----- Grind., Kali-c., Sul.

> Lying down. ----- Psor., Ver.

> From stool. ----- Poth.

Awakes suddenly 3 a. m., nearly suffocated, has to sit up. ----- Samb.

TYPES OF PATIENTS
Fair haired, delicate-skinned. ----- Brom.

Corpulent. ----- Blatta

Easy perspiring. ----- Cinch.

Old people particularly. ----- Carb-v., Kali-c.

Sensitive, result of mental emotions. ----- Coff.

Dark haired. ----- Iod.

GENERAL MODALITIES

Better at seaside. ----- Med.

Better in open air. ----- Iod., Napth.

Worse for pressure on throat. ----- Lach., Rumex

Worse for motion. ----- Ars-a., Ver.

Worse for talking. ----- Arum-t., Dros.

Worse in warm room. ----- Iod.

Worse for food. ----- Kali-p.

Worse with annual hayfever. ----- Psor.

Worse due to exertion. ----- Aspido., Coca, Ars-a.

Worse due to dust. ----- Poth., Brom.

Worse going upstairs. ----- Kali-p.

SUNDRIES

Sailor gets asthma on going to shore. ----- Brom.

Attack of asthma due to mental or nervous emotions. ----- Coff., Kali-p., Succ-
ac.
ASTHMA FOLLOWS

Eczema. ----- Ars. Stibiatum

Measles. ----- Carb-v.

Whooping cough. ----- Carb-v.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

References:

MS Encarta Encyclopædia.

Asthma by N. W. Jollyman

Vertigo.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Vertigo, sensation of spinning around or of seeing nearby objects revolve.

Vertigo tends to be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, headache, or sweating.

Diseases of the cerebral cortex, eye muscles, or cerebellum can cause true
vertigo, but such diseases are rare. Inflammation, infection, or other diseases of
the semicircular canals of the inner ear, such as labyrinthitis (inflammation of the
labyrinth), are more common causes and are frequently accompanied by auditory
sensations, such as deafness and ringing in the ear (aural vertigo), and by rapid
eye movements (nystagmus). These diseases generally last only a few weeks,
during which the vertigo is usually experienced briefly and intermittently.
In his article, David H. Frankel explained that Vertigo is one of the least pleasant
symptoms one can think of. It is frightening, often sudden and unprovoked, and
always miserable. It is not surprising, therefore, that vertigo is a symptom that
brings patients to their doctors. Although the word "Vertigo" is commonly
assumed to be the same as dizziness, it is actually a distinct type of dizziness.

"Dizziness is a general term for sense of disorientation", writes Dr. Robert W.

Baloh of the University of California in Los Angeles, in a recent issue of the
international medical journal, The Lancet.

"Vertigo", on the other hand, is "an illusion of movement, usually a sense of

rotation … a sensation of linear displacement or tilt." Another distinction
between the two is that vertigo, unlike dizziness, is often accompanied by other
unpleasant symptoms such as pallor, nausea, vomiting and sweating.

Vertigo can be caused by peripheral disturbances, such as diseases or conditions

of vestibular system of the inner ear, or it can be central, due to tumours or other
diseases of the brain or brain stem. Doctors can often tell the difference between
peripheral and central vertigo by asking patients about their symptoms and then
doing a few, simple maneuvers during the physical examination. One of the key
findings doctors look for is nystagmus.

Nystagmus appears as rapid, jerky, rotary or up-and-down eye movements that

may occur after a rapid change of position.

Sometimes, more advanced techniques, such as brain scans are needed to find
the cause. Peripheral vertigo is usually accompanied by more pronounced nausea
and vomiting. In addition, patients often complain of hearing loss, tinnitus
(ringing in the ears) and the sensation of ear fullness or pain in the ear.

Many of these symptoms are caused by Menier’s syndrome. In this condition,

attacks of vertigo are recurrent and accompanied by hearing loss and tinnitus.
Occasionally, and most dramatically patients may experience sudden falling
spells.

Migraine is another common cause of vertigo, and in fact up to 25 percent of

patients with migraine may suffer from vertigo. The problem is most common in
adolescent girls.

Vertigo often accompanies the headache, but not always. Sometimes migraine
patients with vertigo also experience visual loss, double vision and difficulty in
walking or speaking.

In older patients, transient ischemic attacks, or TIAs, are a common cause of

vertigo. The attacks begin abruptly and last several minutes. They are due to
atherosclerosis of arteries to the brain and patients with this condition often have
a history of other atherosclerotic diseases such as heart attacks or poor
circulation in the legs.

Positional vertigo is caused by changes in position. One condition, known as

benign paroxysmal positional vertigo typically occurs when turning over in bed,
getting in or out of bed, stooping or bending the head backward to look up. It is
caused by head trauma or viral infection. The vertigo is brief, lasting for less than
half a minute.

More serious causes for positional vertigo include multiple sclerosis and tumours
of the brain stem and cerebellum, the portion of the brain that helps fine tune
body movements.

Treatment of vertigo, of course, depends upon the cause. In Menier’s syndrome,

therapy consists of salt restriction and diuretics. Occasionally surgery is
necessary. Vertigo due to migraine is treated with a variety of medicines intended
to reduce the arterial spasm, and vertigo induced by vertibrobasilar insufficiency
is treated with aspirin or other drugs that inhibit blood clotting.

But no matter what therapy is used to treat the underlying cause of vertigo, the
annoying and often debilitating symptoms must also be attended. None of the
agents for this is recommended for long-term use, as they may interfere with the
normal compensation process of the body.

However, Homśopathy has a better and most effective solution to different

kinds of vertigo and it can be treated quite successfully in a shorter period of
time.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT FOR VERTIGO

Vertigo on turning the head. ----- Calc., Con., Kali-c.

Vertigo on moving the head. ----- Bry., Calc., Con.

Vertigo on looking up. ----- Puls., Sil.

Vertigo on looking down. ----- Phos., Spig., Sulph.

Vertigo from odour of flowers. ----- Nux-v., Phos.

Vertigo on going down winding stairs. ----- Gins.

Vertigo on blwoing nose. ----- Culex., Codein.

Vertigo on watching or loss of sleep. ----- Cocc., Nux-v.

Vertigo on the least noise. ----- Ther.

Vertigo while walking. ----- Nat-m., Nux-v., Phos., Puls.

Vertigo while studying or reading. ----- Am-c., Arn., Cupr., Cur., Graph., Grat.,
Nat-m.

Vertigo while or after eating. ----- Grat., Nux-v., Puls.

Vertigo as if whirling. ----- Bry., Con., Cycl., Puls.

Vertigo as if the bed turned. ----- Con.

Vertigo with fainting. ----- Nux-v.

Vertigo with staggering. ----- Arg-n., Gels., Nux-v., Phos.

Vertigo with eyes closed. ----- Apis, Arg-n., Arn., Calad., Chel., Lach., Nat-m.,
Sil., Stram., Ther., Thuj.

Vertigo with dimness of sight. ----- Cycl., Gels., Nux-v.

Vertigo aggravated on lying on right side. ----- Mur-ac.

Vertigo when rising from seat. ----- Bry., Phos.

Vertigo when rising from stooping. ----- Bell.

Vertigo while eating. ----- Kissingen

Vertigo from lifting head. ----- Popul-c.

Vertigo when rising from bed. ----- Bry., Chel., Cocc.

Vertigo when stooping. ----- Bell., Nux-v., Puls., Sulph.

Vertigo when ascending. ----- Calc.

Vertigo when descending. ----- Bor., Con., Fer., Gels., Plat., Sanic., Vib.

Vertigo when lying. ----- Con.

Vertigo must lie down. ----- Bry., Cocc., Phos., Puls.

Vertigo with occipital pain. ----- Gels., Clon., Petr., Sil.

Vertigo after sleep. ----- Lach.

Vertigo after suppressed menses. ----- Cycl., Puls.

Vertigo of the aged. ----- Iod., Phos.

Vertigo from indigestion. ----- Bry., Nux-v., Puls.

Vertigo from congestion. ----- Bell., Gels., Glon.

Vertigo from brain-fag. ----- Chin., Ph-ac., Phos., Sulph., Zinc.

Vertigo from headache. ----- Apis, Bell., Calc., Con., Croc., Hydr-ac., Fer., Iod.,
Lac-c., Lil-t., Nux-v., Onos., Sil., Stro., Sulph.

Vertigo from heart disorders. ----- Cact., Kali-c., Lach., Phos., Ver.

Vertigo from feeble heart’s action. ----- Dig.

Vertigo from ear diseases. ----- Caust., Gels., Stram.

Vertigo after coition. ----- Bov., Ph-ac., Sep.

Vertigo while crossing bridge. ----- Bar-c., Bro., Lyss.

Vertigo while crossing running water. ----- Arg-m., Bell, Bro., Fer., Hyos., Lyss.,
Sulph.

Vertigo in dark. ----- Alum., Arg-n., Kali-i., Pic-ac., Stram.

Vertigo with deafness. ----- Merc-c.

Vertigo after emissions. ----- Bov., Caust., Nat-s., Sars.

Vertigo, falls backward. ----- Chin., Spig., Rhus-t.

Vertigo, falls forward. ----- Nat-m., Rhus-t.

Vertigo, falls to left. ----- Nat-m., Sil.

Vertigo, falls to right. ----- Calc., Caust., Sil., Zinc.

Vertigo, falls sideways. ----- Benz-ac., Calc., Cocc., Nux-v.

Vertigo with female symptoms. ----- Cycl.

Vertigo with fevers. ----- Carb-v., Cocc., Kali-c., Puls.

Vertigo after fright. ----- Op.

Vertigo from gas light. ----- Caust.

Vertigo from hair binding. ----- Sulph-I

Vertigo, as if intoxicated. ----- Gels., Nux-v.

Vertigo with nausea and vomiting. ----- Chin-s., Cocc., Fer., Lapp., Lob., Petr.,
Sel., Ther.

Vertigo at night. ----- Tarn.

Vertigo felt in occiput. ----- Bry., Carb-v., Con., Gels., Petr., Sil., Ver., Zinc.

Vertigo, periodical. ----- Cocc., Nat-m., Phos.

Vertigo during pregnancy. ----- Alet., Gels., Nat-m.

Vertigo with ringing in ears. ----- Lith., Ph-ac.

Vertigo while sewing. ----- Graph.

Vertigo while shaving. ----- Carb-an.

Vertigo while sitting. ----- Apis, Meph., Phos., Puls, Sulph.

Vertigo with sleepiness. ----- Ćth., Gels., Laur., Nit-ac., Nux-m., Sil.

Vertigo while smoking. ----- Gels., Nat-m., Nux-v., Tab.

Vertigo while sneezing. ----- Apis, Nux-v., Seneg.

Vertigo with sparks before eyes. ----- Ign.

Vertigo with stomach pain. ----- Cic.

Vertigo in Summer. ----- Psor.

Vertigo while facing Sun. ----- Agar., Glon., Kali-p., Nat-c.

Vertigo followed by unconsciousness. ----- Sil.

Vertigo while walking. ----- Anac.

Vertigo with weakness. ----- Ćth., Colch., Crot-h., Echi., Sel.

Vertigo while looking out of window. ----- Ox-ac.

Vertigo while standing near window. ----- Nat-m.

Vertigo while writing. ----- Graph., Kali-bi., Sep.

Vertigo aggravated by Tea. ----- Nat-m., Sep.

Vertigo with chocking of throat. ----- Iber.

Vertigo with trembling. ----- Crot-h., Gels., Zinc.

Vertigo as if falling of wall on her. ----- Arg-n., Saba.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Childbirth.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Childbirth is the process by which a woman gives birth to a baby. A pregnant

woman carries a baby within her body inside a hollow, muscular organ called the
uterus. After about nine months, the baby passes out of the uterus and through
the vagina, also called the birth canal. Childbirth can be painful, but the severity
of the pain varies among women.

The birth process is called labor. The process begins when the muscles of the
uterus start to tighten and relax in a rhythmic pattern. As labor progresses, these
muscle contractions become stronger and more frequent, causing the cervix
(lower part of the uterus) to open. After the cervix has opened about 4 inches
(10 centimeters), the contractions gradually force the baby through the cervix
and out of the woman's body through the vagina. Many women assist the
process by "pushing" with their abdominal muscles in time with their
contractions. The amniotic sac, a membrane containing fluids that surround the
baby, breaks before or during labor. The fluids flow out through the vagina.

In most births, the head is the first part of the baby that comes out of the
mother's body. But in some deliveries, called breech births, the feet or buttocks
come out first. After the baby has come out of the mother's body completely, the
umbilical cord is cut, and the infant starts to breathe. The umbilical cord is a
tubelike structure that connects the baby to the placenta, an organ attached to
the wall of the uterus. Food and oxygen from the mother's blood pass through
the placenta to the baby during pregnancy.

After the baby is born, the muscles of the uterus continue to contract until the
placenta separates from the uterus and is expelled through the vagina. The
discharged placenta is also called the afterbirth.

The length of labor varies greatly among women. It averages 13 to 14 hours for
women having their first babies and lasts 7 to 8 hours thereafter.

Some woman need an operation called a cesarean section to deliver a baby. In

this operation, a surgeon removes the baby and the placenta through an incision
in the abdomen and uterus. Cesarean sections are performed for a number of
reasons, but chiefly because the baby cannot pass through the birth canal. The
woman's pelvis may be too small, or the baby may be too large.

Methods of childbirth. Most women in developed countries deliver their babies

in hospitals, which have specially equipped birth facilities. During childbirth, a
woman may receive medication to relieve her labor pains. In some cases, a
physician will administer a drug to induce (bring on) labor. Before delivery, the
physician may widen the woman's vaginal opening by making a small incision
called an episiotomy.

In many cases, physicians use an electronic fetal monitor to record the baby's
heartbeat during labor. Disturbances in the heartbeat may signal that the baby is
in danger and that a cesarean section may be necessary.

During the 1960's and the 1970's, many hospitals developed educational
programs to prepare women for childbirth and parenting. These programs
instruct both mothers and fathers on pregnancy, childbirth, and infant care. In
addition, such programs as natural childbirth and the Lamaze method teach
relaxation exercises and breathing techniques to lessen the discomfort of labor,
thus reducing the need for painkilling drugs. Many such drugs pass to the baby
through the placenta, so some women choose to avoid them. Some women also
avoid drugs so they can remain alert throughout labor.

A type of anesthesia called an epidural is another popular method for relieving

labor pain. This form of pain relief does not affect the baby or reduce the
mother's alertness, but it must be given by a specially trained doctor. Epidural
anesthesia is injected through a small tube that is inserted into the back next to
the spinal cord. When the anesthesia is absorbed by nerves that go from the
spine to the uterus, it almost completely eliminates labor pains.
At many hospitals, birthing rooms offer an alternative to traditional labor and
delivery rooms. Most birthing rooms resemble a home bedroom and are used for
labor, delivery, and sometimes recovery. Birthing rooms provide a relaxed and
intimate atmosphere where the hospital's facilities are still at hand if
complications occur.

For convenience, following is the Pregnancy Table for expected date of delivery:

Pregnancy table for expected date of delivery

Find the date of the last menstrual period in the top line (light-face type) of the pair of lines.

The dark number (bold-face type) in the line below will be the expected day of delivery.

Jan. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Jan.
Oct. 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nov.

Feb. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Feb.
Nov. 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 (1 2 3 4 5 Dec.

Mar. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Mar.
Dec. 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 Jan.

April 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 April
Jan. 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 Feb.

May 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 May
Feb. 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mar.

June 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 June

Mar. 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 6 April

July 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 July
April 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 May

Aug. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Aug.
May 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 June

Sept. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sept.

June 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 July

Oct. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Oct.
July 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Aug.

Nov. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Nov.

Aug. 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 (1 2 3 4 5 6 Sept.
Dec. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Dec.
Sept. 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Oct.

I have come across with an article published on 16 Mar 2004 in "KID’S

HEALTH" Magazine, which is reproduced below to assist new mothers.

Steps to Recovering From Delivery

That Every Woman Needs to Know

You have spent the last nine months of your life preparing, anticipating, writing
out lists of names, picking out the perfect home from the hospital outfit and
stocking up on diapers while waiting for that tiny precious life to arrive and now
the moment has come. After the excitement and family visitors, it’s a special
bonding time for you and your baby.

You’re filled with love every time you look at your baby, yet you are feeling a mix
of new and unexpected physical and emotional experiences. Lamaze classes, and
advice from your mother and friends who have had children, may have prepared
you for childbirth, but not for this.

First, the important thing to realize is that these feelings are normal and the key
to dealing with them is acknowledgement, then finding a coping strategy. The
following list compiled by the Kid’s Health magazine offers what physical and
emotional symptoms to expect after childbirth:

Physical symptoms

• Tenderness in the breasts: Your breasts may become painfully enlarged

when the milk comes in and your nipples may become sore.
• Constipation: The first bowel movement is usually delayed to the third or
fourth day after delivery and you may feel sore due to sensitive
hemorrhoids.
• Episiotomy: If your perineum (the area of skin between the vagina and
the anus) was cut by your doctor during the birth, it may be difficult to
walk or sit because the stitches are healing.
• Hemorrhoids: These are very common yet usually unexpected and not
noticed initially.
• Hot and cold flashes: Your internal thermostat is fluctuating trying to
adjust to the new hormone and blood flow levels.
 • Urinary or fecal incontinence: Coughing, laughing or straining can cause
you to inadvertently pass urine due to the muscles that were stretched
during delivery, particularly long vaginal deliveries.
• "After pains": Contractions caused by the shrinking of your uterus may
worsen when your baby is nursing.
• Vaginal discharge: Your periods may be heavier, with clots sometimes the
size of golf balls, but will gradually taper off and stop altogether after two
months.
• Weight: Before you start losing weight, your postpartum weight will be
around 10 pounds below your full-term weight.
•

Wide-range of emotions

• "Baby blues": As a result of hormonal changes such as exhaustion,

unexpected birth experiences, adjusting to new roles and feelings of loss
of control over your life, makes up about 80 percent of what new moms
feel. Emotions such as sadness, crying, or anxiety can happen days or
weeks after delivery.
• Postpartum depression: 10 percent to 20 percent of new moms may
experience mood swings, anxiety, guilt and persistent sadness. This is
considered more serious than the baby blues and can occur several
months after delivery.
• Postpartum psychosis: A severe and fairly rare condition that may become
life threatening to you and your baby and you should call your doctor
immediately if you experience any feelings of harming yourself or your
baby.
•

What to expect after a cesarean section

• This is a major surgery and takes a much longer time to heal.

• The worse pain will be the day after the surgery and will gradually begin to
subside.
• Don’t scratch the area of the incision and take sponge baths for the first
several days.
• If you notice any redness or swelling around the incision, call your doctor
to make sure it isn’t infected.
• To help the recovery process, start gentle exercises such as abdominal
tightening, bending and walking, (with assistance initially) as soon as
possible.
• Drink lots of water, preferably eight to ten glasses a day.
• Expect vaginal discharge.
• Avoid stairs and driving until you have healed properly.
Taking time for yourself

One major area of new mothers’ lives that is thrown off kilter once the baby
arrives is allowing time for you. Experts say that it’s important for moms to
know that if you feel like you need some time for yourself, that you not only
deserve it but are entitled to it.

Making time in your schedule whether that be through the help of a significant
other, family member or friend, will help with giving you the feeling of having
control over your life and gaining some sense of self.

Experts recommend beginning a self-care program early on after having your

baby and always remember that good mothering does not mean perfect
mothering. Formulating a self-care program involves developing a sense of
balance between yourself and family members and pursuing your own interests
and goals that you set for yourself. Not only are your needs important to the
development of the family, but also are fundamental to their happiness.

The following exercise is a great way to help you set your priorities after
motherhood:

Make a list of five activities, goals, hobbies or interests that are important to you
to pursue in the year following childbirth.

Next, make a promise to yourself that you will look at this list a few months after
your baby is born. By doing this exercise, you can integrate your interests with
motherhood.

Keeping a strong relationship with your partner

Having a baby always puts relationships to the test and it’s up to you and your
partner to determine if your relationship will get stronger or weaker as a result of
this experience.

As it was before the baby, keeping an open line of communication, especially if

there’s a problem, is even more critical now because you don’t have as much
time to spend together and you have many more responsibilities.

Try to put aside some time in the day for alone time and share your feelings as
honestly and supportively as you can. Come up with solutions together as a
couple.

Keep your romance alive by scheduling "date nights."

HOMŒOPATHIC TREATMENT
Complications of Labour

* If labour delayed owing to rigid os. ----- Gels.

* Pains are mild, irregular, do not come on with vigour after first show, nausea
present ----- Puls.

* Headache, restlessness, flushed face and eyes, delirium. ----- Bell.

* Unbearable pain. ----- Cham., Coff., Gels.

* After severe pain, all pains suddenly disappear, eyes and face get flushed,
breathing is hurried and stertorous, lost consciousness ----- Op.

* Severe convulsions, patient crying out. ----- Hyos.

* Other parts of child than head may be born first to prevent it ----- Puls.

* Rigid os. ----- Bell.

* Difficult labour. ----- Arn.

* Fits of unconsciousness during or after labour, body cold, pulse feeble -----
Camph..

* Placenta nor expelled or detached within an hour of delivery ----- Puls., Sec.

Complications of Delivery

Rupture

The space between the vagina and rectum is ruptured or lacerated mostly in cases
of first delivery. It requires the help of a skillful surgeon to mend it -----
Calendula Lotion.

After Pains

These are sometimes troublesome. ----- Arn.

But if the mother is irritable or neurotic in temperament. ----- Cham.

If Arnica fails. ----- Coff., Gels., Sec.

Hæmorrhage

Keep the patient lying down with head low and feet raised. Firmly knead the
uterus and give an intra-uterine douche or water at 120 degree F ----- Sabin.,
Ham.

For weakness. ----- Chin.

For headache. ----- Fer.

Unconsciousness

If associated with collapse. ----- Rubini’s Spt. Camphor Q

If unconsciousness comes on after slight movements or is associated with cold

sweat on forehead ----- Ver-a.

If fits of unconsciousness comes on pretty frequently or last long. ----- Stram.

If due to trauma. ----- Arn.

If due to fear. ----- Acon., Coff.

If patient cannot swallow medicines, let her inhale them. Give light nutritious
diet (milk and barley etc.).

Convulsions (Eclampsia)

This is a terrible complications and is characterized by repeated convulsions of

increasing frequency and severity and sleeping coma. Its cause is not known:
probably toxæmia of pregnancy.

During premonitory stage. ----- Hyos.

During fits. ----- Bell., Hydr-ac.

After fits stop, and if mental derangement persists. ----- Op.

If the convulsions are preceded by fever and thirst. ----- Acon.

If convulsions are associated with cold clammy sweat, full ----- Ver-vir.
quick pulse and delirium.

Sudden stoppage of perspiration. ----- Cham., Dulc.

Weakness. ----- Chin., Ph-ac.

Insomnia (without any apparent cause). ----- Coff.

If no urine is passed within 12 hours. ----- Acon. (Every 10 minutes)

If 4 doses of Acon fail. ----- Bell. (Every ½ hr. upto 3 doses) then Equisetum.

Constipation

If absolutely no stool within 48 hours and if pain is felt in abdomen ----- Collin.
or Ver.

Diarrhœa. ----- Hyos., Puls.

Piles. ----- Puls. internally and Ham. Q locally.

Lochia

Usually bright red blood is passed in the first two or three days; then it becomes
pale, then watery and finally purulent matter comes out before the discharge
ceases – about 3 week’s time.

If however this discharge (called lochia) persists unduly long. ----- Sabin.

If scarlet blood is passed for a long time. ----- Sabin.

If lochia suddenly ceases. ----- Acon.

If it smells ill. ----- Kreos., Carb-v. internally and Calendula Lotion Q (1 in 20 of

water) to irrigate thrice daily.

OTHER SUGGESTED REMEDIES

Cimicifuga Racemosa
This remedy may be given three or four months before delivery to ensure safe
and painless delivery. It checks false labour pain also. Cimicifuga also ensure
living birth in women who have previously delivered only dead children.

Pulsatilla

To avoid false labour pains and to ensure safe delivery in due time the medicine
may be given in 1M every 15 minutes – three doses only at the time the delivery
is expected. It also puts the child in right position if it has changed its position in
the womb, if given before the membranes are ruptured.

Aur-Mur-Nat.

It should be given to syphilitic mothers to prevent diseases in their off-springs.

Arnica

An excellent remedy for pains after delivery.

Caulophyllum

Complementary to Pulsatilla in cases where the fœtus is in unfabourable position

in the uterus. Given in 30 potency one dose a day for two or three weeks before
delivery will make the delivery easy and prevent false labour pains. It also helps
when the movements of the fœtus have ceased.

China

After profuse bleeding in delivery. A dose of 1M will recoup the strength of the
patient.

Stramonium
Nymphomania (excessive or intolerable desire for sexual intercourse) in lying-in-
women i. e. during confinement. It is also used in 200 potency for insanity during
pregnancy.

Ruta

Prolapsus of rectum after confinement.

Cuprum Met.

During the course of labour the patient suddenly becomes blind. The labour
pains cease and the convulsions come on, commencing in the fingers and toes.

Nux Vomica

Hiccough during confinement, preventing eating, drinking and sleeping.

Platina

Nymphomania. Great sexual desire in lying-in-women.

Kali Carb

Hæmorrhage due to atonic condition of blood vessels and bleeding starts after
one week of labour.

Causticum

Retention of urine after labour.

Viburnum Op.
For false labour pains which may render a woman’s life a torture for weeks. For
after-pains a dose after every pain will give relief. Also in pain or cramps in the
abdomen and legs during pregnancy.

Crocus

When the movements of fœtus are too violent and painful.

Thuja

Violent movements of the child during the seventh or eighth month which
disturb her sleep with urging to urinate.

Sulphur

Fœtus in uterus as if hurting by fists.

Anacardium

This may be given in 200 potency for sleeplessness in pregnancy.

Coffea

If Anacardium fails, this remedy in 200 potency may be tried at bed time for
sleeplessness.

Aconite

For sleeplessness if caused by fright, fear or anxiety.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

References:

World Book 2003

Mosby’s Medical Encyclopædia

The Homœopathic Family Practice, published by M. Bhattacharyya & Co., Ltd.,

Calcutta.

Select Your Remedy by Rai Bahadur Bishambar Das.

Puberty.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Puberty is the most obvious sign that an individual has entered adolescence.
Technically, puberty refers to the period during which the individual becomes
capable of sexual reproduction. More broadly, however, puberty is used as a
collective term for all the physical changes that occur in a growing girl or boy as
the individual passes from childhood to adulthood.

The physical changes of adolescence are triggered by hormones (chemical

substances in the body) that act on specific organs and tissues. In boys, a major
change is increased production of the hormone testosterone, while girls
experience increased production of the hormones called estrogens. In both sexes,
a rise in growth hormone produces a growth spurt. During this spurt, which lasts
two or more years, an individual commonly grows 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10
centimeters) taller per year.

Sexual development. Many of the most dramatic changes of puberty involve

sexual development. Internally, adolescents become capable of sexual
reproduction. Externally, as secondary sexual characteristics appear, girls and
boys begin to look more like mature women and men. The term secondary
sexual characteristics refers to a variety of physical traits, such as body shape,
voice, and facial hair.

Not everyone goes through puberty at the same time or rate. In Western
industrialized societies today, the adolescent growth spurt occurs, on average,
between the ages of 12 and 14 in boys, and 10 and 12 in girls. But some young
people start puberty when they are 8 or 9, and others not until they are in their
mid-teens. Generally, girls begin puberty about two years earlier than boys. The
duration of puberty also varies greatly, from 11/2 to 6 years in girls and from 2
to 5 years in boys.

Disorders of Puberty

Amenorrhea

Amenorrhea, the absence of menstrual periods. It is called primary amenorrhea if it

occurs at puberty, when a girl normally begins menstruating. Secondary
amenorrhea refers to the lack of menstrual periods in women who have previously
menstruated. Amenorrhea is normal in pre-pubescent girls and in women who
have ceased menstruation due to pregnancy, breastfeeding, or menopause.

Any healthy girl who has not had a period by the time she is 16 years old has
primary amenorrhea. Primary amenorrhea may be caused by the delayed onset of
puberty. It also may be linked to infertility caused by Turner's Syndrome, a
genetic disorder that prevents sexual maturing in girls. Some cases of amenorrhea
are associated with birth defects that cause the vagina or uterus to develop
improperly.

Secondary amenorrhea may result from a variety of factors. It sometimes occurs

for the first few months after a woman has stopped taking birth-control pills.
This type is called postpill amenorrhea. Secondary amenorrhea also may be
caused by intensive physical exercise, including long-distance running or ballet
dancing; extreme weight loss; disorders of the endocrine system (such as tumors
of the pituitary gland), and various disorders of the ovaries. An ovarian disorder
called polycystic ovary syndrome, or Stein-Leventhal syndrome, is characterized
by an extremely irregular menstrual cycle in which ovulation may not occur. This
disorder usually involves infertility, but treatment can help make the periods
more regular.

Amenorrhea is often caused by psychological factors. Increased stress brought

on by such major life events as losing a partner or loss or change of occupation
can upset the normal menstrual cycle for a few months or longer. Increased
stress can cause hormonal changes, such as raised levels of cortisol and prolactin,
which affect menstruation. Periods normally return after the stress subsides.
Treatment of amenorrhea is determined by its cause.

Turner Syndrome

Turner Syndrome, relatively common genetic disorder that causes abnormal

growth development and infertility in females. Turner syndrome is characterized
by certain physical features, including short stature, loose folds of skin on the
neck, a small jaw, and a higher incidence of heart, kidney, and thyroid problems.
Some individuals with the disease experience learning difficulties.

Turner Syndrome occurs in about 1 out of every 2,000 live female births. Girls with the
disorder do not develop secondary sexual characteristics, the body changes, such as
breast development, that occur during puberty. They typically have underdeveloped ovaries, which
prevents the onset of menstruation and also contributes to infertility later in life.

Turner syndrome is caused by a partially or completely missing sex chromosome.

Chromosomes are gene-carrying structures found within the nuclei of cells. In
the human body, all cells except for sperm and egg cells contain 46
chromosomes arranged in 23 pairs. Of these, 22 of the pairs each consist of
chromosomes that are almost identical, while the 23rd pair contains special
chromosomes that determine the sex of the individual. The sex chromosome
pair in healthy males contains an X and a Y chromosome, while the sex
chromosome pair in females contains two X chromosomes. In a female born
with Turner syndrome, part or all of one X chromosome in her sex chromosome
pair is absent. Scientists do not know what causes this chromosomal
abnormality—it apparently occurs randomly and is not linked to factors known
to increase the risk of a birth defect, such as a pregnant woman’s exposure to
drugs, radiation, or disease-causing viruses or bacteria.

Harmones in Puberty

Androgen

Androgen, term embracing any of the male sex hormones, substances that
induce and maintain secondary sex characteristics in males. The principal
androgen is testosterone, produced in the testes of males and in the adrenal
glands of both sexes. Testosterone circulates in the blood and is excreted in the
urine. Androgens function principally, beginning at puberty, in the stimulation of
such male secondary sex characteristics as development of the genital organs and
maturation of sperm, growth of body hair, and changes in the larynx that lower
the voice. Androgens have an anabolic effect—that is, they stimulate protein
synthesis and inhibit protein breakdown, enhancing the growth of muscle and
bone tissue in the developing male. An excess of androgens can lead to a variety
of disorders, including the accentuation of male secondary sex characteristics in
both males and females. Less frequently, an excess of androgens may cause
testicular or ovarian tumors.

Estrogen

Estrogen, any of a group of female sex hormones that stimulate the appearance
of secondary female sex characteristics in girls at puberty. Estrogens control
growth of the lining of the uterus during the first part of the menstrual cycle,
cause changes in the breast during pregnancy, and regulate various metabolic
processes. Among the better known estrogens are estrone, ethinyl estradiol, and
estriol, all produced primarily in the ovaries. Stilbestrol and ethinyl estradiol, two
synthetic estrogens, are respectively five and ten times as potent as estrone; their
activity is similar to that of natural estrogens. They are used to treat various
conditions, including estrogen deficiencies in women (most commonly after
menopause) and inflammation of the vagina. They may be used to stimulate
lactation following childbirth and in the treatment, but not cure, of advanced and
even disseminated cancer of the prostate gland in men.

Research has shown that when estrogen is administered as a post-menopausal

hormone-replacement therapy, recipients experience a significant decrease in
bone fractures. However, questions remain regarding the safety of estrogen in
hormone-replacement therapy. Possible risks include breast or uterine cancer or
cardiovascular disease.

Pineal Body

In humans the structure develops until the seventh year, when it is slightly larger
than a pea; thereafter, throughout life, small mineral particles, particularly
calcium, may be deposited in the pineal body. The mineral deposits can
sometimes be seen in skull X-ray photographs.

Menstruation

Menstruation, periodic vaginal discharge in humans, consisting of blood and cells

shed from the endometrium, or lining of the uterus. Menstruation accompanies a
woman's childbearing years, usually beginning between the ages of 10 and 16, at
puberty, and most often ceasing between the ages of 45 and 50, at menopause.
Menstruation is part of the process that prepares a woman for pregnancy. Each
month the lining of the uterus thickens; if pregnancy does not occur, this lining
breaks down and is discharged through the vagina. The three to seven days that
menstruation lasts is called the menstrual period.

In most women the menstrual cycle is about 28 days, but it can vary considerably
even from one month to another. The cycle is initiated by hormones in the blood
that stimulate the ovaries (the two female organs that produce ova, or eggs).
Each month, hormones cause an egg in one of the two ovaries to mature (to
become capable of being fertilized and develop into a fetus). The ovaries also
produce hormones of their own, primarily estrogen, which cause the
endometrium to thicken. About midway through the menstrual cycle, 14 to 15
days before the next period, the ovary releases the mature egg in a process called
ovulation. The egg passes through the Fallopian tube to the uterus. If the egg
unites with a sperm on its way to the uterus, fertilization occurs and pregnancy
ensues.

The three to five days the egg takes to reach the uterus after being released by
the ovary is known as the woman's fertile period. If fertilization does occur, the
fertilized egg attaches itself to the enriched uterine lining and pregnancy
continues. Menstruation does not occur during pregnancy, and a missed period is
often the first indication of pregnancy a woman notices. If fertilization does not
occur, the lining of the uterus does not receive the hormones it needs to
continue the thickening process. Thus, the uterine lining breaks down and is
discharged from the body during menstruation.

Many women experience premenstrual discomfort. Tenderness of the breasts

and a tendency to retain fluid (bloat) are common one to seven days before each
period. Some women also experience a condition called premenstrual syndrome
(PMS), which is characterized by headaches, irritability, nervousness, fatigue,
crying spells, and depression with no apparent cause. A few women also
experience menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea) during the first day or two of the
period. Although premenstrual symptoms and discomfort during menstruation
were once thought to be of psychological origin, research now indicates that
hormonal and chemical changes are responsible.

Physical Changes

Beard

Beard, heavy growth of hair on the chin, cheeks, and adjacent parts of the face of the human
adult male. The beard generally begins to grow during puberty, when the texture is soft and
downy. In maturity the beard, often the same color as the hair on top of the head, is, as a rule,
more wiry. The amount of facial hair varies among the peoples of the world. For example, the
beard is especially luxuriant among Caucasian peoples, whereas among the Native North
Americans it is markedly thin. In ancient times among many peoples the beard was considered
a sign of strength and manhood; it was highly prized, and removal was regarded as a degrading
punishment. The early Egyptians, however, usually shaved their beards, except in time of
mourning. Among the Jews an unkempt, neglected beard was a sign of grief. In Greece all men
wore beards until the 4th century bc, when the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great
ordered his soldiers to shave as a precaution against being seized by the beard in battle.

Breast

Breast, one of a pair of glandular organs in mammals that secrete milk for
newborns and infants. Also known as a mammary gland. In humans, the female
breast has a distinctive rounded shape while the male breast remains flat and
undeveloped. Only mature females can produce milk, which is rich in nutrients,
antibodies, and other substances that aid in a baby’s growth and development.

The surface of a human breast has a circular, pigmented area in the center called
the areola. The nipple, a rounded protruding structure, lies in the center of the
areola. In mature women the breast contains a collection of 10 to 15 tubes, called
ducts, that connect to the nipple. These ducts branch out from the nipple into
the interior of the breast, ending in clusters of rounded cells, called lobules, that
produce the milk. In addition to the structures directly connected with the
production and outflow of milk, the breast is composed of fatty tissue and
ligaments that provide support and shape.

In humans, a woman’s breast size and shape vary widely, depending on her age and whether she
is pregnant or going through a menstrual cycle. Breast development begins in girls about 10 to
12 years old, when the ovaries start to produce the hormone estrogen. Completion of breast
development, which occurs around 16 to 18 years old, requires the interaction of other hormones
such as progesterone, prolactin, and corticosteroids.

After breast growth is completed, the breasts typically undergo monthly cyclic
changes in response to fluctuating hormone levels in the blood that occur during
the menstrual cycle. Just before the onset of menstruation, the breasts are often
swollen and tender because the ductal system expands in preparation for
pregnancy. If pregnancy does not occur, the estrogen level falls and the breasts
return to normal.

During pregnancy there is a remarkable growth of ducts and lobules in the breast
along with a thickening of the nipples. After a baby is born, the hormone
prolactin stimulates milk production in the breast. Initially, the breast produces a
thick yellow liquid called colostrum, which is particularly rich in the disease-
fighting substances called antibodies. Within three to five days, the breast
produces milk as the suckling infant stimulates the release of another hormone
called oxytocin. This hormone causes contractions in the network of cells that
surround the ducts and lobules, so that milk readily flows from the breast and
into the mouth of the hungry infant. As a woman passes the childbearing age and
enters menopause, the ovaries stop producing estrogen. The decreased
stimulation from this hormone causes the milk-producing ducts and lobules in
the breast to be replaced with extra fatty tissue.

Breasts are naturally lumpy, but any area of the breast that becomes more
prominent than the surrounding tissue or feels unusually firm requires the
attention of a physician. Breast lumps are a common problem in women and
may range from a cyst, a fluid-filled structure that does not pose a cancer risk, to
breast cancer, the most common type of cancer in women other than skin
cancer. Also, in men between 20 and 40 years of age, breast enlargement can be a
sign of testicular cancer, and breast lumps in men over 40, although rare, can be
an indication of breast cancer.

Often one of the first diagnostic tests performed to evaluate a lump, an

ultrasound is able to distinguish a cyst from a solid mass, a possible indication of
cancer that requires further investigation. Solid lumps are evaluated with a special
X-ray procedure called a mammogram, currently the best tool available for early
detection of breast cancer. A mammogram may be followed by needle aspiration,
a type of biopsy in which cells are removed from the lump and examined under a
microscope. If these test results are normal, the lump is unlikely to be cancer. It
may be removed or monitored carefully for signs of growth. If cancer is
suspected, or if the lump shows signs of growth later, surgical removal is usually
necessary.

As a preventive measure, physicians encourage regular breast self-examinations

in which a woman uses her fingers to feel for changes in breast shape and fluid
discharge from the nipple. Physicians also urge women to have regular
mammograms, which can detect very small cancers before a lump begins to
develop. These small cancers typically respond to treatment better than cancers
that have grown large enough to produce a lump. The American Cancer Society
recommends that women age 40 to 49 have a mammogram every 1 to 2 years
and women age 50 and older have a mammogram every year.

Hair

In humans the development of the hair begins in the embryo, and by the sixth month the fetus is
covered by a growth of fine hair, the lanugo. In the first few months of infancy the lanugo is shed
and is replaced by hair, relatively coarse over the cranium and the eyebrows, but fine and downy
over the rest of the body. At puberty coarse hair develops in the armpits and over the pubic
region in both sexes; in males facial hair begins to grow coarse to form the beard. The rate of
growth of the hair varies with the age of the person and with the length of the hair. When a hair
is short, its rate of growth averages about 2 cm (about  in) per month; by the time the hair is
a foot long, the rate of growth is reduced by one-half. The fastest growth is found in women from
16 to 24 years of age.

Disorders of the hair shaft or hair follicle cause abnormal growth or abnormal or
premature falling of the hair. Certain abnormal conditions such as dull or dry hair
are caused by physical or chemical agents. Too frequent use, for instance, of
permanent-waving chemicals or of shampoos or lotions, especially those
containing alcohol or free alkalies, often causes such conditions. The cause of
excessive hairiness is obscure, but in several cases it has been traced to tumor of
the adrenal cortex or to disorders of the pituitary gland, the thyroid gland, or the
ovary. Premature graying of the hair is associated with anxiety, shock, deficiency
diseases, and, in certain cases, hereditary elements.

Alopecia, or baldness, is also due principally to hereditary elements. Certain

forms of baldness may, however, be due to other causes: alopecia prematura, in
which the hair of a young person falls out without preliminary graying, may also
be caused by seborrhea; while alopecia areata, in which the hair falls out in
irregular patches, is believed by doctors to be caused by inflammation, nerve
disorders, or local infections. Diffuse falling of the hair, ordinarily a normal
phenomenon, may reach abnormal proportions after a fever higher than 39.4° C
(103° F), during a debilitating disease, or as a result of invasive surgical
procedures. No nonprescription hair "restorers" actually prevent hair loss or
grow hair.

Infections of the hair follicle also cause a variety of hair diseases. Tinea favosa, or
favus, is caused by the fungus Achorion schśnleinii; it is characterized by the
formation around the mouths of the follicles of small crusts, which frequently
resemble a honeycomb. Tinea trichophytina, or ringworm, is caused by fungi of
the genus Trichophyton. Hairy parts, particularly of the head and pubis, are subject
to troublesome infestations by minute insects and mites, such as chiggers and
lice.

Thymus Gland

Thymus Gland, name applied to a structure located just beneath the upper
portion of the sternum in almost all vertebrates. The thymus gland consists
chiefly of lymphatic tissue and contains a few small areas of epithelial tissue
known as Hassall's corpuscles. The human thymus gland increases in weight in
the first two years of life, and from then until puberty it grows slowly to a weight
of about 43 g (about 1.5 oz). After puberty, it shrinks gradually and the lymphatic
tissue of the thymus gland is replaced by fat. In the adult human the organ is
chiefly composed of fatty tissue. Scientists generally agree that the thymus gland
plays an important role in the development of immune responsiveness in early
life. It is a site of formation of lymphocytes and a site of antibody production.
Whether or not it has any other endocrine functions is uncertain.

Larynx

In the human larynx, two pairs of vocal cords are present. They are made of elastic connective
tissue covered by folds of mucous membrane. One pair, the false vocal cords, extends from the
epiglottis to the angle of the thyroid cartilage; these cords narrow the glottis (the pharyngeal
opening of the larynx) during swallowing. Below the false cords are the true vocal cords,
extending from the arytenoid cartilages to the angle of the thyroid cartilage. Vibration of this
pair of cords by air passing out of the lungs causes the formation of sounds that are amplified by
the resonating nature of the voice box. The pitch of the sound is voluntarily controlled by muscles
that rotate the arytenoid cartilages toward the center of the body (slackening and lengthening the
cords) for low tones, and toward the sides of the body (shortening the cords and pulling them
taut) for high-pitched tones. The extent of the angle formed by the plates of the thyroid cartilage
determines the depth of the human voice. The angle decreases in males at puberty, causing
decreased tension of the vocal cords and a consequently deeper voice, and increases in most
females at puberty, causing increased tension of the vocal cords.

The commonest affliction of the human larynx is inflammation, or laryngitis,

often accompanying colds and accompanied by a temporary diminution or
complete loss of voice. Other diseases commonly attacking the larynx include
croup, diphtheria, and cancer. Laryngeal cancer has been shown to be caused by
cigarette smoking and by the intake of large amounts of alcohol. Persons who
smoke and drink excessively run an especially high risk of developing cancer of
the larynx. It is treated by X-ray therapy, especially if diagnosed early, and by
surgery. Surgical procedures include partial and total removal of the larynx. In
instances of total removal, the patient must learn a new method of speech that
involves, in part, swallowing air and bringing it up again. Various other surgical
techniques have been developed to replace the removed tissue and restore
speech of near normal quality; for example, insertion of a prosthetic device
through a tracheoesophageal puncture has shown a promising rate of success in
test patients.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT FOR FEMALE DISORDERS AT

PUBERTY

* The girl often weeps while stating her symptoms. She is usually of good nature.
----- Puls.

* Menstrual trouble from wetting the feet just before menses. ----- Puls.
* Delayed first menstruation. ----- Puls.

* Diarrhśa during or after menses. ----- Puls.

* Menses unduly delayed and do not start at proper age. ----- Puls.

* In chlorosis she desires strange foods and also a craving to eat strange articles,
such as hair, dirt or sand. ----- Alum.

* Melancholia. Suffering from the effects of disappointed affection. ----- Ant-c.

* Menses suppressed with cerebral and head symptoms, especially in young girls.
There is more or less śdema. ----- Apis

* Dysmenorrhśa of young girls. ----- Aquilegia

* Epileptic conditions and convulsive diseases of girls at puberty. ----- Artem-v.

* Palpitation of heart in young girls. High blood pressure. ----- Aur.

* Mammć turgid (swollen) with milk in the unimpregnated girls at puberty. -----
Asaf.

* Disposition to pimples at puberty. ----- Aster.

* Foul breath in girls at puberty. Ulceration of gums. ----- Aur.

* Persons subject to quinsy. Muscular atrophy. ----- Bar-c.

* Frequent bleeding of nose when menses should appear. ----- Bry.

* Menses too early, too profuse, too long. ----- Calc.

* Backache and leucorrhśa. ----- Ova Tosta

* Goitre of puberty. ----- Calc-i.

* Headache of school girls. ----- Calc-p.

* Burning desire for marriage. ----- Caust.

* Rapid atrophy of breasts. Women with very large breasts and tumour in the
mammary gland with sharp pain through it. ----- Chim-u.

* Facial blemishes in young women. ----- Cimi.

* Acne in anćmic girls at puberty. ----- Cycl.

* Large abdomen in girls at puberty with constipation. Mammć swollen and hard.
Nipple sore, cracked and blistered. Decided aversion to coitus. ----- Graph.

* Tired backachy females. Pruritus vulvć. Breasts swollen, nipple painful and
tender. ----- Helon.

* Delayed menses in young girls, with chest symptoms or ascites. Difficult first
menses. Tendency to tuberculosis. ----- Kali-c.

* Prostration. Weak and tired. Especially adapted to the young. Extreme lassitude
and depression. Headache of students, and those worn out by fatigue. Breath
offensive, fetid. ----- Kali-p.

* Constipation from puberty. Amenorrhśa with non-development of breast, a girl

reaches age of 15 to 18 without starting of menses. ----- Lyc.

* Mammć full of milk at menses in place of menses. ----- Merc-s.

* Breasts too small and without milk. ----- Nux-m.

* Sexual desire completely destroyed in female. ----- Onos.

* Violent sexual excitement in women. ----- Ferula Glauca

* Effective in masturbation and excessively aroused sexual impulses. ----- Orig.

* Epistaxis of tall slim girls. ----- Phos.

* Delayed puberty with defective development of breasts. ----- Pituitary

* Masturbation before the age of puberty and its bad effects. ----- Plat.

* Undeveloped mammary glands. Breasts shrunk due to menses or some other

diseases of uterus. ----- Sabal-s.

* Menses retarded, suppressed. Functional amenorrhśa of young girls with

backache. ----- Senecio.

* Prolapse of uterus and vagina. Vagina painful, especially on coition. ----- Sep.

* Dwells on sexual matters. ----- Staph.

* Large abdomen in girls at puberty. Burning in vagina. ----- Sulph.

* Frigidity of female. Aids the establishment of normal menstrual flow in young

girls. ----- Turnera
* Neuralgic dysmenorrhśa, with neuralgic headache. Mental depression. -----
Xanth.

* Delayed puberty. ----- Zinc.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Reference:

MS Encarta Encyclopćdia.

Uremia.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Uremia, presence in the bloodstream of too many chemical wastes such as urea,
a nitrogen-rich waste product attributable to extra protein in the diet. As
chemical wastes build up in the body they produce a toxic effect, possibly
resulting in drowsiness, irritability, nausea, vomiting, breathlessness, headaches,
and muscle cramps. In extreme cases, uremia may cause convulsions, coma, or
death.

The kidneys normally filter chemical wastes from the blood and send them to the
urinary system for elimination from the body.

Uremia most commonly develops when the kidneys fail to function properly. In
some cases, however, uremia occurs when blood flow to the kidneys is reduced
due to severe bleeding, serious burns, or heart attack, or when more wastes are
formed in the bloodstream as a result of traumatic injuries or large surgical
incisions than can be removed by the kidneys. A kidney stone, a tumor in the
urinary tract, or a severely enlarged prostate in males may also cause uremia.
Victims of uremia due to kidney failure undergo kidney dialysis, a medical
procedure that removes wastes from the blood. Transplantation of kidneys from
healthy donors to uremic patients has also proven effective in some cases.

Urea

Urea, colorless, crystalline compound, CO(NH2)2, with melting point 132.7° C

(270.9° F), also known as carbamide. It is found abundantly in the urine of
humans and other mammals. In lesser quantities, it is present in the blood, liver,
lymph, and serous fluids and is found in the excrement of fish and many other
lower animals. Urea is produced mostly in the liver as the end product of protein
metabolism. The nitrogen in urea, which constitutes most of the nitrogen in the
urine, is produced mainly from food protein, but part comes from the
breakdown of body cells.

Urine

Urine, pale yellow fluid produced by the kidneys, composed of dissolved wastes
and excess water or chemical substances from the body. It is produced when
blood filters through the kidneys, which remove about 110 liters (230 pints) of
watery fluid from the blood every day. Most of this fluid is reabsorbed into the
blood, but the remainder is passed from the body as urine. Urine leaves the
kidneys, passes to the bladder through two slender tubes, the ureters, and exits
the body through the urethra. A healthy adult can produce between 0.5 to 2 liters
(1 to 4 pints) of urine a day, but the quantity varies considerably, depending on
fluid intake and loss of fluid from sweating, vomiting, or diarrhea.

Water accounts for about 96 percent, by volume, of the urine excreted by a healthy person.
Urine also contains small amounts of urea, chloride, sodium, potassium, ammonia, and
calcium. Other substances, such as sugar, are sometimes excreted in the urine if their
concentration in the body becomes too great. The volume, acidity, and salt concentration of urine
are controlled by hormones. Measurements of the composition of urine are useful in the diagnosis
of a wide variety of conditions, including kidney disease, diabetes, and pregnancy.

Kidney Dialysis

Kidney Dialysis, also known as hemodialysis, medical treatment used to remove

waste materials from the blood of patients lacking renal function. Blood from an
artery is pumped through a dialyzer, or artificial kidney, where it flows past a
semipermeable membrane. Dialysis fluid passing on the other side of the
membrane removes unwanted elements in the blood by diffusion. The blood is
then returned to the body through a vein.

In Allopathic treatment, the following drugs are used:

Captopril

Captopril, drug typically used to control high blood pressure. It is also used to
treat congestive heart failure, heart attacks, and kidney disease in diabetic
patients. Captopril is classified as an ACE inhibitor. It works by interfering with
angiotensin-converting enzymes (ACE) in the body, which influence salt and
water retention. The result is relaxed artery walls and lowered blood pressure.

Captopril should be taken one hour before a meal. Tablets are taken orally two
or three times a day in doses ranging from 25 to 150 mg. Patients are often
started on a small dosage, which is increased as needed. Captopril must be taken
regularly to be effective, even after symptoms are relieved, which usually takes
several weeks. Long-term use of this drug for months or years is not uncommon.

Patients with kidney disease or impaired kidney function should use captopril
with caution. Exercise or other physical activity should be approved by a doctor.
This drug should not be taken by pregnant women, as it can harm the fetus,
especially in the second and third trimesters. Breast-feeding women should be
aware that captopril is known to appear in breast milk. Captopril has not been
proven safe for children.

Possible side effects include itching, skin rash, loss of taste, and extremely low
blood pressure. Less common side effects include blurred vision, confusion,
light-headedness, constipation, depression, fatigue, muscle pain or weakness,
light sensitivity, nausea, peptic ulcer, sleepiness, fainting, wheezing stroke, or
heart failure. A reaction that includes chest pain, sweating, vomiting, diarrhea, or
swelling of the arms, legs, mouth, or throat (including difficulty swallowing)
requires immediate medical attention. Yellowing of the skin or eyes may indicate
a liver problem, which also requires immediate medical care.

Although captopril may be prescribed in combination with a diuretic or digitalis

(found in the drug digoxin), it can react adversely with these drugs. It also may
react adversely with aspirin, certain blood pressure medications such as beta
blockers, lithium, nitroglycerin, anti-inflammatory medications, and potassium
supplements (including salt substitutes that contain potassium).

Brand Names: Capoten, Capozide

Furosemide

Furosemide, drug used to help the body remove excess fluid by increasing urine
flow, also known as a diuretic. This is useful in the treatment of high blood
pressure, congestive heart failure, kidney disease, and liver disease. It reduces
water and salt in the body, relieving pressure on the circulatory system and
various organs.

Furosemide must be prescribed by a doctor. Available in tablet and liquid form,

it is usually taken twice a day in dosages starting at 20 to 80 mg. This is increased
as needed to a maximum daily dosage of 600 mg. The drug may be taken with
food to minimize stomach irritation. Effectiveness is usually apparent after two
to three weeks, although long-term treatment (months to years) is not
uncommon with this drug. Potassium supplements or a potassium-rich diet is
needed in some patients to prevent excess potassium loss.

Patients with liver or kidney disease, diabetes, gout, lupus erythematosus, or an

allergy to sulfa drugs should use furosemide with caution. Its safety for use
during pregnancy is not known, but it does appear in breast milk. Children may
take this drug, with dosage based on body weight.

Possible side effects may include constipation, diarrhea, nausea, headache, fever,
dizziness, excessive thirst, skin rash, hives, impotence, ringing in the ears, light-
sensitivity, or blurred vision. Furosemide may interact adversely with aspirin,
barbiturates, narcotics, and other muscle-relaxing drugs.

Brand Name: Lasix

ACE Inhibitor

ACE Inhibitor, any of a group of drugs used to treat high blood pressure
(hypertension). ACE inhibitors are also used to treat congestive heart failure,
heart attacks, and kidney disease in diabetic patients. Properly known as
angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, these drugs work by interfering
with the enzymes that convert an inactive chemical known as angiotensin I to an
active form, angiotensin II. Angiotensin II increases the retention of salt and
water in the body, raising blood pressure. Inhibiting the formation of angiotensin
II results in relaxed arterial walls and lowered blood pressure.

ACE inhibitors are prescription drugs available in tablets and capsules that are
taken orally. Dosages range from 2.5 to 450 mg per day, depending on the
particular type of ACE inhibitor and the condition being treated. An injectable
liquid form is typically prescribed in 1.25-mg doses administered every six hours.
Effectiveness may not be apparent for two to four weeks. Because ACE
inhibitors control but do not cure high blood pressure, they are often used in
long-term therapy (months to years) even after symptoms are relieved. Specific
ACE inhibitors include captopril, enalapril, and lisinopril.

ACE inhibitors should not be taken by pregnant women as the drugs can harm
the fetus, especially in the second and third trimesters. These drugs increase the
level of potassium in the blood, so other medications and diet supplements that
contain potassium (or that affect potassium levels) such as diuretics should be
used with caution.

Potential side effects associated with ACE inhibitors include abdominal pain,
constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, insomnia, headache, and vomiting. Less common
side effects include anemia, chest pain, changes in heart rhythm, or heart attack.

Diuretic

Diuretic, chemical compound that increases the flow of urine and thus eliminates
accumulations of water in cells, tissues, blood, and organs. The retention of
excess water may occur following injury, as when water accumulates in the knee;
in congestive heart failure, when the heart pumps insufficient blood to eliminate
a normal volume of fluid; and in a variety of other disabilities, including
hypertension, cirrhosis of the liver, and kidney diseases. Heart stimulants, such as
digitalis, produce a diuretic effect by increasing blood pressure and thus
increasing the flow of blood through the kidneys. Certain alkaloids found in
coffee and tea (caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline, in increasing order of
strength) increase urine output by counteracting the tendency of blood proteins
to prevent the removal of water from the blood by the kidneys. A class of drug
known as loop diuretics, such as furosemide, are extremely effective when taken
orally. All diuretics may have severe side effects, may cause abnormal excretion
of sodium, potassium, and chloride, and may become ineffective after repeated
use.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT FOR UREMIA

* With anćmia and paralytic symptoms ----- Ars., Camph., Chin-a., Cinch., Phos.,
Ph-ac., Ter.

* Asphytic form. ----- Hydr-ac.

* With acute atrophy of brain and medulla Oblongata. ----- Phos.

* Convulsions. ----- Apoc., Cic., Crot-h., Cupr., Cupr-ar., Dig., Hydr-ac., Kali-s.,
Merc-c., Mosch., Plb., Ter.

* Tendency to convulsions. ----- Plb.

* With dropsy. ----- Apis

* With cerebral hyperćmia. ----- Am-c., Bell., Con., Cupr., Gels., Glon., Merc-c.,
Stram., Tab., Ter., Ver-v.

* With drowsiness, insensibility and frightful Convulsions (contracted kidney). ---

-- Dig.

* Especially in drunkards. ----- Ars.

* In emphysema, with heart disease. ----- Ars.

* Hydropericardium. ----- Ars.

* Narcosis. ----- Aur.

* In senile hypertrophy, and induration of prostate, stricture of urethra, and

ammonićmia. ----- Iod.

* Puerperal. ----- Benz-ac.

* At beginning of scarlatina. ----- Ars.

* Impending, in scarlatina. ----- Ail., Arum-t.

* Senile. ----- Iod., Lyc.

* With sopor. ----- Agar., Anac., Bell., Hydr-ac., Kali-br., Op.

* Threatened. ----- Canth.

* Uremic Coma. ----- Am-c., Apis, Apoc., Ars., Asc-c., Bell., Cann-i., Canth.,
Carb-ac., Cic., Cupr., Cupr-ar., Glon., Hell., Hydr-ac., Hyos., Kali-br., Morph.,
Op., Phos., Pic-ac., Piloc., Stram., Tab., Ter., Urea, Urt-u., Verat-v.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Reference:

MS Encarta Encyclopćdia.

Repertory of Hering’s Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica by Calvin B.

Knerr, M. D.

Some important sex remedies.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

AFTER COITION

* Great weakness, loss of appetite, lassitude. ----- Agar.

* Prostration after coition. ----- Agar., Calc., Chin., Con., Dig., Kali-c., Kali-p.,
Nat-c., Sel.

* Nervous depression. ----- Ced.

* The prepuce remains behind the glans; it is painful and swollen. ----- Calad.

* Weakness of body and eyes. ----- Kali-c.

* Vertigo after coition. ----- Bov., Sep.

AVERSION TO COITION

* Repugnance to coition. ----- Cann-s., Lyc.

* Women have no sexual desire at all. Frigid. ----- Onos.

* Great aversion to coition with impotence. ----- Graph.

* Aversion to coition. ----- Arn., Graph., Lyc.

DESIRE COITION

* Irresistible desire for coition. ----- Canth., Phos., Stram.

* Increase of sexual desire with flaccidity of the penis. ----- Agar.

* Sexual desire increased. ----- Alum., Anac., Apis, Aur-mur., Camph., Cann-i.,
Eucal., Gnaph., Hipp., Ind., Lil-t., Lyss.

* Sexual desire increased in women. ----- Aster., Canth., Con., Fl-ac., Hyos.,
Lach., Murex, Nux-v., Orig., Phos., Plat., Puls., Ver.

* Increase of sexual desire, lascivious; exposes his person. ----- Hyos.

* Violent erections and increased sexual desire. ----- Mez.

* Sexual desire diminished in female. ----- Berb-v., Agn., Bar-c., Caust., Ferr.,
Graph., Helon., Lyc., Nat-m.

* Sexual passion increased in old women. ----- Mosch.

* Violent sexual desire. ----- Plb.

* Violent sexual excitement in women. ----- Ferula Glauca

* A very marked increase of sexual desire, with frequent erections, especially at

night. ----- Staph.

* Nymphomania. ----- Canth., Hyos., Lach., Lilt-t., Murex, Orig., Phos., Plat.,
Salix-n., Stram.

DURING COITION

* Falls asleep. ----- Lyc.

* Convulsions. ----- Bufo.

* Emission too late or absent. ----- Lyss.

* Coition painful (Female). ----- Apis, Arg-n., Lyc., Plat., Sep., Staph. Thuj.

* Too quick discharge of semen. ----- Sulph.

* Emission absent. ----- Bufo, Graph., Mill., Psor.

* Coition prevented due to extreme sensitiveness of vagina. ----- Plat., Thuj.

* Excessive enjoyment. ----- Fl-ac.

* Want of enjoyment. ----- Anac.

* Erection insufficient. ----- Sep.

* Erection weak. ----- Ther.

* Weakness or total absence of erection. ----- Lyc.

* Fainting during coition (Female). ----- Murex, Orig., Plat.

EXCESSIVE COITION

* Want of appetite. ----- Dig.

* Backache. ----- Puls., Staph.

* Deafness. ----- Petr.

* Eyes and face sunken and weak legs. ----- Staph.

* Headache. ----- Puls.

* Hysteria. ----- Con.

* Loss of memory. ----- Staph.

* Weakness. ----- Ars., Dig., Ust.

GENITALS

* Children handling genitals. ----- Malan., Med.

* Genitals atrophied. ----- Carb-an., Cer-s., Iod., Phos., Staph.

* Genitals cold and relaxed. ----- Agn., Dios., Gels.

* Male child pulls genitals. ----- Bell., Bufo, Canth., Hyos., Merc., Stram.

* The penis is small, flaccid, cold and relaxed. ----- Agn.

* Hands on genitals or pubes always. ----- Zinc.

* Exposing of genitals with indecent talk. ----- Stram.

* Grasping genitals. ----- Puls.

* Inclination to grasp genitals. ----- Bufo.

* Itching in the genitals. ----- Agar.

* Voluptuous itching in the scrotum. ----- Anac.

* Contraction of the penis; it becomes quite small. ----- Ign.

* Penis small, cold, relaxed. ----- Lyc.

* Dwindling of testes. ----- Caps.

* Atrophy of testicles. ----- Chim.

SEMINAL EMISSIONS

* Seminal emissions in sleep with absence of erections. ----- Nuph.

* Seminal emissions in sleep without knowledge. ----- Ind.

* Seminal emissions in sleep. ----- Agar., Aloe., Ferr., Nuph., Nux-v., Stram.

* Seminal emissions in sleep awake him. ----- Thuj.

* Seminal emissions in sleep, sometimes without erections or dreams. ----- Dios.

* Seminal emissions with vertigo. ----- Sars.

* Nightfall almost every night. ----- Arg-m., Nat-p., Phos., Sulph.

* Seminal emissions when in presence of a woman. ----- Nux-v., Ust.

MASTURBATION

* Desire for solitude for masturbation. ----- Bufo, Ust.

* Masturbation and its consequences. ----- Nux-v., Staph.

* Great sexual excitement driving him to masturbation. ----- Orig.

* Unnatural increase of sexual desire for masturbation. ----- Plat.

* Masturbation in children, due to pruritus vulvć. ----- Calad., Orig., Zinc.

* Irresistible tendency to masturbation. ----- Ust.

* Masturbation in boys. ----- Lach., Plat., Staph.

* Masturbation in girls. ----- Orig.

IMPOTENCE

* Absence of erections. Impotence. ----- Caust., Con.

* Entire absence of erections and desire. ----- Nuph.

* Erections absent, when coition is attempted. ----- Arg-n.

* Erections absent, even after amorous caresses. ----- Calad.

* Erections absent, nothing can produce. ----- Agar.

* Penis relaxed during embrace. ----- Nux-v.

* Complete impotence. ----- Coloc.

* Impotence with mental depression, relaxed penis. ----- Agn., Calad., Con., Lyc.,
Nux-v., Sel., Sulph.

* During coition feeble erection. Impotence. ----- Sel.

* Impotence in elderly men. ----- Lyc.

* Incomplete coition, erection weak emission speedy. ----- Calc., Nat-c., Nux-v.,
Sulph.

* No erection even after caress. ----- Calad., Calc., Graph.

* No emission, no orgasm during an embrace. ----- Sel., Sep.

* Incomplete erection during coition. ----- Con., Graph., Lyc., Ph-ac., Phos., Sep.,
Sulph., Ther.
* Erection fails when coition is attempted. ----- Agn., Arg-n., Calad., Graph.,
Nux-v., Phos., Sel., Sulph.

VAGINA

* Pruritus vaginć, induce masturbation. ----- Calad., Nux-v., Orig., Plat., Zinc.

* Dryness in vagina. ----- Apis, Bell., Lyc., Nat-m.

* Emission of flatus from vagina. ----- Brom., Lac-c., Lyc., Nux-m., Sang.

* Itching in vagina. ----- Arund., Aur-mur., Calad, Canth., Con., Helon., Kreos.,
Merc., Sep., Sulph.

* Coition painful, followed by bleeding from vagina. ----- Arg-n., Arn., Ars.,
Hydr., Kreos., Nit-ac., Sep., Tarent-c.

NIPPLES

* Burning and itching of nipples. ----- Agar., Arund., Ars., Carb-v., Castor., Con.,
Crot-t., Graph., Phos., Sep., Sulph.

BREASTS

* Pain in breasts. ----- Apis, Arg-n., Aster., Bell., Bry., Calc., Chim., Con., Lac-c.,
Onos., Phell., Phos., Phyt., Puls., Sang., Zinc.

* Pain in breasts relieved by supporting heavy mammć. ----- Bry., Lac-c., Phyt.

* To increase breasts. ----- Sabal-s.

* Flat breasts (To make breasts well rounded). ----- Nux-m.

* Itching of breasts. ----- Castor., Como.

* Breast tumour in unmarried girl. ----- Chim.

* Milk in virgin breasts. ----- Asaf., Cycl., Merc., Puls., Tub., Urt-u.

* Wasting of mammć and ovaries. ----- Iod.

* Breasts painful during menses. ----- Calc., Con., Sang.

MISCELLANEOUS

* Men dislike women. ----- Con., Lyc.

* Men dislike women but like men for sex attraction. ----- Plat.

* Sadomy. ----- Caust., Plat.

* Habit of being naked while sleeping. ----- Merc., Puls., Sulph.

* Naked when wakes up. ----- Hyos., Phos.

* Burning desire in girls to marry. ----- Caust.

* Young person who does not like to marry. ----- Lach.

* Neglects wife and looks for girls and goes to cafes. ----- Caust.

* Homosexuality. ----- Med., Plat., Puls., Sep., Sulph.

* Leucorrhśa in little girls. ----- Calc., Caul., Cann-s., Merc., Merc-i-f., Puls.,
Senec., Sep.

* Leucorrhśa in children. ----- Cub., Merc-i-f., Mill.

* Leucorrhśa in infants. ----- Cann-s., Syph.

* Uterine Fibroid. ----- Calc., Calc-f., Gossyp., Lyc., Nux-v., Puls., Sep.

* Excessive desire for embrace. ----- Canth., Phos, Plat., Murex, Stram.

* Suppressed menses in young girls. ----- Alum., Calc-p., Cycl., Pod., Tub.

* Menses every two weeks, lasting a week, very profuse. ----- Calc., Nux-v., Trill.

* Bleeding, Uterine Fibroids. ----- Calc., Nit-ac., Thuj., Trill.

* To increase sexual desire in men. ----- Yohim.

* Anal coition with a woman. ----- Caust., Plat.

* Love with married man. ----- Nat-m.

* Adulterous. ----- Calc., Canth., Caust., Lach., Phos., Plat., Puls., Staph., Ver.

* Mannish habits of girls. ----- Carb-v., Nat-m., Petr., Plat.

* Mannish habits of women. ----- Fl-ac.

* Man lustful, searching for little girls (Obscene/Lewd). ----- Caust., Phos., Plat.,
Ver.

* Threatened miscarriage in 8th month. ----- Cann-i.

* Menses abnormal. ----- Puls.

* Tumours of ovaries. ----- Apis, Graph., Pod., Sec.

* Romantic young persons. ----- Ant-c., Ign.

* Women with uterine disorders. ----- Act-r., Caul., Helon., Mag-m.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Abuse of drugs.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Drug abuse is the nonmedical use of a drug that interferes with a healthy and
productive life. Drug abuse occurs at all economic levels of society, from the
wealthy to the impoverished, and among young people as well as adults. Any
drug may be abused, including alcohol, medications, and substances that give off
intoxicating fumes. Drug abuse is often called substance abuse.

After continued use of certain drugs, some people develop a condition called
drug dependence. It can be psychological, physical, or both. A person with a
psychological dependence craves a drug for the feeling of well-being it might
provide. A physically dependent person continues drug use chiefly to avoid the
physical illness that results when use stops. A danger of any type of dependence
is that the need for a drug may grow so overpowering that nothing matters
except getting more.

Many people begin and continue to use drugs because they want a pleasurable
change in their state of mind. Unfortunately, drugs only change the brain's
perception of difficulties and problems. When a drug wears off, the user's real
problems nearly always remain.

Many harmful effects often accompany drug use. These effects include failure to
achieve goals, undesirable personality changes, physical illness, and death.

Besides the personal damage the drug user suffers, a person's drug use can have a
devastating effect on others. Many drug users turn to crime, such as robbery or
prostitution, to support their habit. Each year, thousands of traffic deaths and
injuries are caused by people under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. Drug
abuse also damages families and other personal relationships.

Types of drug abuse

Some of the most commonly abused drugs in the United States and Canada can
be purchased legally. They include (1) alcoholic beverages, (2) tobacco, (3)
inhalants, and (4) prescription drugs.

Alcoholic beverages are made chiefly from grains or fruits and contain ethyl
alcohol, one of the most commonly abused drugs in the world. Alcohol is a
depressant--that is, it lowers the activity of the central nervous system. It also
interferes with thinking, concentration, and movement. Heavy use of alcohol can
lead to death. Even a single episode of excessive drinking can cause coma and
death. Some people develop a physical dependence on alcohol, and overcoming
that dependence may be extremely difficult.

Tobacco is a plant native to North and South America, whose leaves are made
into smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco, and snuff. Tobacco contains a
substance called nicotine. Nicotine is a stimulant, a drug that raises activity of the
central nervous system. In addition to nicotine, tobacco smoke contains carbon
monoxide and substances called tars, which can cause lung cancer. Tobacco use
contributes to heart disease and other health problems. It can become a habit
that many users have difficulty breaking.
Inhalants are substances that give off fumes inhaled for their intoxicating
effects. They include certain glues, nail polish, gasoline, and aerosol sprays. In
some instances, the effect of these substances results from their fumes' taking the
place of oxygen in the lungs. The reduced flow of oxygen to the brain creates an
intoxicating effect. Inhalants can make the user relaxed, restless, uncoordinated,
and sometimes delirious. Some fumes result in lung damage, brain damage, and
coma. Some also can cause death when they coat the lungs' surface and prevent
the absorption of oxygen.

Prescription drugs can only be obtained legally with a physician's prescription.

Commonly abused prescription drugs include tranquilizers, barbiturates,
stimulants called amphetamines, and analgesics (pain relievers). Many
prescription drugs are powerful, and some create physical dependence.

Steroids are a special type of prescription drug used medically for a variety of
purposes. Some athletes take anabolic steroids because, in certain cases, the
drugs help increase muscle size and strength. Some doctors believe anabolic
steroids may cause aggressive behavior and lead to liver damage.

Abuse of illegal drugs.

Many abused drugs are illegal--that is, under most circumstances, their
possession and sale are forbidden by law. Illegal drugs include (1) cocaine, (2)
marijuana, (3) heroin and other opiates, (4) hallucinogenic drugs, and (5) designer
drugs. Some of these drugs can be obtained legally with a prescription, but they
are most often sold and used illegally.

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant made from the leaves of the coca shrub, a plant
native to the Andean region of South America. Most users eat or snort (sniff) a
powdered form of the drug, or inject a solution of cocaine and water. Some
people also smoke a form of cocaine called crack. Crack produces stronger,
briefer effects than other forms of cocaine because the body absorbs it faster.
People easily develop a compulsive desire for cocaine, and many have great
difficulty stopping use.

Marijuana is the common name for hemp, a tall plant that grows easily in most
parts of the world. It contains a potent drug called tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
People usually smoke the dried leaves and flowers of the plant in cigarettes or
pipes. Some may mix marijuana with food and beverages. The thick, sticky resin
of the plant, called hashish, can be eaten or smoked.

Heroin and other opiates are made from the sap of the opium poppy. Opium,
the dried sap of the poppy's seed pods, contains a potent narcotic called
morphine. Some people smoke or eat opium, seeking pleasant effects from
morphine. Physicians use morphine to relieve severe pain in patients. Codeine, a
less potent opiate, relieves coughs and mild pain. Heroin is a highly addictive
drug made from morphine. People use heroin by eating or snorting it, or by
injecting it.

Hallucinogenic drugs include such naturally occurring drugs as mescaline,

produced within the peyote cactus, and such substances as LSD (lysergic acid
diethylamide), manufactured in laboratories. Hallucinogenic drugs affect the
senses, emotions, and reasoning, often producing delusions or visions. PCP
(phencyclidine), a hallucinogenic drug once used as an anesthetic for animals,
may cause violent outbursts.

Designer drugs, created in laboratories, are variations on existing illegal drugs.

Originally, they were "designed" to vary slightly in chemical composition from
the definition of existing illegal drugs so that they could be considered legal
substances. Today, however, all substances that are chemically similar to defined
illegal drugs are illegal.

Many designer drugs are of poor quality, and they sometimes contain dangerous
chemicals that cause severe brain damage in some users. A designer drug called
MDMA, commonly known as Ecstasy, has an effect similar to that of
amphetamines. Research suggests that it can permanently damage brain cells.

Why people abuse drugs

Young people begin using drugs for various reasons. Some experiment with
drugs because their friends use them. Many young people find it difficult to resist
peer pressure (the influence of people their own age). Also, young people often
have a sense of invulnerability--that is, that death or other severe consequences
of drug use will not affect them personally. Users of tobacco and alcohol may be
attempting to appear grown-up by imitating their parents or other adults who
smoke or drink.

Adults may begin using drugs for some of the same reasons as young people. In
addition, the stress of life, job, and family pressures may lead people to seek
relief in drugs. People also may use drugs for a surge of energy or to help them
relax. Others may use drugs out of curiosity, for a thrill, or to rebel. Regardless of
why drug use begins, many people continue the practice because they become
dependent on the drug.

Effects of drug abuse

Effects on the individual. Both legal and illegal drugs have a range of potentially
harmful effects. For example, alcohol can damage the liver, brain, and heart.
Cocaine can cause high blood pressure, leading to a burst blood vessel in the
brain and a stroke. Injecting drugs into the body with contaminated needles can
lead to blood poisoning, which may destroy the heart valves and result in death.
Sharing needles and syringes with a person who has hepatitis or AIDS can give a
user those diseases. Constant drug use also causes malnutrition, particularly in
heavy drinkers, who tend to miss meals and suffer from lack of vitamins. Use of
illegal drugs may lead to overdose or death because their strength is unknown,
and some contain toxic impurities.

Frequent drug users may turn to crime to meet the increasing expense of their
habit. Criminal activity may lead to loss of a driver's license, explusion from
school, loss of a job, arrest, fines, or even a prison term.

Continued drug use may cause personality changes. The user may become
hyperactive or withdrawn. Some users lose interest in school or work, or have
difficulty meeting the responsibilities of a job or family.

Associated with many drugs are two effects known as tolerance and withdrawal
that often contribute to continued drug use. Tolerance is a state of resistance to
the effects of a drug. A person who develops a tolerance must take more and
more of a drug to achieve its original effect. In this way, occasional drug users
can become frequent users. Withdrawal is the reaction of the body when regular
drug use is stopped. The symptoms of withdrawal can range from headaches and
muscle cramps lasting a few days to death, depending on the drug and the extent
of use. Some people continue to use drugs only to prevent the pain of
withdrawal.

The warning signs of drug abuse are varied. Most abused drugs strongly
influence a person's behavior. For example, excessive use of alcohol or sleeping
pills causes slurred speech and drowsiness. People who use cocaine become
restless and talkative. Parents may notice money and household items
disappearing as their children seek money to buy drugs. Employers might find
workers functioning poorly.

Effects on family, friends, and work.

Some users spend so much time under the influence of drugs or thinking about
getting drugs that they neglect their family, friends, and work. In some cases,
their actions harm the people closest to them. Pregnant women who take drugs
can cause harm to their unborn children. All drug users risk injury or death to
themselves and others if they drive a vehicle under the influence of a drug.

Some people help conceal and make up for a user's destructive actions. They pay
a user's debts, supply money that can be used for drugs, and in other ways make
it possible for drug use to continue. These people are called codependents. Some
codependents do not realize they are supporting the habit. Others may say they
oppose drug use, but they find themselves unable to stop assisting the user's drug
habit. Some codependents fear losing the user's affections. Others may fear the
legal consequences of refusing the user. For example, if rent goes unpaid, a user
might be evicted.

Effects on society. Drug users may resort to theft, prostitution, or selling drugs
to pay for their drug habits. Drug users in the transportation industry, such as
bus drivers and air traffic controllers, risk endangering the public. Factory and
office workers using drugs perform inefficiently and make mistakes. These
inefficiencies and errors result in higher costs for products.

Public concern about the drug problem has led to a demand for greater law
enforcement efforts. The police have responded by making more arrests for drug
possession and sales. As a result, drug offenders have crowded courtrooms, jails,
and prisons, creating a burden on the criminal justice system.

The federal government estimates that people in the United States spend about
$40 billion to $50 billion a year on illegal drugs. But the estimated total expense
of drug abuse is far higher. The problem of alcohol and drug abuse costs an
additional $143 billion annually in the United States and more than $12 billion
($16 billion in Canadian dollars) in Canada. These totals include the price of
hospitalization, property damage, time lost from work, and law enforcement
efforts.
Treatment of drug abuse

Some physicians use medication to treat drug dependence. Such medication

relieves craving or blocks the effect of habit-forming drugs. Doctors often use
methadone, a drug with effects similar to opiates, to relieve an addict's craving
for heroin during withdrawal. Although methadone is addictive, many doctors
believe its use in the treatment of opiate addicts can be beneficial. Disulfiram,
also known as Antabuse, is a drug used to treat alcoholism. It makes the user
suffer flulike symptoms for several hours whenever alcohol is consumed.
Nicotine skin patches, available by prescription, can relieve a smoker's craving
for cigarettes.

Many professionals who treat drug dependence believe that users can profit from
treatment in groups of drug users. In such groups, drug abusers share
experiences and learn from one another.

Detoxification is a treatment used to eliminate a person's physical dependence on

a drug by eliminating the drug from the body. Some programs involve decreasing
the daily dose of a drug gradually over a period of weeks to reduce the severity of
withdrawal illness. Effective detoxification programs include counseling and
other support to help users fight craving and solve the problems that first led
them to drugs.

A drug user can obtain treatment in a medical clinic, a doctor's office, or a

hospital. Unfortunately, many people in need of immediate treatment must rely
on public drug treatment centers with long waiting lists. Waiting periods of up to
several months discourage many people from seeking treatment. Some drug
users die before they receive treatment.

Treatment for drug abuse is not always successful. Some people must fight
strong cravings for years after they stop using drugs. The success of the
treatment often depends on the person's desire for cure. Pressure from the
family and employer often motivates the user to seek treatment and stay off
drugs.

Reference:

Contributor: David F. Musto, M. D., Professor of Child Psychiatry and History

of Medicine, Yale University. (World Book 2003).
 Drugs and your oral health.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

In one of her articles Dr. Lina C. Gracia, D. M. D., explained that the drugs side
effects that may cause permanent consequences to the human being occur
because drugs are not specific in their actions. Medications and drugs do not
exclusively go to the cells that are involved in the problem--instead they go to
tissues, blood, lymph, all cells and organs of the whole body, metastasizing side
effects to the whole system.

For instance, an antidepressant could help people to improve their moods

because of its doping affects, which are similar to cocaine and marijuana. The
only difference is that one is sold legally by pharmaceutical companies and the
other by illegal sources. But the side effects and addictive properties are very
similar. Examples of the similarities include insomnia, suicidal ideation, loss or
gain of sex drive, dry mouth and alteration in moods.

There are many drugs that can cause serious side effects that alter your oral
health. Some of these effects include:

• Dry mouth
• Permanent tooth discoloration
• Gingival hyperplasia
• Oral lesions
• Abnormal bleeding
• Jaw clenching
• Teeth grinding
•

Dry Mouth: This can be caused by common antidepressants and anti-anxiety

medications, antihistamines, anti-inflammatory drugs and narcotics in addition to
drugs used for glaucoma and bladder spasms and urinary retention as well as
antihypertensives. When the mouth is chronically dry, the teeth, oral mucosa and
soft tissue are easily inflamed, painful and prone to infection. This environment
commonly leads to tooth decay and necrosis of the nerves innervating the teeth.

Tooth Discoloration: This is a common side effect of some antibiotics.

Gingival Hyperplasia: This is a condition defined as overgrowth of the gum

tissue. It is commonly caused by seizure medications, heart medications,
medications for high blood pressure and immunosuppressant medications.
Oral Lesions: This is defined as soft tissue discoloration and inflammation. This
can be caused by drugs used for blood pressure, immunosuppressants, oral
contraceptives and chemotherapy drugs.

Abnormal Bleeding: This can be caused by drugs such as aspirin, nonsteroidal

anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), steroids and anticoagulants, which are used to
thin the blood in common conditions associated with strokes and certain
diseases associated with the heart and arrhythmias.

Jaw Clenching and Teeth Grinding: These can be side effects of

antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications. A diet rich in sugars and sugar-
forming foods cultivate the growth of parasites, viruses and bacteria. This affects
our metabolism and stimulates the nervous system causing it to be "over
charged" and resulting in the clinging and grinding of the jaw.

Drugs Demand More Drugs

Drugs that are prescribed for certain symptoms and diseases commonly cause
side effects--this we have established. As though this weren’t enough, those side
effects are often treated with other drugs to counteract the initial side effects.
Thus, the cycle goes on and on with more drugs being needed to counteract each
other and eventually a break down of the body and mind occurs--culminating in:

• Disease
• Disorientation
• Poor digestion and assimilation of foods
• Poor quality of life
• Premature death

An example of these effects include the bleeding disorders, stomach ulcers,

kidney and liver failure and anxiety that can occur from anti-inflammatory
medication used for pain. Another example, cholesterol medications cause liver
and kidney problems and have been associated with an increase in dramatic
deaths such as suicide and murders. The same can occur with antidepressants
and anti-anxiety medications.
Antibiotics are a double-edged sword in that they not only kill the bad bacteria,
but they also kill the good in addition to suppressing the immune system, which
opens the body and the person to further disease.

The Mitochondria, which are called the "Powerhouse of the Cell" as they
produce energy, are postulated to have evolved from bacteria and were once a
single unique organism before it became part of the cell’s cytoplasm. The
Mitochondrial Theory supports that the mitochondria inside the cells is similar or
originated from a bacteria. If this possibility is true, then antibiotic therapy that is
killing the bad bacteria is not only killing the good as stated above, but may also
be exterminating the precious Mitochondria.

One Patient on 25 Drugs!

Hundreds of patients on several medications and medications for the

medications come to Dr. Lina C. Gracia’s clinic looking for alternatives. Recently
she saw a patient who was diagnosed with depression as a teenager that
culminated in her being hospitalized for shock treatments. In the last three years
her treatment has been all symptomatically approached, and she is now on 25
different medications that include antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication,
seizure medications prescribed for her moods and for headaches, antihistamines,
oral contraceptives, antiinflammatories, anti-ulcer medication, an antipsychotic
and three different asthma medications.

When Dr. Lina saw this case, she was in shock that someone could actually be
taking all this medication at the age of 32. She was a very productive person in
the society and simply suffered from an emotional breakdown. She followed up
with the traditional system, which included a psychiatrist, primary care physician
and a neurologist who just kept prescribing. One medication alone can have as
many as 25 side effects or more--just imagine what 25 drugs can do. Twenty-five
times 25! This does not even take into consideration drug interactions and the
side effects of those drugs.

Nutrition

Nutrition plays an integral role in your health overall. Nutrition requires

discipline, eating organically grown and produced foods with no processed
sugars and flours. A diet rich in raw vegetables, raw vegetable juices, dairy and
animal proteins is a great basis.

The typical American diet is rich in processed foods, artificial flavors, colors and
preservatives, and high in sugars and simple carbohydrates. This diet is surely
one of the worst diets in the world. Obesity and diabetes are running rampant in
our society and are directly a result of our poor diets. Our children are feasting
on foods with psychedelic colors and numerous preservatives, sugar-enriched
sodas, and processed breads and pastas, not to mention all the fast foods.

These foods have contributed to terrible dental decay and gum diseases in
addition to severe medical problems that lead to both chronic and terminal
abnormalities.

Lifestyle

Similar to nutrition, lifestyle also plays an integral role in a person’s health and
well-being. The way an individual conducts their life, the activities that they are
involved in, whether or not they practice some type of meditation, and how well
they sleep are all integral parts of their health.

Exercise, when utilized properly, promotes flexibility and strength, stimulates

lymphatic and venous drainage, increases our stamina and helps relieve stress.
Meditation and relaxation are a very important part of balancing the nervous and
immune systems. Steady practice helps to cultivate an optimal place of health in
addition to creating the optimal environment of recovery from illness to a place
of recovery and health.

Physicians, dentists and various practitioners should be committed to treating

patients in a holistic way. Human beings have different parts to themselves,
which include the mind, the body and the spirit. True holistic practice looks at all
of these parts and treats the individual from a place of health.

Finally, and most importantly, we need around eight hours of sleep a night to
recharge our batteries. This is essential to help our bodies to regenerate and to
stay healthy.

A healthy lifestyle that includes all of the above will support health and well-
being especially in challenging times.
 Anxiety & Homeopathy.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

I. - INTRODUCTION

Anxiety, emotional state in which people feel uneasy, apprehensive, or fearful.

People usually experience anxiety about events they cannot control or predict, or
about events that seem threatening or dangerous. For example, students taking
an important test may feel anxious because they cannot predict the test questions
or feel certain of a good grade. People often use the words fear and anxiety to
describe the same thing. Fear also describes a reaction to immediate danger
characterized by a strong desire to escape the situation.

The physical symptoms of anxiety reflect a chronic "readiness" to deal with some
future threat. These symptoms may include fidgeting, muscle tension, sleeping
problems, and headaches. Higher levels of anxiety may produce such symptoms
as rapid heartbeat, sweating, increased blood pressure, nausea, and dizziness.

All people experience anxiety to some degree. Most people feel anxious when
faced with a new situation, such as a first date, or when trying to do something
well, such as give a public speech. A mild to moderate amount of anxiety in these
situations is normal and even beneficial. Anxiety can motivate people to prepare
for an upcoming event and can help keep them focused on the task at hand.

However, too little anxiety or too much anxiety can cause problems. Individuals
who feel no anxiety when faced with an important situation may lack alertness
and focus. On the other hand, individuals who experience an abnormally high
amount of anxiety often feel overwhelmed, immobilized, and unable to
accomplish the task at hand. People with too much anxiety often suffer from one
of the anxiety disorders, a group of mental illnesses. In fact, more people
experience anxiety disorders than any other type of mental illness. A survey of
people aged 15 to 54 in the United States found that about 17 percent of this
population suffers from an anxiety disorder during any given year.

II. - ANXIETY DISORDERS

The fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,
a handbook for mental health professionals, describes a variety of anxiety
disorders. These include generalized anxiety disorder, phobias, panic disorder,
obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
A. Generalized Anxiety Disorder

People with generalized anxiety disorder feel anxious most of the time. They
worry excessively about routine events or circumstances in their lives. Their
worries often relate to finances, family, personal health, and relationships with
others. Although they recognize their anxiety as irrational or out of proportion to
actual events, they feel unable to control their worrying. For example, they may
worry uncontrollably and intensely about money despite evidence that their
financial situation is stable. Children with this disorder typically worry about their
performance at school or about catastrophic events, such as tornadoes,
earthquakes, and nuclear war.

People with generalized anxiety disorder often find that their worries interfere
with their ability to function at work or concentrate on tasks. Physical symptoms,
such as disturbed sleep, irritability, muscle aches, and tension, may accompany
the anxiety. To receive a diagnosis of this disorder, individuals must have
experienced its symptoms for at least six months.

Generalized anxiety disorder affects about 3 percent of people in the general

population in any given year. From 55 to 66 percent of people with this disorder
are female.

B. Phobias

A phobia is an excessive, enduring fear of clearly defined objects or situations

that interferes with a person’s normal functioning. Although they know their fear
is irrational, people with phobias always try to avoid the source of their fear.
Common phobias include fear of heights (acrophobia), fear of enclosed places
(claustrophobia), fear of insects, snakes, or other animals, and fear of air travel.
Social phobias involve a fear of performing, of critical evaluation, or of being
embarrassed in front of other people.

C. Panic Disorder

Panic is an intense, overpowering surge of fear. People with panic disorder

experience panic attacks—periods of quickly escalating, intense fear and
discomfort accompanied by such physical symptoms as rapid heartbeat,
trembling, shortness of breath, dizziness, and nausea. Because people with this
disorder cannot predict when these attacks will strike, they develop anxiety about
having additional panic attacks and may limit their activities outside the home.
D. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

In obsessive-compulsive disorder, people persistently experience certain intrusive

thoughts or images (obsessions) or feel compelled to perform certain behaviors
(compulsions). Obsessions may include unwanted thoughts about inadvertently
poisoning others or injuring a pedestrian while driving. Common compulsions
include repetitive hand washing or such mental acts as repeated counting. People
with this disorder often perform compulsions to reduce the anxiety produced by
their obsessions. The obsessions and compulsions significantly interfere with
their ability to function and may consume a great deal of time.

E. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder sometimes occurs after people experience

traumatic or catastrophic events, such as physical or sexual assaults, natural
disasters, accidents, and wars. People with this disorder relive the traumatic event
through recurrent dreams or intrusive memories called flashbacks. They avoid
things or places associated with the trauma and may feel emotionally detached or
estranged from others. Other symptoms may include difficulty sleeping,
irritability, and trouble concentrating.

III. - CAUSES

Most anxiety disorders do not have an obvious cause. They result from a
combination of biological, psychological, and social factors.

A. Genetics and Neurobiology

Studies suggest that anxiety disorders run in families. That is, children and close
relatives of people with disorders are more likely than most to develop anxiety
disorders. Some people may inherit genes that make them particularly vulnerable
to anxiety. These genes do not necessarily cause people to be anxious, but the
genes may increase the risk of anxiety disorders when certain psychological and
social factors are also present.

Anxiety also appears to be related to certain brain functions. Chemicals in the

brain called neurotransmitters enable neurons, or brain cells, to communicate
with each other. One neurotransmitter, gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA),
appears to play a role in regulating one’s level of anxiety. Lower levels of GABA
are associated with higher levels of anxiety. Some studies suggest that the
neurotransmitters norepinephrine and serotonin play a role in panic disorder.

B. Psychological Factors

Psychologists have proposed a variety of models to explain anxiety. Austrian

psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud suggested that anxiety results from internal,
unconscious conflicts. He believed that a person’s mind represses wishes and
fantasies about which the person feels uncomfortable. This repression, Freud
believed, results in anxiety disorders, which he called neuroses.

More recently, behavioral researchers have challenged Freud’s model of anxiety.

They believe one’s anxiety level relates to how much a person believes events can
be predicted or controlled. Children who have little control over events, perhaps
because of overprotective parents, may have little confidence in their ability to
handle problems as adults. This lack of confidence can lead to increased anxiety.

Behavioral theorists also believe that children may learn anxiety from a role
model, such as a parent. By observing their parent’s anxious response to difficult
situations, the child may learn a similar anxious response. A child may also learn
anxiety as a conditioned response. For example, an infant often startled by a loud
noise while playing with a toy may become anxious just at the sight of the toy.
Some experts suggest that people with a high level of anxiety misinterpret normal
events as threatening. For instance, they may believe their rapid heartbeat
indicates they are experiencing a panic attack when in reality it may be the result
of exercise.

C. Social Factors

While some people may be biologically and psychologically predisposed to feel

anxious, most anxiety is triggered by social factors. Many people feel anxious in
response to stress, such as a divorce, starting a new job, or moving. Also, how a
person expresses anxiety appears to be shaped by social factors. For example,
many cultures accept the expression of anxiety and emotion in women, but
expect more reserved emotional displays from men.

IV. - TREATMENT

Mental health professionals use a variety of methods to help people overcome

anxiety disorders. These include psychoactive drugs and psychotherapy,
particularly behavior therapy. Other techniques, such as exercise, hypnosis,
meditation, and biofeedback, may also prove helpful.

A. Medications

Psychiatrists often prescribe benzodiazepines, a group of tranquilizing drugs, to

reduce anxiety in people with high levels of anxiety. Benzodiazepines help to
reduce anxiety by stimulating the GABA neurotransmitter system. Common
benzodiazepines include alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), and
diazepam (Valium). Two classes of antidepressant drugs—tricyclics and selective
serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)—also have proven effective in treating
certain anxiety disorders.

Benzodiazepines can work quickly with few unpleasant side effects, but they can
also be addictive. In addition, benzodiazepines can slow down or impair motor
behavior or thinking and must be used with caution, particularly in elderly
persons. SSRIs take longer to work than the benzodiazepines but are not
addictive. Some people experience anxiety symptoms again when they stop
taking the medications.

B. Psychotherapy

Therapists who attribute the cause of anxiety to unconscious, internal conflicts

may use psychoanalysis to help people understand and resolve their conflicts.
Other types of psychotherapy, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, have proven
effective in treating anxiety disorders. In cognitive-behavioral therapy, the
therapist often educates the person about the nature of his or her particular
anxiety disorder. Then, the therapist may help the person challenge irrational
thoughts that lead to anxiety. For example, to treat a person with a snake phobia,
a therapist might gradually expose the person to snakes, beginning with pictures
of snakes and progressing to rubber snakes and real snakes. The patient can use
relaxation techniques acquired in therapy to overcome the fear of snakes.

Research has shown psychotherapy to be as effective or more effective than

medications in treating many anxiety disorders. Psychotherapy may also provide
more lasting benefits than medications when patients discontinue treatment.

HOMŒOPATHIC TREATMENT

Aconitum napellus:
A panic attack that comes on suddenly with very strong fear (even fear of death)
may indicate this remedy. A state of immense anxiety may be accompanied by
strong palpitations, shortness of breath, and flushing of the face. Sometimes a
shaking experience will be the underlying cause. Strong feelings of anxiety may
also occur when a person is just beginning to come down with a flu or cold.

Argentum nitricum:

This remedy can be helpful when anxiety develops before a big event: an exam,
an important interview, a public appearance or social engagement. Dizziness and
diarrhea may also be experienced. People who need this remedy are often
enthusiastic and suggestible, with a tendency toward peculiar thoughts and
impulses. They often crave sweets and salt (which usually make their symptoms
worse).

Arsenicum album:

People who are deeply anxious about their health, and extremely concerned with
order and security, often benefit from this remedy. Obsessive about small details
and very neat, they may feel a desperate need to be in control of everything.
Panic attacks often occur around midnight or the very early hours of the
morning. The person may feel exhausted yet still be restless—fidgeting, pacing,
and anxiously moving from place to place. These people may also have digestive
problems or asthma attacks accompanied by anxiety.

Calcarea carbonica:

This remedy is usually indicated for dependable, solid people who become
overwhelmed from physical illness or too much work and start to fear a
breakdown. Their thoughts can be muddled and confused when tired, which
adds to the anxiety. Worry and bad news may agitate them, and a nagging dread
of disaster (to themselves or others) may develop. Fear of heights and
claustrophobia are also common. A person who needs this remedy is often chilly
and sluggish, has a craving for sweets, and is easily fatigued.

Gelsemium:

Feelings of weakness, trembling, and mental dullness (being "paralyzed by fear")

suggest a need for this remedy. It is often helpful when a person has stage-fright
about a public performance or interview, or feels anxious before a test, a visit to
the dentist, or any stressful event. Chills, perspiration, diarrhea, and headaches
will often occur with nervousness. Fear of crowds, a fear of falling, and even a
fear that the heart might stop are other indications for Gelsemium.

Ignatia amara:
A sensitive person who is anxious because of grief, loss, disappointment,
criticism, loneliness (or any stressful emotional experience) may benefit from this
remedy. A defensive attitude, frequent sighing, and mood swings are other
indications. The person may burst unexpectedly into either tears or laughter.
Headaches that feel like a nail driven into the side of the head, and cramping
pains in the abdomen or back, are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Kali phosphoricum:

When a person has been exhausted by overwork or illness and feels a deep
anxiety and inability to cope, this remedy may help. The person is jumpy and
oversensitive, and may be startled by ordinary sounds. Hearing unpleasant news
or thinking of world events can aggravate the problems. Insomnia and an
inability to concentrate may develop, increasing the sense of nervous dread.
Eating, warmth, and rest often bring relief. Headaches, backaches, and nervous
digestive upsets are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Lycopodium:

Individuals likely to respond to this remedy feel anxiety from mental stress and
suffer from a lack of confidence. They can be self-conscious and feel intimidated
by people they perceive as powerful (yet may also swagger or be domineering
toward those with whom they feel more comfortable). Taking on responsibility
can cause a deep anxiety and fear of failure, although the person usually does
well, once started on a task. Claustrophobia, irritability, digestive upsets with gas
and bloating, and a craving for sweets are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Natrum muriaticum:

Deep emotions and a self-protective shyness can make these people seem
reserved, aloof, and private. Even when feeling lonely, they tend to stay away
from social situations, not knowing what to say or do. (Inhibitions sometimes
leave completely if they turn to alcohol, which makes them feel embarrassed
afterwards.) Easily hurt and offended, they can brood, bear grudges, dwell on
unhappy feelings, and isolate themselves—refusing consolation even when they
want it. However, they are often sympathetic listeners to other people’s
problems. Claustrophobia, anxiety at night (with fears of robbers or intruders),
migraines, and insomnia are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Phosphorus:

People who need this remedy are openhearted, imaginative, excitable, easily
startled, and full of intense and vivid fears. Strong anxiety can be triggered by
thinking of almost anything. Nervous and sensitive to others, they can
overextend themselves with sympathy to the point of feeling exhausted and
"spaced out" or even getting ill. They want a lot of company and reassurance,
often feeling better from conversation or a back-rub. Easy flushing of the face,
palpitations, thirst, and a strong desire for cold, refreshing foods are other
indications for Phosphorus.

Pulsatilla:

People who need this remedy often express anxiety as insecurity and clinginess,
with a need for constant support and comforting. The person may be moody,
tearful, whiny, even emotionally childish. (Pulsatilla is a very useful remedy for
children.) Getting too warm or being in a stuffy room often increases anxiety.
Fresh air and gentle exercise often bring relief. Anxiety around the time of
hormonal changes (puberty, menstrual periods, or menopause) often is helped
with Pulsatilla.

Silicea :

People who need this remedy are capable and serious, yet are also nervous, shy,
and subject to bouts of temporary loss of confidence. Anxiety can be extreme
when they are faced with a public appearance, interview, examination, or any
new job or task. Worry and overwork can bring on headaches, difficulty
concentrating, and states of exhaustion, oversensitivity, and dread. Responsible
and diligent, they often overreact and devote attention to tiny details—making
their worries (and their work) more difficult. They often have low stamina and
come down with colds, sore throats, or other illnesses after working hard or
being under stress.

Reference:

Dr. Lynn F. Bufka and Dr. David H. Barlow (MS Encarta Encylopedia 2002).

A. D. H. D. (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)

and A. D. D. (Attention Deficit Disorder).
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Dr. Helen Likierman and Dr. Valerie Muter describe the subject Article in a
greater detail as follows, which is of immense value:
What is ADHD?

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and attention deficit disorder

(ADD) refer to a range of problem behaviours associated with poor attention
span. These may include impulsiveness, restlessness and hyperactivity, as well as
inattentiveness, and often prevent children from learning and socialising well.
ADHD is sometimes referred to as hyperkinetic disorder.

What are the symptoms of ADHD?

Attention difficulties

A child must have exhibited at least six of the following symptoms for at least six
months to an extent that is unusual for their age and level of intelligence.

" Fails to pay close attention to detail or makes careless errors during work or
play.
" Fails to finish tasks or sustain attention in play activities.
" Seems not to listen to what is said to him or her.
" Fails to follow through instructions or to finish homework or chores (not
because of confrontational behaviour or failure to understand instructions).
" Disorganised about tasks and activities.
" Avoids tasks like homework that require sustained mental effort.
" Loses things necessary for certain tasks or activities, such as pencils, books or
toys.
" Easily distracted.
" Forgetful in the course of daily activities.

Hyperactivity

A child must have exhibited at least three of the following symptoms for at least
six months to an extent that is unusual for their age and level of intelligence.

" Runs around or excessively climbs over things. (In adolescents or adults only
feelings of restlessness may occur.)
" Unduly noisy in playing, or has difficulty in engaging in quiet leisure activities.
" Leaves seat in classroom or in other situations where remaining seated is
expected.
" Fidgets with hands or feet or squirms on seat.

Impulsivity
At least one of the following symptoms must have persisted at least for six
months to an extent that is unusual for their age and level of intelligence.

" Blurts out answers before the questions have been completed.
" Fails to wait in lines or await turns in games or group situations.
" Interrupts or intrudes on others, e. g. butts into others conversations or games.
" Talks excessively without appropriate response to social restraint.

Pervasiveness of attention difficulties and hyperactivity

For a diagnosis or description of ADHD a child would be expected to show the

above difficulties in more than one setting, eg at school and at home.

Sometimes problems are not shown 'at home' but are very evident when a child
goes to a hospital department. This can happen when parents do not realise that
their child's behaviour is out of the normal range (perhaps because they have no
other children, or they have other children who behave similarly). It may also be
because the problems are mild, or because the family has handled the attention
lack at home in such a way that it is not evident there is a major problem, or
because the child is very young. In those cases it is quite reasonable for parents
not to consider that their child has an attention deficit problem.

Who is affected by ADHD?

About 1.7 per cent of the UK population, mostly children, have ADD or
ADHD. Boys are more likely to be affected.

What else could it be?

" Grand mal or petit mal epileptic seizures can cause a child to become drowsy,
impairing their attention. Epilepsy can also cause unusual behaviour and lead to
abnormal perceptions.
" Hearing problems such as deafness or glue ear can make it hard for a child to
follow instructions and make them appear inattentive.
" Reading problems, making it hard to complete tasks or follow instructions.
" Obsessive compulsive disorder leads to people following strange rituals that
preoccupy their thoughts and distract their attention.
" Tourette's syndrome involves repetitive, involuntary jerking movements of the
body and sudden outbursts of noise or swearing.
" Autism and Asperger's syndrome often lead to difficulties in understanding and
using language.
" Prolonged periods of insufficient sleep, causing poor concentration.
NB: Many children may be very active or be easily distracted or have difficulty
concentrating. If these behaviours are relatively mild, they should not be
considered a disorder.

What other difficulties can occur alongside ADHD?

ADHD often occurs alongside other difficulties and is not the sole cause of
problem behaviour. Children may exhibit temper tantrums, sleep disorders, and
be clumsy. Other behavioural problems that occur with ADHD include:

" confrontational defiant behaviour, which occurs in 60 per cent of children. The
child loses their temper, argues and refuses to comply with adults and
deliberately annoys others.
" conduct disorders occur in at least 25 per cent of children. The child may be
destructive or show deceitful behaviour such as lying, breaking rules and stealing.
" specific learning difficulties, including dyslexia, occur in 25-30 per cent of
children.
" severe clinical depression occurs in 33 per cent of children.
" anxiety disorders occur in 30 per cent of children.

What causes ADHD?

Biological factors

" The child's temperament, as this contributes to their attitude and personality.

" Studies of twins suggest a genetic link to ADHD. In 80-90 per cent of identical
twins where one has ADHD so does the other. Recent research also suggests
there is a greater chance of inheriting the condition from male relatives such as
grandfathers and uncles.

" Brain injuries due to birth trauma or pre-birth problems. The brain structures
believed to be linked to the development of ADHD are vulnerable to hypoxic
damage during birth. The damage is caused by inadequate oxygen reaching parts
of the brain while blood flow is reduced.

Environmental factors

" Family stress.

" Educational difficulties.

How is ADHD diagnosed?

ADHD requires a medical diagnosis by a doctor, usually a child or adolescent

psychiatrist, a pædiatrician or pædiatric neurologist or a GP.

It will often be appropriate for other professionals such as psychologists, speech

therapists, teachers and health visitors to contribute their observations to the
assessment of a child with possible ADHD. There is no single diagnostic test for
ADHD so different sorts of information needs to be gathered, such as the
following:

History of symptoms

The precise nature of the difficulties, when they were first noticed, in what
situations they occur, factors that exacerbate or relieve them.

Medical history

Risk factors that could predispose the child to ADHD include difficulties and
risks in pregnancy and during birth, for example if the mother was in poor
health, very young or drank alcohol or smoked or had an extended or
complicated labour.

Several medical conditions are known to be associated with ADHD. These

include fragile-X syndrome, fetal alcohol syndrome, G6PD deficiency,
phenylketonuria and generalised resistance to thyroid hormone.

Accidents, operations and chronic medical conditions such as epilepsy, asthma

and heart, liver and kidney disorders all need to be taken in to account. Also of
possible relevance is any medication the child is taking, as well as any adverse
reactions they have had to medication in the past.

Past psychiatric history

Enquiring about any mental health problems the child has had can help rule out
depression or anxiety being behind the symptoms.
Educational history

This means the level of their ability and what specific difficulties they have, how
they function within their peer group and get on with teachers, and any
behaviour difficulties such as suspensions or exclusions. A more detailed
evaluation of the child's learning by a psychologist may be necessary.

Evaluation of the child's temperament and personality

The child's temperament and personality, those of other family members and the
nature of relationships within the family may need to be assessed. This will
include discussion of the methods used by the parents to manage the child's
behaviour and how successful they have been. Although this seems intrusive, the
assessor will remain neutral and parents should not feel the disorder is 'their
fault'.

Family history

The mental and physical health of the child's parents and other family members
can be relevant, particularly regarding the incidence of ADHD or depression.

Social assessment

The family's social circumstances, such as housing, poverty, and social support
may all have an impact on the child's behaviour.

What treatment is available for ADHD?

Treatment depends on a child's exact diagnosis. It should take into account any
specific difficulties and those strengths that may aid their improvement.

It is not easy to live or cope with a child with ADHD. Both parents and teachers
can follow general guidelines to manage a child's problematic behaviour but they
may need specialist support and advice, e. g. from a psychologist.

Management techniques for parents and teachers

" Create a daily routine for the child, eg homework schedules, bedtime and
mealtime routines.
" Be specific in your instructions to the child and make clear and reasonable
requests, eg instead of telling the child to 'behave' suggest 'play quietly with your
Lego for 10 minutes'.

" Set clear and easily understood boundaries, eg how much TV they may watch,
and that rudeness is unacceptable.

" Be consistent in the handling and managing of the child.

" Remove disturbing or disruptive elements from their daily routine. For
example, remove siblings from the room when they are doing homework or turn
off the TV.

" Plan structured programmes aimed at gradually lengthening the child's

concentration span and ability to focus on tasks.

" Communicate with the child on a one-to-one basis and avoid addressing other
children at the same time.

" Use rewards (eg stickers, tokens or even money) consistently and frequently to
reinforce appropriate behaviour such as listening to adults and concentrating.

" Use sanctions (eg loss of privileges, being sent to their room) for unacceptable
behaviour or 'overstepping' of boundaries.

" Discuss your child with their school or nursery and see if you can work
together.

Medication

Behavioural management techniques such as those above are always important,

and for mild attention deficit problems they are the treatment of choice. US
research suggests that medication is the best treatment for true ADHD. The
most common and effective medications are amphetamine-like stimulants,
mainly Ritalin and Dexedrine. If there are coexisting conditions then these may
also require medication.

Ritalin reduces hyperactivity and impulsiveness and helps to focus a child's

attention. They become less aggressive, seem to comply with requests, and
become less forgetful. Many parents say their child's behaviour has vastly
improved as a result of Ritalin.

However, there is growing concern about the use of Ritalin to treat ADHD. Like
amphetamines, Ritalin is classified as a class A drug. Many parents and
professionals are worried about alleged side effects, including damage to the
cardiovascular and nervous systems. Ritalin's manufacturers recommend that it is
only used to treat children aged six years and over. If symptoms don't improve
after a month's trial it should be discontinued. The manufacturers also
recommend that even if Ritalin is effective it should discontinued periodically to
assess the child's condition. You should discuss any concerns with your child's
doctors, and they may alter the dose prescribed.

Psychological treatments

In addition to the management techniques described, other forms of

psychological treatment might include anxiety management, cognitive therapy,
individual psychotherapy and social skills training.

Educational management

This includes individual, or group, learning support for coexisting learning

difficulties and educational underachievement.

Diet

Research suggests that diet is not a significant factor in ADHD for most
children. Some children have particular food allergies that need investigation.
Dietary changes need to be supervised by a doctor and nutritionist. In this
approach all foods suspected of causing behavioural problems are removed from
the diet then gradually reintroduced while the child's behaviour is monitored by
the psychologist.

What is the likely outcome?

Many children simply outgrow ADHD. About half of those affected appear to
function normally by young adulthood, but a significant number will have
problems that persist into adult life. These may take the form of depression,
irritability, antisocial behaviour and attention problems.

Remarks:
I have also come across with an Article regarding Amphetamine, which is also
reproduced as under :

When is amphetamine not an amphetamine?

By: Steve Baldwin PhD
Professor of Psychology in the School of Social Sciences
University of Teesside (01 November 2000)

As the 'beat generation' of the 1950s was replaced by the jazz clubs of the 1960s,
teenagers and young adults were exposed to a new social phenomenon: 'uppers'
and 'downers'. Both in Western Europe and North America, the widespread
availability of prescription drugs such as amphetamines (uppers) and barbiturates
(downers) produced a new dimension to leisure and recreation activities. For the
first time, powerful drug preparations were widely available to teenagers and
young adults at low cost.

By the end of the 1960s, other substances such as marijuana and LSD had
flooded the UK illegal drug market. Meantime, government concern about the
addictive properties of amphetamines had produced powerful legislation to
restrict their use to specific health problems and user groups. The toxic (although
highly rewarding) properties of amphetamines had confirmed the potential for
very rapid addiction in adults. The results of forty years of amphetamine research
with laboratory animals have since confirmed the toxic, addictive and potentially
dangerous properties on mammals, including humans.

And yet, today, amphetamines are frequently given to children in the guise of
Methylphenidate. The drug is often seen as the treatment for attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder. In the 1960s psychiatric experimentation with difficult-to-
treat childhood conditions produced a climate where novel drug treatments were
introduced without much attention to toxic risk or adverse consequences from
side- effects. Powerful drugs such as lithium, carbamazine and amphetamines
were given to small groups of children without the benefit of scientific evidence
collected from proper trials or controlled studies. This work was funded by the
drug industry, aimed to establish a market for their new products. Many
individual practitioners claimed success from very limited results taken from only
a few children and teenagers. Methylphenidate (MPH), a member of the
amphetamine family, was subsequently heavily promoted by drug companies and
given to many minors diagnosed with problems of hyperactivity.

At the beginning of the 1990s in the UK, the manufacturers of MPH launched a
massive new publicity and advertising campaign, directed at psychiatrists,
pædiatricians and educators. The industrial aim was to establish MPH as a front-
line treatment for childhood hyper-arousal problems such as attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This campaign was so successful that
prescriptions for MPH multiplied by a factor of fifteen between 1994 and 1997.
More than 114 000 prescriptions were made for MPH between January and
September 1999. In the USA, aggressive marketing, combined with a 'magic
bullet' culture, created a climate where an estimated 1:7 schoolchildren currently
take MPH every day. In a spectacular conjuring trick, the drug manufacturers
created a 'solution' for hyperactivity with a stimulant.

Several laboratory research studies consistently showed the powerful yet toxic
effects of amphetamine on the mammalian central nervous system: narrowing of
focus (i. e. only being able to do one behaviour), emotional and behavioural
blunting (i. e. lack of expression), restricted activity, and behavioural suppression.
These findings have been accepted without reservation by government health
departments worldwide.

Amphetamine is considered to be harmful to adults because of its potential to

produce very rapid addiction (i. e. requiring more of the drug to create the same
effect). Like other drugs that act directly on the central nervous system (CNS)
such as cocaine and heroin, in large doses amphetamines can produce a toxic
state ('amphetamine psychosis') with terrifying consequences. In the extreme,
amphetamine psychosis can produce the so-called 'schizophrenic episode' with a
split from reality. There is an ongoing debate about whether or not the toxic
consequences of amphetamine addiction are reversible. Whatever the dangers for
adults, the risks for psychological and physical harm are multiplied for children
and teenagers.

The known dangers of amphetamine abuse are so extreme that government

health departments in every developed economy in the world have restricted
their availability. Most governments impose very strict controls over the
availability of amphetamines ('speed') with severe penalties for unlicensed drug
trafficking. In Singapore, for example, trafficking in amphetamines is punishable
with the death penalty. Moreover, amphetamine misuse by minors is considered
a major public health problem in countries where regulation of the supply has
broken down because of lax enforcement policies. In the UK, 'folk devils' and
moral panic have recently been resurrected because of public concern about illicit
drug use by 'bored teenagers'.

In summary, the public health orthodoxy in the UK states that amphetamines

should be restricted from children and teenagers, due to their powerful effects on
the CNS. Hence amphetamines have been classified as a Class A controlled
substance, with very strict regulations and restrictions imposed on storage,
prescription and consumption.

In the UK in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, many new drug products were
launched on the consumer market with very limited information about their side-
effects and toxic consequences. Frequently, information about negative side-
effects was minimised, or not reported at all. Often drug products initially
marketed as 'safe and effective' were later proved to be unsafe, ineffective and
dangerous. Recent examples include Valium, Librium, Thalidomide and
Mandrax. In each case, serious and irreversible side-effects were identified soon
after concentrated blitz advertising had established a mass market of hundreds of
thousands of consumers for these new products. Tens of thousands of children
were born with disfigurement and irreversible physical limb deformities before
Thalidomide was eventually withdrawn.

In the UK there has been considerable debate about the appropriateness of

giving amphetamines to very young children (especially when government health
policy prohibits the use of 'speed' by youngsters). The proponents of MPH
include powerful adult authority figures that exert considerable pressure on
parents to medicate their son or daughter. Lobby groups for the prescription of
MPH to minors include psychiatrists, pædiatricians, educational psychologists,
educators, head teachers and some parent support groups. Many groups openly
admit to receiving funds directly or indirectly from the pharmaceutical industry
to support their activities. So-called 'medical science' journals that publish results
of MPH studies are funded by drug companies.

Opponents of MPH prescription to children indicate the known side-effects of

MPH when prescribed to minors. These include (but are not limited to):

" aggressive/violent behaviour

" suicidal behaviour
" self-destructive behaviour
" self-mutilating behaviour
" tics
" stereotyped behaviour
" repetitive behaviour
" head aches
" stomach aches
" vomiting
" cardiac problems
" motor problems
" visual disturbance
" appetite loss
" sleep disturbance
" growth retardation
" 'zombie-like' appearance

Many information bulletins about MPH minimise these known facts, or omit
details altogether. A recent survey of 65 parents referred into a treatment clinic
found that none of them had been informed about side-effects. Moreover, none
of them had been informed that MPH was addictive, or even that it was an
amphetamine. No parents had been offered any non-drug treatment alternatives.
Many prescriptions had been written for children as young as 3, 4 or 5, even
though the drug manufacturer instructions prohibit use of MPH for children
younger than 6. Also, parents mistakenly attributed drug side-effects to the
supposed 'underlying biological condition' of ADHD.

There are 230 other psychological and social therapies for children that do not
involve drugging with amphetamines. These therapies include (but are not
limited to): psychotherapy, behaviour therapy, behaviour modification,
counseling and family therapy. Irresponsible prescribing behaviour is impossible
to justify. In four health districts in the UK, GPs have been advised not to write
repeat prescriptions for MPH.

There is considerable public concern in the UK about the marketing and

prescription of MPH. A class action is in progress by parents whose children
have allegedly been harmed by MPH. In the USA a similar class action by
parents has cited fraud, conspiracy and collusion by the manufacturers of MPH
and 'parent support groups' (many of whom are funded directly by the drug
companies to distribute pro-medication literature amongst parents).

In 1998 the USA federal government National Institutes of Health (NIH) held a
national Consensus Conference about ADHD, with thirty-one independent
scientists. The NIH reported that ADHD is not the result of a biological brain
dysfunction. Rather, they concluded that "…there are no data to indicate that
ADHD is due to a brain malfunction" and "…after years of clinical research and
experience with ADHD, our knowledge about the cause or causes of ADHD
remains speculative". As ADHD is not a biological condition, drugging children
and teenagers with amphetamines (too strong medicine) will not help. Instead,
parents need support and appropriate professional advice to choose one of the
230 available effective psychological and social therapies.

Suggestion:

I would like to suggest that for such patients who are suffering from the
abovementioned disease(s), a well qualified classical homœopath should be
consulted for the safe and better treatment to avoid the side effects of the
allopathic drugs.

REFERENCE:

NetDoctor UK.
 Epilepsy.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

I - INTRODUCTION

Epilepsy, also called seizure disorder, chronic brain disorder that briefly
interrupts the normal electrical activity of the brain to cause seizures,
characterized by a variety of symptoms including uncontrolled movements of the
body, disorientation or confusion, sudden fear, or loss of consciousness.
Epilepsy may result from a head injury, stroke, brain tumor, lead poisoning,
genetic conditions, or severe infections like meningitis or encephalitis. In over 70
percent of cases no cause for epilepsy is identified. Some 40 to 50 million people
suffer from epilepsy worldwide and the majority of cases are in developing
countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 2
million new cases are diagnosed each year globally.

II - TYPES OF SEIZURES

Epileptic seizures vary in intensity and symptoms depending on what part of the
brain is involved. In partial seizures, the most common form of seizure in adults,
only one area of the brain is involved. Partial seizures are classified as simple
partial, complex partial (also known as psychomotor), and absence (also known
as myoclonic or petit mal) seizures.

People who have simple partial seizures may experience unusual sensations such
as uncontrollable jerky motions of a body part, sight or hearing impairment,
sudden sweating or flushing, nausea, and feelings of fear.

Complex partial seizures, also called temporal lobe epilepsy, last for only one or
two minutes. The individual may appear to be in a trance and moves randomly
with no control over body movements. The individual's activity does not cease
during the seizure, but behavior is random and totally unrelated to the
individual's surroundings. This form of seizure may be preceded by an aura (a
warning sensation characterized by feelings of fear, abdominal discomfort,
dizziness, or strange odors and sensations).

Absence seizures, rare in adults, are characterized by a sudden, momentary loss

or impairment of consciousness. Overt symptoms are often as slight as an
upward staring of the eyes, a staggering gait, or a twitching of the facial muscles.
No aura occurs and the person often resumes activity without realizing that the
seizure has occurred.
In a second type of epilepsy, known as generalized seizure, tonic clonic, grand
mal, or convulsion, the whole brain is involved. This type of seizure is often
signaled by an involuntary scream, caused by contraction of the muscles that
control breathing. As loss of consciousness sets in, the entire body is gripped by
a jerking muscular contraction. The face reddens, breathing stops, and the back
arches. Subsequently, alternate contractions and relaxations of the muscles throw
the body into sometimes violent agitation such that the person may be subject to
serious injury. After the convulsion subsides, the person is exhausted and may
sleep heavily. Confusion, nausea, and sore muscles are often experienced upon
awakening, and the individual may have no memory of the seizure. Attacks occur
at varying intervals, in some people as seldom as once a year and in others as
frequently as several times a day. About 8 percent of those subject to generalized
seizures may have status epilepticus, in which seizures occur successively with no
intervening periods of consciousness. These attacks may be fatal unless treated
promptly with the drug diazepam.

III - DIAGNOSIS

In persons suffering from epilepsy, the brain waves, electrical activity in the part of
the brain called the cerebral cortex, have a characteristically abnormal rhythm
produced by excessive electrical discharges in the nerve cells. Because these wave
patterns differ markedly according to their specific source, a recording of the
brain waves, known as an electroencephalogram (EEG) is important in the
diagnosis and study of the disorder. Diagnosis also requires a thorough medical
history describing seizure characteristics and frequency.

IV - TREATMENT

There is no cure for epilepsy but symptoms of the disorder may be treated with
drugs, surgery, or a special diet. Drug therapy is the most common treatment-
seizures can be prevented or their frequency lessened in 80 to 85 percent of cases
by drugs known as anticonvulsants or antiepileptics. Surgery is used when drug
treatments fail and the brain tissue causing the seizures is confined to one area
and can safely be removed. A special high-fat diet known as a ketogenic diet
produces a chemical condition in the body called ketosis that helps prevent
seizures in young children. Like any medical condition, epilepsy is affected by
general health. Regular exercise, plenty of rest, and efforts to reduce stress can all
have a positive effect on a person with a seizure disorder.

First aid for generalized seizures involves protecting the individual by clearing
the area of sharp or hard objects, providing soft cushioning for the head, such as
a pillow or folded jacket and, if necessary, turning the individual on the side to
keep his or her airway clear. The individual having a seizure should not be
restrained and the mouth should not be forced open-it is not true that a person
having a seizure can swallow the tongue. If the individual having the seizure is
known to have epilepsy or is wearing epilepsy identification jewelry, an
ambulance should only be called if the seizure lasts longer than five minutes,
another seizure closely follows the first, or the person cannot be awakened after
the jerking movements subside.

ANTI-EPILEPTIC ALLOPATHIC DRUGS

TEGRETOL Carbamazepine

This is a powerful anti-epileptic drug with a wide range of activity. It is available

as white tablets of two strengths (100 mg and 200 mg), and is usually given twice
a day (say after breakfast, and then after the evening meal, around 12 hours later).
An average sized adult usually requires between one and two tablets (200 mg
size, twice a day).

If the dose is too high, the patient may appear to be "drunk", with drowsiness,
lack of co-ordination in walking, etc. Reduction of the dose, based on blood
levels, is all that is required.

Side effects (unwanted symptoms occurring in someone whose levels are correct)
are common in the first few days or week or two, especially giddiness and light
headedness, mild nausea, and dryness of the mouth. These usually disappear
within a few days. They are less likely to occur if Tegretol is introduced in a
gradual way. A measles-like rash sometimes occurs during Tegretol treatment,
and in this event, Tegretol must be replaced by another anti-epileptic drug.
Serious side effects are fortunately rare. They include jaundice due to liver
involvement, and lowering of the white cell count of the blood, resulting in
persistent ulceration of the throat and mouth.

The manufacturers recommend that blood tests (full blood count, tests of liver
and kidney function) be carried out before starting Tegretol, and that the full
blood count be repeated weekly for the first month of treatment, then monthly
for the first year.

In practice, Tegretol side effects are usually mild, and disappear within the first
week or two. It is arguably the most powerful and useful anti-epileptic drug
currently available.

EPILIM Sodium valproate

This is another extremely useful drug with a wide range of anti-epileptic activity.
It is thought to act by increasing the brain's levels of the inhibitory
neurotransmitter, GABA.

Epilim is presented as lilac colored tablets of 200 mg and 500 mg strength. These
should be swallowed whole. It is also available as crushable tablets of 100 mg
strength, and as syrup of 200 mg/5ml strength, and sugar free liquid of similar
strength.

It is usual to give Epilim twice a day, with meals, with roughly 12 hours between
doses. Since blood levels of Epilim are unreliable as a guide, adjustment of the
dosage is made according to the patient's body weight, and the adequacy of
seizure control. The usual dose range is 20 to 30 mg/kg body weight/24 hours.

Mild side effects, especially nausea and diarrhea in the first few days, are
common. A fine tremor of the hands is often noticed in patients taking Epilim
over the long term. Weight gain and loss of hair (usually reversible) can also
occur.

Very rarely, Epilim may produce acute liver disease, and there have been
instances of acute liver failure, some fatal. Small children and infants with serious
underlying medical conditions are most at risk. The question of the safety of
Epilim has received careful study by Australian health authorities, and its
continued use has been endorsed, for it is in practice a widely used, effective, and
well tolerated medication.

It is suggested that Epilim be avoided in patients with a history of liver disease,

and that blood tests to check liver function and the level of platelets in the blood
(sometimes reduced by Epilim) be carried out before starting treatment, and
repeated after one month's treatment, and thereafter at intervals of not more
than 6 months. Minor abnormalities of liver function are common in patients
taking most anti-epileptic drugs, but evidence of increasing abnormality would
require substitution of Epilim.

Symptoms of this rare complication of liver failure include severe nausea

persistent abnormal pain, jaundice (yellowish discoloration of the skin), severe
nausea, weakness and tiredness, and swelling of the face. Any of these symptoms
should be reported to the treating doctor.

DILANTIN Phenytoin sodium

This is the oldest of the effective major anti-epileptic drugs. It is still one of the
most potent in preventing major seizures of tonic-clonic and other types, but its
troublesome side effects have meant that the other, newer drugs such as Tegretol
and Epilim are usually selected instead. Dilantin has a powerful action in
controlling seizures, and is very useful as an additional drug where seizures
cannot be controlled by one drug alone, or when it is not intended to continue
treatment over a very long period (for example, when anti-epileptic drugs are
given routinely for a year or two after brain surgery).

Dilantin is presented in capsule form (100mg, orange and white capsules, 30mg,
all white capsules), in liquid form (30 mg/5ml strength for children, 100 mg/5ml.
"Dilantin Forte Suspension" for adults), and as chewable tablets for children (50
mg, "Infatabs")

The drug is slowly released, so that theoretically it would be possible to take the
medication as a dingle daily dose; however, people's memories being what they
are, it is recommended that the medication be taken twice a day (e. g. after
breakfast, and after the evening meal as a routine). The usual dose for an adult of
average size is 3 to 4 capsules of 100 mg strength per 24 hours.

Dilantin overdose produces symptoms similar to drunkenness, with drowsiness,

unsteadiness on the feet, etc. Blood levels of Dilantin will indicate the true
picture.

Short term side effects of Dilantin are not usually a problem, but side effects
developing gradually over a period of years do present serious objections to its
long term use, especially as other effective anti-epileptic drugs which do not have
these problems are now available. These long-term side effects of Dilantin are
the growth of hair on the face, arms and legs, especially in female patients of
dark complexion, unhealthy overgrowth of the gums, with a tendency for them
to bleed, and mental sluggishness and loss of memory.

If Dilantin is to be taken over a long period, special attention should be paid to

brushing the teeth and generally maintaining good oral hygiene. An uncommon
complication of Dilantin therapy is the development of an allergic measles like
rash, which requires substitution of the drug with another.

ZARONTIN Ethisyxunudem

This drug is effective in controlling one form of epilepsy only, namely absence
seizures (formerly known as "petit mal"). As this form of epilepsy begins in
childhood, Zarontin is made available as a red syrup (250 mg/5 ml) and as
capsules (250 mg). The dose required will vary according to blood levels and
body weight, the average dose for a child aged 6 years being one capsule, 2 or 3
times a day.
Side effects are not common, but include nausea and digestive upset, drowsiness
and sleep disturbance.

Benzodiazepine Drugs

These drugs have sedative and anti-anxiety properties as well as being anti-
epileptic. They are in fact only fairly week drugs against epilepsy, while their
tendency to produce sedation and dependency greatly limit their usefulness. In
practice, these drugs should never be used as a first choice, but rather reserved
for those situations where epilepsy remains uncontrolled despite treatment with
adequate doses of other anti-epileptic drugs.

The benzodiazepine drugs include:

RIVOTRIL (Clonazepam).
FRISIUM (Clobazepam).
VALIUM (Diazepam).
MOGODON (Nitrazepam).

The main side effects of these drugs are sedation and drowsiness in the daytime.
There is a risk of producing drug dependency. Also, patients may experience
various unpleasant side effects, such as restlessness, sleep disturbances, etc. when
these drugs are withdrawn after a long period of administration.

Barbiturate Drugs

These drugs were widely used in the 1950's and 1960's, but are now considered
to be obsolete. They are not very effective in suppressing seizures, but they
frequently cause slowing of the intellect and depression. Withdrawing these
medications can be extremely traumatic, with anxiety, restlessness, tremors,
insomnia, and an increased risk of convulsions being prominent as the drug
leaves the system.

An effort should be made to change every patient still taking these drugs over to
one of the newer anti-epileptic medications, difficult as this might be.

Barbiturate anti-epileptic drugs still available include:

PROMINAL (Methylphenobarbitone).
MYSOLINE (Primidone).
PHENOBARBITONE.
Other Drugs

OSPOLOT (Sulthiame, Bayer Pharmaceuticals)

This drug may have a special value in controlling epilepsy in intellectually

disabled, aggressive children. It is not a very effective anti-epileptic, and is not
widely used.

The Newest Anti-epileptic Drugs

These drugs are the outcome of research aimed at suppressing seizures by either
increasing inhibition (through enhancing the activity of the natural inhibitory
neurotransmitter GABA, or simulating its action); or, alternatively, reducing the
effectiveness of natural excitatory neurotransmitters, such as glutamate.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Calcarea carbonica.

The treatment of epilepsy should be directed to the underlying dyscrasia, as this

is at fault in most, if not all, cases. Calcarea carbonica, with its rickety,
tuberculous, scrofulous and flabby symptoms, its characteristic deficiency of lime
assimilation, as shown in children by the open fontanelles and backward
dentition, will frequently be the remedy with which to commence the treatment.
The characteristic relaxation on falling asleep and the sweating of the head and
neck are fine indications for its use. It has an excellent clinical record. A epileptic
suffering continually from the dread of an attack will withdraw himself as much
as possible from the outside world, brood over his affliction and become
melancholic, and there is no other remedy so well adapted to this condition as
Calcarea. Its anxiety, palpitation, apprehensive mood despondency, fretfulness
and irritability, its weakness of memory, its loss of consciousness, its vertigo and
convulsions are prominent and characteristic indications for its use in epilepsy. If
epilepsy be caused by fright, suppression of some long standing eruption,
onanism or venereal excess it will probably be one of the remedies to use in the
course of the treatment, and here it would follow Sulphur well. The aura may
begin in the solar plexus and pass upwards like a wave, or go from the epigastric
region down to the uterus and limbs. Like Sulphur it has a sensation as if a
mouse were running up the arm previous to the attacks.

Causticum, too, is closely allied to Calcarea, and is indicated in epilepsy

connected with menstrual irregularities and also in epilepsy occurring at the age
of puberty.
Bufo rana.

Epilepsy arising from fright, or self-abuse, or sexual excesses, will often find its
remedy in Bufo rana. The aura preceding the attacks starts from the genital
organs; even during coitus the patient may be seized with violent convulsions. In
another form for which Bufo is suitable the aura starts from the solar plexus.
Previous to the attacks, the patient is very irritable, often talks incoherently and is
easily angered. It is especially in the sexual form, that brought on by
masturbation, that Bufo is signally useful. It has also proved useful in severe
cases in children where the head in the convulsion is drawn backwards. Indigo
has epileptiform convulsions from the irritation of worms, but the patient must
be low-spirited and sad-- "blue as indigo." It is the "bluest remedy in the materia
medica." Dr. Colby, of Boston, considers it superior to the bromides. Flushes of
heat seem to rise from the solar plexus to the head and there is an undulating
sensation in the brain similar to Cimicifuga. Bufo, like Nux vomica, is vehement
and irritable. These two remedies and Silicea and Calcarea have the aura starting
from the solar plexus. Stannum is also a remedy for epilepsy arising from reflex
irritation, as from worms and also from sexual complications.

Cuprum Metallicum.

Cuprum is a very deep-acting remedy, its well-known power of producing

convulsions and spasms and its excellent clinical record make it a valuable
remedy in epilepsy. We know positively that poisonous doses of Cuprum cause
epileptic symptoms, and it is among the most curative remedies for epilepsy in
child life. The convulsions start form the brain, though the aura, which is one of
long duration, seems to center in the epigastrium. Owing to this long duration of
the aura consciousness is not immediately lost, and the patient will often notice
the contractions in the fingers and toes before they become unconscious. The
face and lips are very blue, the eyeballs are rotated, there is frothing at the mouth
and violent contractions of the flexors. The attacks is usually ushered in by a
shrill cry and the cases are most violent and continued. It is also a remedy for
nocturnal epilepsy when the fits occur at regular intervals, such as the menstrual
periods. Epileptiform spasms during dentition or from retrocessed exanthema
may indicate Cuprum. Dr. Halbert remarks that Cuprum will stop the frequency
of the attacks more satisfactorily than any other remedy, it is his sheet anchor in
old and obstinate cases.

Butler also claims his best results from this remedy. Argentum nitricum is also a
remedy for epilepsy, the strong indicating features being the dilated pupils four
or five days before the attack, and the restlessness and trembling of the hands
after the attack. Menstrual and fright epilepsies often call for this remedy the
characteristic being the aura, which lasts a number of hours before the attack.
Moral causes may lead to an attack. Patient is low spirited, easily discouraged and
frightened.

Śnanthe crocata.

Perhaps no remedy in the materia medica more closely pictures epilepsy than
Śnanthe. Its use in the disease has been mainly from clinical data, but there is
ample proof from studying toxic cases that it is homśopathic to many cases of
epilepsy. The reliable and practical symptoms calling for its use may be summed
up as follows: Sudden and complete loss of consciousness; swollen livid face;
frothing at the mouth; dilated or irregular pupils; convulsions with locked jaws
and cold exremities. Dr. S. H. Talcott, of the Middletown State Hospital,
summed up his experience with the remedy as follows:

1. The fits decrease in number 40 to 50 per cent.

2. The convulsion are less severe than formerly.

3. There is less maniacal excitement before the fits.

4. Less sleeplessness, stupor and apathy after the fits and

the debilitating effects of the attacks are more quickly recovered from.

5. The patients treated with Śnanthe are less irritable, less suspicious and less
fault finding.

6. The patients are more easily cared for.

The writer can add his testimony to the effect of Śnanthe in controlling attacks
of epilepsy. It seems to act better in the 3X or 6X potency than in the tincture.
Cases of cure of the disease are becoming more numerous. Artemisia vulgaris is
another remedy which has been successfully used for epilepsy from fright or
some mental emotion, where the attacks occur in rapid succession, and also in
petit mal, where the patient is unconscious only for a few seconds and then
resumes his occupation as if nothing had happened. Artemisia absinthium
indicated in seizures preceded by vertigo, a warm sensation rising from the
stomach, and by a slight impairment

of speech, and Solanum Carolinense are also remedies which in some cases have
wrought cures, the latter according to
Dr. Halbert, of Chicago, also praises it. Melancholia seems to be an indication
and also attacks appearing at menstrual periods. Verbena hastata is also
recommended, but no special indications are to be found.

Kali bromatum.

This remedy should have no place in the homśopathic treatment of epilepsy; it is

given here because it is the principal drug employed by the allopathic school, and
because nearly all cases coming to us for treatment from old school hands are
liable to be complicated by a previous treatment with the bromides, notable the
Bromide of Potash. It is not a curative remedy, but a palliative one; it strikes at
the attack and not the disease. It will often modify the attacks, and used as a
prophylactic may avert the seizure, but its prolonged use works inevitable harm.
It weakens the mental faculties and hastens imbecility. Camphora is useful to
prevent the attacks, shorten the duration and lessen the intensity. It is indicated
by all the characteristic of epilepsy and hence is a safer prophylactic than the
Bromide of potash. Camphora, Nux vomica and Zincum are mentioned as
antidotes for the abuse of the Bromide of Potash. Bromide acne is often present
in cases coming to us from old school hands.

Silicea.

Silicea is one of our most valuable remedies in epilepsy. It suits especially

scrofulous and rickety subjects. The aura starts from the solar plexus, as in Bufo
and Nux vomica. Certain phases of the moon are said to affect the attacks, which
are brought on by an overstrain of the mind or emotions. Nocturnal epilepsy,
feeling of coldness before an attacks is also characteristic of the drug, and the fit
is followed by warm perspiration. Cuprum is also a remedy for nocturnal epilepsy
and must be thought of when attacks invariably occur in the night. When Silicea
is required there is an exalted susceptibility of the upper spinal cord and the
medulla and an exhausted condition of the nerves. The attacks occur about the
time of the new moon. It comes in after Calcarea in inveterate chronic cases, and
coldness of the left side of the body preceding the attack is very characteristic.

Nux vomica.

The characterizing feature of epilepsy is loss of consciousness, therefore, Nux

vomica is not often a remedy in the idiopathic form. It suits cases arising from an
excess of the reflex action caused, for instance, by indigestion. The aura in a case
calling for Nux starts in the solar plexus, and among the most characteristic
symptoms is a sensation of ants crawling over the face. The middle and higher
potencies will be found more useful in the spinal form of epilepsy, and this is the
form most suitable to Nux. Plumbum has caused epilepsy, and we may use it for
these symptoms: the attack is preceded by a heaviness of the legs and is followed
by paralysis; epileptic seizures from sclerosis, or from tumors of the brain,
consciousness returning slowly after an attack is another indication and it is more
suitable to the chronic forms of the disease. Constipation and abdominal pains
further indicate. Secale is recommended for sudden and rapidly recurring
convulsions, with rapid sinking of strength and paralysis of the spinal nerves.

Cicuta virosa.

The indications for cicuta are sudden rigidity followed by jerks and violent
distortions, and these followed by utter prostration. The prostration is
characteristic, being equaled only by that of Chininum arsenicosum. There is

a tonic spasm renewed by touch simulating Strychnia; but in Cicuta there is loss
of consciousness, thus resembling more the epileptiform. There is great
oppression of breathing, lockjaw, face dark red, frothing at the mouth and
opisthotonos. The reflex excitability under Cicuta is much less than under
Strychnia. Another characteristic of Cicuta is fixed staring eyes; others are
trembling before and after the spasm and strange feeling in the head preceding
the attack. Bayes, however, regards muscular convulsions as a specially
prominent symptom for Cuprum.

Sulphur

Like Calcarea, Sulphur is a constitutional or basic remedy, and it will act well
where there is a scrofulous taint. It is useful for the same class of cases as is
Calcarea; namely, those brought on by sexual excesses or the suppression of
some eruption. The convulsions are attended with great exhaustion and it is
suitable to the chronic form of epilepsy in children who are typical Sulphur
patients. There is perhaps a tendency to fall to the left side. Sulphur is also a
useful intercurrent remedy in the course of the treatment of an epilepsy.
Psorinum may also be needed as an intercurrent.

Hyoscyamus

In epileptic convulsions Hyoscyamus is a most valuable remedy. There is much

twitching and jerking and hunger previous to the attack, there is frothing at the
mouth and biting of the tongue. A violent fright will produce an attack that will
call for Hyoscyamus. The convulsions seem to have more of a hysterical nature,
and there are illusions of sight and hearing. Stramonium has epilepsy from fright,
sudden loss of consciousness and jerking of the head to the right, with rotary
motion of the left arm. Stramonium is the opposite of Belladonna, for whereas
the Belladonna patient shuns light, fears noises and is sensitive in the highest
degree, the Stramonium patient fears darkness and hates to be alone; he acts like
a coward and trembles and shakes. Agaricus 30 cured a case of epilepsy of 22
years' standing for Dr. Winterburn. He was led to its prescription by the unusual
symptom of "great flow of ideas and loquacity after the attack."

Belladonna

Belladonna is especially a remedy for acute epilepsies, when the cerebral

symptoms ar prominent, where the face is flushed and the whole trouble seems
to picture cerebral irritation, and more especially if the patient be young. There is
an aura as if a mouse were running over an extremity, or of heat rising from the
stomach. There are illusions of sight and hearing, and the convulsions are apt to
commence in an upper extremity and extend to the mouth, face and eyes. The
great irritability of the nervous system, the easily disturbed sleep, the startings,
the tremors and twitching and the general Belladonna symptoms will render the
choice easy. Atropine, the alkaloid of Belladonna, has also been used successfully
in the treatment of epilepsy. Hydrocyanic acid. Another remedy is Hydrocyanic
acid, to which Hughes ascribes specific powers in the disease. In recent cases it
perhaps our best remedy. the cases calling for it will be characterized by loss of
consciousness, clenched hands, set jaws, frothing at the mouth, inability to
swallow, and the attack is followed by great drowsiness and prostration. Children
are disinclined to play and take but little interest in anything. It is one of our
mainstays in epilepsy and its clinical record ranks it high.

Causticum.

Causticum is useful in Petit mal, also when the patient falls while walking in the
open air, but soon recovers. It is said to be useful when the attacks occur at new
moon. It menstrual epilepsy and that occurring at puberty Causticum is the
remedy. Kafka recommends Hepar in nocturnal epilepsy. Causticum is perhaps
better suited to recent and light cases. Another preparation of potash, Kali
muriaticum, is a most useful remedy in epilepsy; it has an affinity for the nerve
centers and it is a slow acting remedy.
Reference :

MS Encarta Encyclopedia 2002.

Radiotherapy.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

What is radiotherapy?

Since the discovery of x-rays over one hundred years ago, radiation has been
used increasingly in medicine, both to help with diagnosis (by taking pictures
with x-rays), and as a treatment (radiotherapy). While radiation obviously has to
be used with care, doctors and radiographers have great experience in its use in
medicine.

Radiotherapy treatment can cure some cancers and can reduce the chance of a
cancer coming back after surgery, but can cause side effects. It can be used to
reduce cancer symptoms.

The benefits and possible side effects are discussed in detail below.

Radiotherapy is the use of x-rays and similar rays (such as photons) to treat
disease.

Many people with cancer will have radiotherapy as part of their treatment. This
can be given either as external radiotherapy from outside the body, using x-rays
or cobalt irradiation, or from within the body as internal radiotherapy.

Radiotherapy works by destroying the cancer cells in the treated area. Although
normal cells are also sometimes damaged by the radiotherapy, they can repair
themselves more effectively.

Effect of radiotherapy on fertility

Most radiotherapy treatment has no effect on your ability to enjoy sex or to have
children. Many healthy babies have been born to parents who have had
radiotherapy, and the risk of having an abnormal baby is not increased if you
have had treatment in the past. Many specialists recommend that women wait for
about two years after having radiotherapy before trying to get pregnant, to give
the body a chance to get over the effects of the cancer and its treatment.
However, where the ovaries cannot be excluded from the radiation field,
temporary or permanent infertility (inability to have children) is likely.

In men, sperm production can be reduced if the testicles are in the area being
treated, and this can lead to temporary or permanent infertility. Fortunately, it is
usually possible to avoid giving radiotherapy to the testicles in the cancers that
are most common in younger men. Radiotherapy for prostate or bladder cancers
is likely to cause permanently low sperm counts.

Before you have radiotherapy, your specialist will discuss the possibility that it
may lead to infertility with you, and will normally ask you to sign a form
consenting to treatment. Understandably, this can be a traumatic time,
particularly for young people who were planning to have children. If you have a
partner, he or she will be encouraged to join in this meeting, giving both of you a
chance to express any fears or worries you may have, and talk them through.

Sometimes, it may be possible for men to store sperm before they have their
radiotherapy. The sperm are frozen and can be stored for several years until a
couple is ready to have children. This is known as sperm banking. It is now
sometimes possible to store a woman's eggs as well, although this is still at a very
early, experimental stage and not widely available. You should use a reliable
method of contraception throughout your treatment.

Even if your treatment is likely to make you infertile, you may be strongly
advised to use a form of birth control. If pregnancy occurs during or shortly after
radiotherapy, there might be a slight possibility of damage to the baby. It isn't
easy to come to terms with the prospect of infertility, or any of the side effects of
your treatment. It can take a while for you to sort out your emotions and be able
to talk about them. When you are ready, it may be helpful to talk openly to your
partner or a friend about these feelings. If they can understand how you feel it is
often easier for them to offer help and support.

Sexuality

For women

External and internal radiotherapy to the pelvis usually affects the function of the
ovaries. Radiotherapy to the ovaries will cause the menopause. This may happen
gradually over a few months. The normal signs of the menopause will develop,
such as hot flushes, dry skin and dryness in the vagina. This can be very
distressing, particularly for younger women who are not prepared for the
menopause. Depending on your type of tumour, your doctor may prescribe
hormone replacement therapy, which can help to overcome these problems.
Occasionally -- for example, when treating some types of cancer called
lymphomas - the ovaries may be moved out of the treatment area by an
operation before radiotherapy begins.

Radiotherapy to the vaginal area can occasionally cause the vagina to become
narrower. The radiotherapy staff will show you how to use vaginal dilators and a
lubricant to keep the vagina supple once you have finished treatment.

At first you may find sex uncomfortable, and it may be helpful to use a lubricant
such as KY jelly, which you can buy at your local chemist. Regular sex may help
to prevent narrowing of the vagina, but many women will not feel ready to
return to a regular sex life while they are experiencing the side effects of
radiotherapy. This is very natural; your interest in sex will usually return as the
effects of the treatment wear off, and in the meantime, using a dilator will be an
effective way of keeping your vagina healthy.

It may help to talk over your fears and worries with your partner, and the
radiotherapy staff, if you are having problems. Although it can be embarrassing
to talk to the hospital staff about such intimate things, remember that they are
used to dealing with these issues and can suggest things that will help you.

For men

Men who have radiotherapy may experience some problems with sex. It may be
that you have lost interest in sex or become temporarily impotent because of
your anxiety about your illness, or worries about the future, or because the
treatment is making you too tired to think about sex. These effects may last for a
few weeks after radiotherapy has finished, and can be very distressing.

Talking openly to your partner about your problems may help, and you can ask
the radiotherapy staff about any problems.

Radiotherapy to the pelvis -- for example, to treat bladder or prostate -- may

cause impotence (inability to have an erection). This side effect may develop
months or years after your radiotherapy is finished.

Contraception.

It is very important for women of childbearing age to use effective contraception

throughout their radiotherapy treatment. Radiotherapy could cause a miscarriage
or cause a child to be born with abnormalities. If you think that you may be
pregnant when you are told that you are to have radiotherapy treatment it is
extremely important to let your clinical oncologist know. The oncologist will
discuss with you whether the treatment can be delayed until the baby is born.

If appropriate, you should use a reliable method of contraception throughout

your treatment.

Internal radiotherapy

Internal radiotherapy is used mainly to treat cancers in the head and neck area,
the cervix, the womb, the prostate gland or the skin.

Treatment is given in one of two ways: either by putting solid radioactive

material (the source) close to or inside the tumour for a limited period of time, or
by using a radioactive liquid, which the patient takes either as a drink or as an
injection into a vein.

If you have internal radiotherapy, you may have to stay in hospital for a few days
and some

special precautions will have to be taken while the radioactive material is in place
in your body. Once the treatment is over there is no risk of exposing your family
or friends to radiation.

The process of putting solid radioactive material close to or inside the tumour is
called brachytherapy.

Giving a radioactive liquid, either as a drink, a capsule, or as an injection into a

vein is called radioisotope treatment. Your specialist will discuss your particular
treatment with you.

Before having your treatment you will be asked to sign a form to say that you
give your permission (consent).

What safety measures are taken with your treatment?

Because of the possibility of unnecessary radiation exposure to the hospital staff

and your friends and relatives, certain safety measures are taken while you are
being treated with the radioactive source, or after you have been given a liquid
radioisotope. Depending on the type of treatment you are receiving, this means
the restrictions may be needed for a few days. But sometimes they are only
needed for a few minutes.
The staff looking after you will explain these restrictions to you in more detail
before you start your treatment. Each hospital has different routines, and it is
worth visiting beforehand to discuss what will happen with the nursing and
medical staff.

You may be admitted to the ward the day before your treatment so the staff can
go over the procedure with you. This is a good time to ask questions and it may
help to make a list beforehand so you don't forget something important.

While the radioactive source is in place, or after treatment with a liquid

radioisotope:

" You will probably be nursed in a side room, away from the main ward.
" You may be nursed alone or with someone else having similar treatment.
" Lead screens may be placed on either side of your bed to absorb any radiation
that is given out.
" The doctors and staff on the ward will only stay in your room for short periods
at a time.
" Staff and visitors will be asked to stand away from your bed to reduce their
exposure to the rays.
" An instrument called a Geiger counter can be used to monitor the level of
radiation in the room. The nurses may wear a small counter.
" Visitors will be restricted, and only allowed to stay in the room or sit at the end
of the bed for a short time, if at all. Visitors will be able to talk to you from
outside the room through an intercom.
" Children and women who are pregnant will not be allowed to visit.

These precautions can make you feel very isolated, in addition to the fears you
may already have about your treatment. People are different in the way they
handle their fears; some find it easier to know everything about their treatment,
while others prefer to know as little as possible. If you want any explanations the
staff on the ward will be happy to help you. It often helps to bring any fears or
worries you have into the open by talking to the staff or to family and friends.
You will probably only be in the single room for a short time, sometimes only
one or two days. You can bring books and magazines into your room, watch TV
or listen to the radio.

If you are being treated with a radioactive source, the safety measures are only
necessary while it is in place. Before and after your treatment, your visitors can
come at normal visiting times.

Some people worry that they will remain radioactive once the treatment is over,
and be dangerous to their family and friends. If you have been treated with a
radioactive source, this is not so.
As soon as the radioactive source has been removed, all traces of radiation
disappear.

If you have been given a liquid treatment, however, the radioactivity will
disappear gradually. Before you leave hospital the staff will check that most of
the radioactivity in your body has gone, and that your belongings are free of any
signs of radioactivity. After you leave hospital you should be able to carry on
your life almost as normal, but there may be a few restrictions about meeting
people - especially children and pregnant women - for a few more days.

Caesium insertion

This type of internal radiotherapy treatment is used for treating cancer of the
cervix, uterus or vagina. The radioactive source most commonly used is called
caesium-137. The advantage of caesium insertion treatment is that it gives a high
dose of radiotherapy directly to the tumour, but gives a low dose to normal
tissues.

The caesium source has to be put inside an applicator (there may be more than
one) to keep it in place. The applicator, is inserted into the vagina, while you are
under a general anæsthetic or sedation in the operating room. At the same time, a
flexible tube called a urinary catheter may be put into your bladder to drain off
urine. This means you don't have to get on and off bedpans and risk moving the
applicators. Once the applicators are in place an X-ray will be taken to check they
are in the correct position. Sometimes the radioactive source is put into the
applicator while you are in the operating room, but more commonly it will be put
in place once you are back on the ward. You may hear this referred to as
'afterloading'.

The applicators are kept in place by a pack (cotton/gauze padding) inside your
vagina. This can be uncomfortable and you may need to ask your nurse for
regular painkillers.

Once the source is put into the applicators you have to stay in bed. This helps to
keep them in the correct position. If you need anything, you can call a member
of staff by using the call bell by your bed. If the source does get dislodged, you
should call the staff on the ward immediately.

Curitron/Selectron machine

In some hospitals a machine, which may be called a Curitron or Selectron or

similar name, is used to put the radioactive material into the applicators. The
machine is attached by tubes to the applicators. When the machine is switched
on it passes small radioactive sources into the applicators. If the machine is
switched off, the source is pulled back inside the machine. The machine is kept
switched on throughout your treatment, except when someone needs to go into
your room. It can then be turned off, so reducing their exposure to the rays.
However, safety measures and visiting restrictions are still necessary. The time
you spend on the machine varies but it is usually between 12 and 48 hours.

Microselectron

Sometimes a machine called a Microselectron can be used to give internal

radiotherapy. This gives the radiotherapy more quickly, so the treatments last for
only a few minutes and you can go home the same day.

After the treatment

Once you have received your dose of radiation the sources and the applicators
will be removed. This is usually done on the ward. As it can be a little
uncomfortable, you will be offered some painkillers beforehand. Sometimes a
few breaths of the gas Entonox will help you to relax. The staff on the ward
check that all the applicators and sources have been removed. Your catheter may
be removed at the same time.

Your doctor may suggest you use vaginal douches for a few days after the
insertion has been removed to keep the vagina clean. Your nurse will show you
how to use these.

You will probably be able to go home the same, or the following, day. Once the
radioactive sources are removed, all traces of radioactivity will immediately
disappear.

Side effects

Many women will be treated with both internal and external radiotherapy to
ensure the area is treated in the most effective way.

There is a slight risk of infection following caesium insertion but this is very rare.
If you do develop a high temperature or heavy bleeding after your treatment you
should contact your doctor as soon as possible. You will be prescribed
antibiotics to deal with the infection.

Caesium or iridium implants

These can be used to treat a number of tumours including those in the mouth,
lip and breast. Very fine needles, wires or tubes carry the radioactive source, and
are inserted while you are in the operating room under a general anæsthetic.

An X-ray may be taken to ensure that they are in the correct position. You will
be nursed in a separate room, and safety measures will be applied until the wires
are removed, usually between three and eight days. Sometime this is done under
general anæsthetic.

Implants in the mouth can be uncomfortable, and can make eating and talking
difficult. A soft or liquid diet may be necessary while the needles are in place.
Your nurse will show you how to keep your mouth clean, using regular
mouthwashes. If eating is a problem you may be fed through a thin tube
(nasogastric tube) which is passed via your nose and into your stomach.

The implant is removed once the correct dose of radiation has been received.
This may be after two days, if the treatment is given as a booster after external
treatment, or up to one week if given as the only form of treatment.

Once the implant has been removed the area will feel sore for up to two or three
weeks afterwards. Your specialist will prescribe pain killers that you can take
regularly until this improves.

Radioactive seed implants are occasionally used to treat small tumours of the
prostate gland.

Radioactive isotopes

These are given as liquids, either through the mouth (in capsules or as a drink) or
by injection into a vein (called an intravenous injection). The commonest form
of radioisotope treatment is radio-iodine. It is used to treat tumours of the
thyroid gland, and is given in the form of an odourless and colourless drink.

The same safety precautions will be taken with this type of treatment as with
implants.

Any radio-iodine which is not absorbed by your thyroid will be passed from the
body in sweat and urine. You should drink plenty of fluids during your treatment
as this helps to flush the iodine out of the body. The amount of radiation in your
body will be checked regularly and as soon as it falls to a safe level, after about
four to seven days, you will be able to go home. You may need to take some
special precautions for a short time after going home - particularly with young
children and pregnant women. The hospital staff will explain these to you.
Radioisotope treatment can also be given when certain types of cancer have
spread to the bones (secondary cancer in the bone). A radioisotope is injected
into a vein and this is normally given as an out-patient. Before you go home you
will be given some simple advice to follow as your urine and blood are slightly
radioactive for a few days.

Side effects of external radiotherapy to specific areas of the body

This section deals with the side effects of radiotherapy to different areas of the
body:

" the head and neck

" the chest area
" the stomach and pelvis area.

As radiotherapy treats only the affected area of the body, you only need to read
the section that relates to your treatment area

Radiotherapy to the head and neck

Radiotherapy to the mouth can make you more likely to get tooth decay and you
will need more frequent check-ups at the dentist. Fluoride treatment can often
help to protect your teeth against the effects of radiotherapy, and your clinical
oncologist may refer you for special dental treatment before your radiotherapy
starts.

Gently brushing your teeth with a soft toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste as
many as five or six times a day will help. It is important to tell your dentist that
you have had radiotherapy before having any dental work later on.

Radiotherapy to the chest (thorax)

Difficulty in swallowing

About two to three weeks (but sometimes only a few days) after the radiotherapy
to this area has started, you might notice that your chest feels tight, which makes
it difficult to swallow solid foods. This is a common reaction to treatment. It may
help to try a soft, plain diet supplemented by high-calorie drinks such as Build-
Up and Complan. By trying different foods, you will find out which ones are
easiest to swallow. Your specialist may prescribe painkillers or liquid medicines
(such as Asilone, Maalox or Altacite plus) to be taken before meals to make
eating less uncomfortable. The discomfort will usually get better on its own in
about five to eight weeks.

Feeling sick

Some people find that their treatment makes them feel sick, and sometimes they
may actually be sick. This is most common when the treatment area is near the
stomach. Your specialist will prescribe anti-sickness drugs (called anti-emetics) if
this happens. These drugs are also commonly provided to prevent nausea
(feeling sick) and vomiting, if the specialist thinks this is likely, and are usually
very successful.

Tell your specialist if you have any nausea or vomiting, and remember that it
usually stops once treatment is over.

Weight loss

If you are having problems with eating or sickness you may begin to lose weight.
This can make you feel tired and weak. At times you may not feel like eating. The
dietitian or your specialist will be able to give you advice if eating is a problem.

Breathlessness

After radiotherapy to the chest you may notice that you develop a dry cough and
breathlessness. This side effect may not occur until several months after your
treatment. Whenever it happens you should report it to your doctor who may
treat it with a course of steroids and possibly antibiotics.

It is important to let your doctor know if you notice any changes in your
breathing at any time during and after your treatment.

Radiotherapy to the stomach and pelvis

Diarrhœa

Diarrhœa is a fairly common side effect of treatment to this area, and stomach
cramps and wind may also occur. Your specialist can prescribe anti-diarrhœa
drugs for you. If a large area of the abdomen or pelvis is being treated you may
be advised to drink lots of fluid. You will normally be advised to eat a normal
healthy diet, and to take the anti-diarrhœa drugs as prescribed by your doctor.
The diarrhœa may continue for some weeks after your treatment. As well as
being unpleasant, diarrhœa can make you feel weak and tired. Don't hesitate to
contact the radiotherapy department or your doctor if it doesn't seem to be
getting any better.
Discomfort around the back passage

The rectum (back passage) may become irritated by the radiotherapy if the area
being treated is in the lower pelvis, such as in prostate or bladder cancer. If this is
likely you may be advised to follow a high-fibre diet to avoid becoming
constipated as this can worsen the irritation of the back passage (proctitis). Piles
may also become more irritating, and local anæsthetic, steroid creams or
suppositories may be prescribed to ease this discomfort.

Sometimes, after radiotherapy to the pelvic area, there may be a mucus discharge
or some bleeding from the back passage. Let your specialist know if you have
any of these problems.

Feeling sick

Some people find that their treatment makes them feel sick and they may actually
be sick. Your specialist can prescribe anti-sickness drugs (called anti-emetics) for
you. Any feeling of sickness usually stops once your treatment is over.

Loss of appetite and weight loss

These side effects may occur as a result of diarrhœa and nausea. At times you
may not feel like eating, and the idea of preparing food may make you feel sick.
If you can, ask someone else to prepare your meals for you. You may find it
easier to eat little and often - having small, more frequent meals or snacks rather
than conventional larger meals at set times.

Food supplements such as Build-Up and Complan can be used in place of meals
to add necessary calories. The dietitian or your specialist will be pleased to advise
if eating becomes a problem for you.

Occasionally, if your weight continues to fall, it may be necessary for you to

spend a short time in hospital so that you can be fed in alternative ways. Liquid
food can be given intravenously (into a vein) or by a tube through your nose and
into your stomach (a nasogastric tube) until you are able to eat properly again.

Pain while passing urine

Inflammation of the bladder, known as cystitis, may develop during radiotherapy

to the lower abdomen, usually after several treatments have been given. You may
notice a burning sensation or discomfort when you pass urine and feel that you
need to pass water more often than usual, including during the night. Increasing
the amount of fluid that you drink will help to relieve these symptoms, but try to
avoid coffee, tea, alcohol and acidic fruit juices such as orange juice, as these
irritate the bladder and will make the symptoms worse. Some people find that
cranberry juice or lemon barley water help to reduce the symptoms. If necessary,
medicines may be given to treat these symptoms. You may also have your urine
checked regularly to make sure there is no infection.

General side effects

While radiotherapy can destroy cancer cells, it can also have an effect on some of
the surrounding normal cells. The side effects that may occur are described
below. It is important to remember that no person will have more than a few of
them, and for many people they may be very mild.

As radiotherapy affects people in different ways, it is difficult to predict exactly

how you will react to your treatment. Before you start your treatment the staff
will discuss with you any likely side effects of the particular treatment you are
having, and can give tips on how to deal with them and how they can be treated.
Being aware of side effects in advance can help you to cope with any problems
that arise.

Most side effects of radiotherapy disappear gradually once the course of

treatment is over. However, side effects may continue for a few weeks.

Tiredness

You may find that you feel very tired during your radiotherapy. This can often be
made worse by having to travel to your treatment each day. Listen to your body,
and if necessary, allow yourself extra time to rest, perhaps by taking a nap in the
afternoons. It may help if you spread chores out over the week, sit down to do
them, wherever possible, and accept any offers of help. Tiredness can be a
problem for some months after your treatment has finished.

Eating and drinking

As always during treatment of any kind, it is important to maintain a healthy diet

and drink plenty of fluids. At times you probably won't feel like eating, or you
may find that your eating habits change. It may be easier to have small snacks
throughout the day rather than large meals. It is not unusual to lose a little weight
during radiotherapy, but if you are having any problems with eating it is
important to tell the radiotherapy staff. They can arrange for you to talk to the
dietitian.

Changes in your blood

Radiotherapy to some parts of the body can sometimes affect bone marrow,
which produces the different types of blood cells. If this is thought likely to
happen in your case you will have regular blood tests during your treatment to
check your blood counts (the number of cells in your blood). If your blood
counts are low, you may feel tired and `run down'. If your blood count becomes
very low (which is unlikely), it may be necessary to have a short rest from
treatment so that your blood cell level can return to normal. You may also need
to have a blood transfusion.

It is very important to let your doctors know if you feel very unwell, or if your
temperature goes above 38°C (100.4°F), or if you start feeling cold and shaky.

Skin care

Some people develop a skin reaction, similar to sunburn, while having external
radiotherapy. This normally happens after three to four weeks. People with pale
skin may find that the skin in the treatment area becomes red and sore or itchy.
People with darker skin may find that their skin becomes darker and can have a
blue or black tinge. The amount of the reaction depends on the area being
treated and the individual person's skin. Some people have no skin problems at
all. Your radiographers will be looking for these reactions but you should also let
them know as soon as you feel any soreness.

Do not apply creams or dressings unless they have been prescribed or

recommended by your specialist.

Occasionally, if the skin reaction is severe, your treatment may have to be

delayed for a short time to allow the area to recover.

Staff at your radiotherapy department will be able to give you advice on how to
look after the skin in the area that is being treated. The care of the skin varies
according to the part of the body that is being treated and the dose of
radiotherapy that the skin is receiving. You may be asked not to wash the
treatment area at all while you are having treatment. Alternatively, you may be
advised to use only tepid water to wash the area (and not to soak too long in the
bath), and then to dry it by patting gently with a soft towel. Instead you could dry
your skin with a hairdryer on the coolest setting. Do not rub the area as this may
make it sore.

Soaps, talcs, deodorants and perfumes may also make your skin sore and should
not be used. The staff at the hospital may suggest that you gently apply simple
moisturisers, such as E45 cream or aqueous cream, to the area. After your
treatment, simple soap and simple moisturisers are often recommended. Aloe
vera cream or arnica cream can sometimes help the skin to heal. Always check
with the radiotherapy staff before applying anything to your skin.

It is very important that any marks put on your skin to mark the treatment area
are not removed. If the marks do fade or disappear, do not try to replace them
yourself but let the radiotherapy staff know.
Men who are having radiotherapy to the head and neck should use an electric
razor, rather than wet-shaving.

These restrictions apply only to the treatment area, and the rest of your skin can
be treated normally. Your skin may peel after the redness has faded, but it should
heal quickly. Skin reactions usually settle down two to four weeks after the
treatment has finished, but the skin area may remain slightly darker than the
surrounding skin.

Avoiding the sun

Because the treated area is so sensitive it should not be exposed to the sun or
cold winds. If you are having radiotherapy to the head or neck, try wearing a silk
or cotton scarf when you go outside.

It is very important to cover the treated area if you go out in strong sunshine for
at least the first year after your radiotherapy. Wear clothing made of cotton or
natural fibres which have a closer weave and offer more protection against the
sun. Even after this time the skin will be more delicate, so extra care should be
taken. Use a sun-screen (of at least factor 15) and wear a hat and a long-sleeved
shirt. It is important to remember that you can burn even through clothing if you
are out in hot sun for a long time.

You can swim as soon as any skin reaction has settled down, usually within a
month of finishing treatment. But if you are swimming out of doors, do not stay
in the water too long, and do not forget to use a waterproof sunblock.

Clothing

Loose-fitting clothes, preferably in natural fibres rather than man-made materials,

are more comfortable and less irritating to the skin. If you are having
radiotherapy to your neck you should avoid tight collars and ties.

Shoulder straps and bra straps can also cause irritation if they are rubbing treated
skin. If your breast area is being treated, you may be more comfortable not
wearing a bra or wearing a cropped top or vest.

Smoking

Stopping smoking during and after radiotherapy is very worthwhile. Research has
shown that it may make the radiotherapy more effective as well as reducing the
side effects. It will also improve your general health and reduce your risk of
developing other cancers. Stopping smoking or even cutting down at such a
stressful time can be very difficult, but do your best. If you want help or advice
talk to your specialist.
External beam radiotherapy

About your treatment

External radiotherapy is normally given as a series of short daily treatments in the

radiotherapy department, using equipment similar to a large x-ray machine.

The treatments are usually given from Monday to Friday, leaving patients to rest
at the weekend. Each treatment is called a fraction. Giving the treatment in
fractions ensures that less damage is done to normal cells than to cancer cells.
The damage to normal cells is mainly temporary, but is the reason why
radiotherapy has some side effects.

The number of treatments you have depends on several factors, including:

" your general health

" the site and type of cancer being treated
" whether or not you have had, or are going to have, surgery, chemotherapy or
hormonal therapy as part of your treatment.

For these reasons, treatment is planned for each patient individually, and even
people with the same type of cancer may have different treatments.

External radiotherapy does not make you radioactive, and it is perfectly safe for
you to be with other people, including children, throughout your treatment.

A course of curative (radical) treatment may be given every weekday from two to
six weeks. Instead of having one treatment a day or having a rest at the weekend,
some people will have different treatment plans. They may have more than one
treatment a day or treatment every day for two weeks. Giving radiotherapy in this
way is known as continuous hyperfractionated radiotherapy (often called
CHART). Sometimes treatment may be given on only three days each week (for
example, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays).

Palliative treatment (for symptom control) may involve only one or two sessions
of treatment, or up to five sessions.

The different types of radiotherapy machine work in slightly different ways.

Some are better for treating cancers near the surface of the skin, while others
work best on cancers deeper in the body.

The type of radiotherapy machine used will be carefully chosen by your specialist
and physicist to give you the most appropriate treatment. Some machines are
quicker than others and may give treatment in a very short time, such as a few
seconds. Usually, radiotherapy treatment (including the time taken to position
you) takes 10-15 minutes or less, on any machine.

The radiotherapy machine does not normally touch you and the treatment itself
is painless, although it may gradually cause some uncomfortable side effects. If
you have a specific type of radiotherapy known as electron treatment, a small
applicator may be used, which touches a small area of skin.

People react to radiotherapy in different ways: some find that they can carry on
working, taking time off for their treatment, while others find it too tiring and
prefer to stay at home. If you have a family to look after, you may find that you
need extra help. Don't be afraid to ask for help, whether it's from your employer,
family or friends, social services, or the staff in the radiotherapy department. As
your treatment progresses, you will have a better idea of how it makes you feel so
you can make any necessary changes to your daily life.

The radiotherapy staff will try to give you an appointment for the same time each
day. This gives your body a chance to recover from any side effects between
treatments and also allows you to get into a daily routine.

Getting to your appointment

If you have to do a lot of traveling each day to get to your appointment you may
feel very tired, particularly if you are feeling some side effects from your
treatment.

If the treatment makes you feel tired, you could ask a family member or friend to
drive you to the hospital, or ask for hospital transport if friends or family cannot
easily drive you there.

If you rely on your own or public transport you can usually arrange an
appointment which suits both you and the radiographers. Some hospitals provide
transport, and if necessary, this can be arranged for you by the radiotherapy staff.
Some local support groups and charities also provide hospital transport. If
transport is very difficult, or you live a long way from the hospital, you may need
to be admitted to the ward, or a hostel ward in the hospital or nearby.

Giving your consent

Before you have your radiotherapy treatment, you will be asked to sign a form
saying that you give your permission (consent) for the hospital staff to give you
the treatment. No medical treatment can be given without your consent, and
before you are asked to sign the form you should have been given full
information about:
" the type and extent of the radiotherapy you are advised to have
" the advantages and disadvantages of the treatment
" any possible alternative treatments that may be available
" any significant risks or side effects of the radiotherapy

If you do not understand what you have been told, let the staff know straight
away so that they can explain again. Some radiotherapy treatments are complex,
so it is not unusual for people to need several explanations.

It is often a good idea to have a friend or relative with you when the treatment is
explained, to help you recall the discussion more fully. You may also find it
useful to write down a list of questions before you go for your appointment.

People often feel that the hospital staff are too busy to answer their questions,
but it is important for you to be aware of how the treatment is likely to affect you
and the staff should be willing to make time for you to ask questions.

You can always ask for more time to decide about the treatment, if you feel that
you can't make a decision when it is first explained to you. You are also free to
choose not to have the treatment, and the staff can explain what may happen if
you do not have it.

You can also change your mind and stop the treatment at any time, even if you
have signed a consent form. It is important to tell a doctor, or the nurse in
charge, immediately so that he or she can record your decision in your medical
notes. You do not have to give a reason for not wanting to have treatment, but it
can be helpful to let the staff know your concerns so that they can give you the
best advice.

It is true that the hospital staff are busy, but the more you understand about your
treatment, the easier it is for you and them.

Planning your treatment

Your first appointment at the radiotherapy department will be a planning session.

This is a very important part of your treatment, as the results of this session will
be used to finalise your treatment plan. Radiotherapy treatment is planned very
carefully to ensure that the x-rays are aimed precisely at the cancer and cause
minimal damage to surrounding healthy tissues. It is important for you to feel
that you are involved in your treatment, so feel free to ask as many questions as
you like.

Your specialist may plan your treatment by drawing temporary ink markings
directly onto your skin. Alternatively, you may need to be x-rayed or measured
on a machine called a simulator. This moves in exactly the same way as the
treatment machines, but rather than giving treatment it takes x-rays to help the
radiographer plan the correct position for your treatment. This procedure takes
about 15-45 minutes and may be quite tiring.

Women of childbearing age will be asked whether they could be pregnant, as x-

rays given during pregnancy could harm a baby. If you think that you may be
pregnant, let the doctors and radiographers know immediately and you will be
offered a pregnancy test.

During the treatment planning you will be lying on a fairly hard couch that can
be slightly uncomfortable. If it is, let the radiographer know: you can be made
more comfortable by having foam pads placed underneath you. You have to lie
very still for a few minutes so that accurate measurements can be taken and your
exact position recorded. The radiographer can then make sure that you are lying
in the correct position each time you have treatment.

Some special procedures may be necessary to make sure the radiographers get a
clear picture. The radiographers will explain these to you. For example, to plan
treatment to the pelvic area, a liquid that shows up on x-ray may be passed into
your back passage or into your bladder, or a vaginal tampon may be used to
show the exact position of the vagina. These procedures may be slightly
uncomfortable but are not painful and take only a few minutes. They are used
only for planning the treatment, and not during the treatment sessions.

Sometimes a CT (computerised tomography) scan is taken of the area to be

treated and this may be done in the hospital scanning department before your
planning session appointment. A CT scan is a series of x-rays that gives a detailed
picture of part of your body. The scanning department staff will explain the
scanning process to you beforehand. Again, the scan is not painful, but you need
to lie still for up to 10-30 minutes, which can be uncomfortable.

Sometimes more than one planning session is necessary - it depends on the size
and position of the tumour. You may have your first treatment on the same day
as your planning session, but often it is necessary to wait a few days while the
physicist and specialist prepare the final details of your treatment.

Skin markings

Once the treatment area has been finalised, ink markings are usually made on
your skin to pinpoint the exact place where the radiation is to be directed. The
staff will explain how to look after these markings. If the marks begin to rub off,
tell your radiographer. Do not try to redraw them yourself. Since they can rub off
onto clothing, some people choose to wear older clothes next to the skin during
their treatment.

Sometimes two, three or more permanent pinpoint tattoo marks are also made
on the skin. This will be done only with your permission. It is a little
uncomfortable while it is being done, but is a good way of making sure that your
treatment machines are set up in the right way each day. The tattoo marks are
also useful once treatment has finished, as they show where the radiotherapy was
given and prevent further radiotherapy being given to that area in the future.

Mould room

As radiotherapy is planned very precisely, to treat exactly the right area, it is

important to keep that part of the body as still as possible during treatment. For
radiotherapy to some parts of the body, a see-through Perspex device called a
`mould' or `shell' may be made, to prevent movement during treatment. This is
often used for treatments to the head and neck area. Any necessary marks can be
made on the mould instead of on your skin. Your

mould will be made before your treatment is planned.

In the mould room a plaster cast mould is made of the body part. Some people
may find this claustrophobic or a little frightening, particularly if the mould is of
the face and neck, but it takes only a short time.

After you leave the department, perspex is moulded on to the cast to form a
mask. This mask fits snugly to your face and neck, with holes cut for your eyes,
nose and mouth. The mould is ready to wear at your first planning or treatment
session. Again, this may feel claustrophobic for some people, but try to
remember that you will only have it on for a few minutes at a time.

Sometimes a mould of your leg or arm is used to keep the area still while your
treatment is in progress.

Having your treatment

Before your first treatment your radiographers will explain to you what you will
see and hear. It is quite normal to feel anxious about having your treatment, but
as you get to know the staff and understand what is going on it should become
easier. The sight of large machines can be frightening, especially for children.
Don't be afraid to talk about any fears or worries to the staff; they are there to
help you, and the more you understand about your treatment the more relaxed
you will be.

Radiotherapy itself is painless and each session may take anything from a few
seconds to several minutes. Because your positioning is so important, however,
the radiographers may take a little while to get you ready (they may call this
`setting up'). The room may be in semi-darkness while this is happening.

Try to relax as much as possible.

Once you are in the correct position the staff will need to leave you alone in the
room, to prevent them from being exposed to any unnecessary radiation. Don't
worry if the staff seem to rush out of the room once they have positioned you,
this is just to keep your treatment time to a minimum, as radiotherapy units have
many patients to treat and the staff need to keep appointments on time.

Some treatment rooms have tape players so that you can listen to music while
having your treatment, to help you to relax. During treatment you will be alone
for a few minutes but there will be an intercom so that you can talk to the
radiographers. They will be watching you carefully from the next room, either
through a window or on a closed-circuit television screen. To protect your
privacy, no one else will be able to see you. If you have any problems you can
raise your hand to attract the radiographers' attention and they will come in to
help you.

Most radiotherapy machines will be able to rotate around your body to give the
treatment from several different directions. At first, this and the sound of the
machine, can be unsettling.

Positioning of radiotherapy machine

The radiographers may have to come into the treatment room and change your
position slightly in the middle of your treatment. Also, small changes sometimes
have to be made to your treatment plan. There may be a number of reasons for
this and your specialist will explain these changes to you and keep you up to date
with your progress.

Why is radiotherapy given?

Curative treatment
Radiotherapy is often prescribed with the aim of destroying the tumour, and, it is
hoped curing the cancer. When radiotherapy is given in this way it is described as
radical radiotherapy. Radiotherapy may be given before or after surgery or before
or after chemotherapy (the use of anti-cancer drugs to destroy cancer cells). If
radiotherapy and chemotherapy are given at the same time, this treatment is
known as chemo radiotherapy.

Palliative treatment

Sometimes, when it is not possible to cure a cancer, radiotherapy may be given to

relieve symptoms - for example, to lessen pain. This is called palliative treatment.
Lower doses of external radiotherapy are given than for curative treatment,
usually over a shorter period of time (sometimes just a single treatment).

Total body irradiation

This type of radiotherapy is used much less commonly than the other types of
radiotherapy, but is often given to patients who are having a bone marrow or
stem cell transplant for example, as treatment for leukæmia. A large single dose,
or six to eight smaller doses of radiation is given to the whole body to destroy
the cells of the bone marrow. Very high doses of chemotherapy are also given,
followed by new bone marrow given by a drip into a vein, to replace the bone
marrow that has been destroyed. This type of radiotherapy is described in the
section on stem cell and bone marrow transplants.

Children and radiotherapy

Radiotherapy can be a frightening experience for both children and their parents,
but once everyone understands what is involved this fear should disappear. The
radiotherapy staff are used to treating children and they can offer help and
support.

Young children, especially if they are aged three or younger, may have their
treatment under a mild general anæsthetic. As your child can't eat or drink for at
least four hours before his or her treatment, you will probably have a morning
appointment. The anæsthetic is usually given in the radiotherapy department by
an anæsthetist. You can stay with your child until he or she is asleep.

Although you won't be able to stay in the radiotherapy room during your child's
treatment, you can watch through the window or on the TV screen. The nurses
will look after the child until he or she wakes up, usually after 20 minutes to an
hour, and then you will both be able to go home, unless your child is an in-
patient, in which case a nurse will take them back to the ward.
Older children may take a while to get used to the size and sound of the
machines, but this should get easier once they come to know the staff and the
surroundings. If you are finding it difficult to cope with your child's illness, you
may find it helpful to contact one of the children's cancer groups. Sharing your
experiences with other parents can help you to cope with your own problems
and fears.

Reference: Cancer BACUP, U. K.

HIV / AIDS is speeding up.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

As per The Guardian dated 7th July, 2004, the lethal spread of the HIV/Aids
pandemic across the globe is speeding up, in spite of intensifying efforts on the
part of UN agencies, the US, Britain and other European governments to turn
the tide. A record five million people were infected by the virus last year and
nearly three million died.

The UN's latest bi-annual report on the state of the pandemic made it plain
yesterday that the HIV virus that causes Aids is defeating man's best efforts to
contain it. There are 38 million people carrying the virus, sub-Saharan Africa is
being devastated, and the fastest spread is in Asia and eastern Europe.

"More people than in any previous year became infected with HIV. That is
clearly a failure to reach the people who need it with prevention methods. More
people than ever before died of Aids. That is a failure to reach them with
treatment," said Peter Piot, executive director of Unaids, at the launch of the
report in London yesterday. The epidemic, he said, is reaching its global phase,
and is no longer is a problem largely confined to sub-Saharan Africa.

One in every four new infections is occurring in Asia, where huge populations
are at risk, said the report, published just before the international Aids
conference in Bangkok which opens this weekend. There have been sharp
increases in the numbers infected in China, Indonesia and Vietnam, while India
alone has 5.1 million people with HIV - the second largest number infected in
any country, after South Africa.

In eastern Europe and central Asia, 1.3 million have the virus, spread largely by
injecting drug use. Russia, with more than three million injecting drug users and
860,000 with HIV, is one of the worst hit.
It is a dispiriting picture, because more work and money is going into the battle
against the world's worst disease outbreak than ever before, both in helping
people to protect themselves against contracting the virus and more recently in
efforts to get drugs that can prevent HIV developing into Aids to people in poor
countries.

But still not enough is being done, said Dr Piot. "The world is falling short on
prevention. Preventing new infections will at the end of the day stop this
epidemic," he said. "Only one in five who need it have access to HIV prevention
- [such as] education of children in schools, access to condoms and access to
clean needles for those who are injecting drugs."

What Is AIDS?

AIDS stands for Acquired imunodeficiency (or immune deficiency) Syndrome. It

results from infection with a virus called HIV, which stands for human
immunodeficiency virus. This virus infects key cells in the human body called
CD4-positive (CD4+) T cells. These cells are part of the body's immune system,
which fights infections and various cancers.

When HIV invades the body's CD4+ T cells, the damaged immune system loses
its ability to defend against diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, and other
microscopic organisms. A substantial decline in CD4+ T cells also leaves the
body vulnerable to certain cancers.

There is no cure for AIDS, but medical treatments can slow down the rate at
which HIV weakens the immune system. As with other diseases, early detection
offers more options for treatment and preventing complications.

AIDS affects women differently than it does men, and it presents unique issues
related to sexuality, childbearing, and side effects of treatments.

What Is The Difference Between HIV And AIDS?

The term AIDS refers to an advanced stage of HIV infection, when the immune
system has sustained substantial damage. Not everyone who has HIV infection
develops AIDS.

When HIV progresses to AIDS, however, it has proved to be a universally fatal

illness. Few people survive five years from the time they are diagnosed with
AIDS, although this is increasing with improvements in treatment techniques.
Experts estimate that about half the people with HIV will develop AIDS within
10 years after becoming infected. This time varies greatly from person to person,
however, and can depend on many factors, including a person's health status and
health-related behaviors.

People are said to have AIDS when they have certain signs or symptoms
specified in guidelines formulated by the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC).

The CDC's definition of AIDS includes:

All HIV-infected people with fewer than 200 CD4+ T cells per cubic millimeter
of blood (compared with CD4+ T cell counts of about 1,000 for healthy people).

People with HIV infection who have at least one of more than two dozen AIDS-
associated conditions that are the result of HIV's attack on the immune system.

AIDS-associated conditions include :

Opportunistic infections by bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Opportunistic infections

are infections that are rarely seen in healthy people but occur when a person's
immune system is weakened.

The development of certain cancers (including cervical cancer and lymphomas)

Certain autoimmune disorders Autoimmune disorders are illnesses that result

when the immune system attacks an individual's own tissues or cells.

Most AIDS-associated conditions are rarely serious in healthy individuals. In

people with AIDS, however, these infections are often severe and sometimes
fatal because the immune system is so damaged by HIV that the body cannot
fight them off.

The History Of AIDS :

The symptoms of AIDS were first recognized in the early 1980s:

In 1981, a rare lung infection called Pneumosystis carinii pneumonia began to

appear in homosexual men living in Los Angeles and New York.
At the same time, cases of a rare tumor called Kaposi's sarcoma were also
reported in young homosexual men. These tumors had been previously known
to affect elderly men, particularly in parts of Africa. New appearances of the
tumors were more aggressive in the young men and appeared on parts of the
body other than the skin.

Other infections associated with weakened immune defenses were also reported
in the early 1980s.

Groups most frequently reporting these infections in the early 1980s were
homosexuals, intravenous drug users, and people with hemophilia, a blood
disorder that requires frequent transfusions. Blood and sexual transmission were
therefore suspected as the sources for the spread of the infections.

In 1984, the responsible virus was identified and given a name. In 1986, it was
renamed the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Need To Know :

Because many of the first cases of AIDS in the United States occurred in
homosexual men and intravenous drug users, some people mistakenly believe
that other groups of people are not at risk for HIV infection. However, anyone is
capable of becoming HIV-infected, regardless of gender, age, or sexual
orientation.

Facts About AIDS :

As of the year 2000, nearly one million people in the U. S. were confirmed to be
HIV-positive.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 2.2 million
Americans now carry the HIV virus but do not yet have symptoms.

About one out of every three people with HIV infection in the U. S. is a woman.

AIDS is a leading cause of death for American men and women between the
ages of 25 and 44.

Since 1992, AIDS has been the fourth leading cause of death among U. S.
women between the ages of 25 and 44.

Through June 2000, 438,795 people in the U. S. had died from AIDS (374,422
men and 64,373 women).
By the end of 2000, 36.1 million people worldwide were living with HIV/AIDS,
with the vast majority living in developing countries.

Through 2000, 21.8 million people worldwide have died from AIDS.

Between 1991 and 1996, there were more new cases of AIDS among people
older than 50 than those between ages 13 and 49. Today, 11% of all new cases of
AIDS in the U. S. are now in people over the age of 50.

The HIV carrier rate in the U. S. is now 1 carrier for every 100 to 200 people.

Teenage and young adult women currently make up half of all new HIV
infections reported in people 13 to 24 years old.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some frequently asked questions related to AIDS And Women.

Q: What if I'm attracted to someone I don't really know? What should I do?

A: Know the sexual history and health status of partners. Avoid anonymous
sexual contact and learn about safe sex practices, such as the use of condoms.

Q: Are my children going to get AIDS if I have it?

A: Research indicates that HIV is NOT transmitted by casual contact, such as

touching or hugging; sharing household items such as utensils, towels, and
bedding; contact with sweat or tears; sharing facilities such as swimming pools,
saunas, hot tubs, or toilets with HIV-infected people; and coughs or sneezes.
HIV transmission requires intimate contact with infected blood or body fluids
(vaginal secretions, semen, pre-ejaculation fluid, and breast milk). Activities that
don't involve the possibility of such contact are regarded as posing no risk of
infection.

Q: Is an AIDS test required of new job applicants and/or employees?

A: Probably not. In fact, under most state laws, employers cannot ask whether
applicants or employees have AIDS - only if they can do the job.
Q: Should I avoid sharing personal hygiene items, like razors or toothbrushes?

A: Yes. These devices might be contaminated with blood. However, this is an

unlikely mode of transmission for the AIDS virus.

Q: Does everyone who has AIDS die from it?

A: When scientists first recognized AIDS in 1981, most people died within a year
or two. Now, with numerous drugs available to help suppress HIV's attack on
the immune system and prevent or treat AIDS-related opportunistic illnesses,
many people with AIDS are living longer and healthier lives. However, AIDS still
is considered a fatal illness. Few people survive five years from the time they are
diagnosed with AIDS, although this is increasing with improvements in
treatment techniques.

Q: How can a person tell if she is infected with HIV?

A: A blood test can determine whether or not a person is infected with HIV. The
most commonly used test detects antibodies (disease-fighting proteins) against
HIV. It may take as long as three to six months for HIV antibodies to reach
levels that are measurable in standard blood tests.

Q: Can I keep my test results private?

A: People can have the procedure done at HIV testing centers that offer
anonymous HIV testing.

Q: Can HIV be spread through kissing?

A: Although studies have found tiny amounts of HIV in the saliva of some
people with HIV, researchers have found no evidence that HIV is spread to
other people through kissing. However, the CDC recommends against "French"
or open-mouthed kissing because of the possibility of contact with blood if the
people kissing have any cuts or sores in the mouth.
Q: Can HIV be transmitted during oral sex?

A: Although the risk of infection during oral sex is considered lower than during
vaginal or anal intercourse, HIV may be transmitted during oral sex through
contact with vaginal secretions, semen, pre-ejaculation fluid, and blood.

Q: Is a home test kit for HIV available?

A: No approved HIV test kit will give you a result at home. There is a kit
available that is designed for you to collect a sample of your blood at home.
Then you send the sample to a laboratory where it is tested for HIV.

Q: How likely is an HIV-positive woman to infect her baby?

A: Approximately one-quarter to one-third of all untreated pregnant women

infected with HIV will pass the infection to their babies during pregnancy or
childbirth. But this risk is significantly reduced if the mother is treated with AZT
(during pregnancy, labor, and delivery) and her baby receives AZT during the
first six weeks of life.

Q: Can HIV be transmitted in breast milk?

A: HIV can be transmitted from a nursing mother to her infant through breast
milk. Women who live in countries where safe alternatives to breast-feeding are
readily available and affordable can eliminate the risk of transmitting the virus
through breast milk by bottle-feeding their babies. In developing countries,
however, where such safe alternatives are not readily available or economically
feasible, breast-feeding may offer benefits that outweigh the risk of HIV
transmission.

Q: How effective are latex condoms in preventing HIV?

A: Health authorities say that latex condoms are highly effective when used
consistently and correctly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
recommends using latex condoms (or dental dams ) whenever having oral, anal,
or vaginal sex. If a lubricant is used, it should be a water-based lubricant.
HOMŚOPATHY AND HIV / AIDS
In his Article, "AIDS: The Real Cause", Dr. George Vithoulkas views are
described as under:

I think that a controversy has already started between two main and opposing
points of view:

a. That Aids is caused by the HIV virus and

b. That AIDS is the result of drug overuse

As I think I have already contributed a lot to such arguments through my

writings, I believe Nature will give me the privilege to express my views in a
nutshell.

It seems to me that both the above assumptions are over-simplifications of a

much more complicated issue.

In case (a) the final phenomena, which is the appearance of a virus in the body, is
considered as the cause of the disease when in effect it is actually the result of
it.

In case (b) only part of the truth is stated. Not every one who takes antibiotics
will risk developing the AIDS symptomatology - though they may risk
developing other syndromes like the post-viral syndrome (the chronic fatigue
syndrome). Only those individuals who have been repeatedly infected by venereal diseases and
who have used repeatedly and for long periods of time antibiotics are in the risk group.

The whole of the above argument has been dealt with in a hypothesis I wrote in
1986 with all the supporting evidence I could find at the time. The title of this
book was "A New Model for Health and Disease, the real cause of AIDS"
published first in Dutch in 1988 by Elmar, in Italian in 1989 by the Editora
Cortina and in English in 1991 by North Atlantic Books in the U. S. A. I first
spoke about these ideas in a congress in Burlingame in California as early as 1984
as well as in different other seminars.

The main points that I support through this hypothesis about the specific AIDS
syndrome are the following:

1. The AIDS virus first appeared in the promiscuous group of

homosexuals. The research, at least in the beginning, showed clearly that
these individuals had already been infected several times by venereal
diseases and treated repeatedly with antibiotics.
Actually the high-risk groups (promiscuous homosexuals, prostitutes,
promiscuous heterosexuals or bisexuals, Haitians and finally the African people
during their sexual liberation era) were all people with repeated exposure to
venereal diseases and consequent treatment with antibiotics. Actually,
promiscuous homosexuals with AIDS had confided to me and to my students
that they would take antibiotics every day, before their casual encounters and for
long periods of time as a preventive measure.

2. The initial appearance of a specific virus in the human body was only
the result of a depleted and harassed immune system and not the cause of
it.

It is a similar phenomena with worms eating up a dead body. Every stage of

degeneration of a human organism has its own particular microbes, bacteria,
virus, etc. thriving on it. The appearance of the virus took place initially because
the immune system was degraded to a specific degree through a series of
repeated assaults of antibiotics in a considerably short time, while it was already
under the stress of a venereal disease - mainly syphilis and/or gonorrhśa. It
seems that the combined stress of an organism, which is repeatedly infected with
venereal diseases and treated with antibiotics, develops a state that resembles the
AIDS syndrome.

3. The virus must have initially developed through an endogenous process

of repeated mutations. After staying in the bodies of the victims for long
periods of time it became stronger and stronger as if in a friendly
incubator. This fact had a two-fold effect:

a. That the sick individual was quickly destroyed and

b. That the virus became stronger and more virulent during this incubation.
Research will most probably show in the future the different states of the virus
and its different virulence in different stages of the disease and in different
individuals. At the moment there is confusion because of these issues.

4. Once the virus had become mature -virulent- through such nurturing, it
could then infect other organisms more easily.

I believe that we are actually witnessing in our times the maturing of different
viruses with unknown consequences. We are observing a part of a process and
we are confusing it for the cause.

5. The severity of the infection depends on the predisposition and the state
of depletion of the immune system during the time of infection. I believe
that soon some genetic parameters will be found accounting for a predisposition
in the severe AIDS cases. Some people with great susceptibility were infected
and immediately developed the disease, culminating speedily in a fatal outcome,
while others with not such a great predisposition will either develop a milder or a
similar disease or will not develop the disease at all..

6. If the above assumptions are correct then there must be several other
viruses that will be discovered soon to account for similar
symptomatology, in different predispositions. It may not come as a surprise
that in the future we will be creating newer and newer species of viruses through
mutations if we do not stop unwisely intervening in to the human organism with
stronger and stronger chemical drugs.

The whole argument cannot be expostulated here but one can read it in my book
''A New Model for Health and Disease - the real cause of AIDS''.

Conditions under which the correct homeopathic remedy is found

To find the right homeopathic remedy means to save a lot of suffering to the
individual, it means that you give him the greatest boon, that you give him the
possibility to be happy. A healthy person is one who feels free, with a sense of
well being. You give him something, which has immeasurable value.

Let us now consider the difficulties and the conditions that should prevail in
order for such a fortunate change to take place.

We all know the difficulties encountered by the practitioner in order to strike the
right remedy. In the beginning of a case taking everything looks blank, everything
is possible and as you proceed towards the investigation and the evaluation your
brains speeds up in analysing and combining the symptoms.

The greatest difficulty that you will encounter is the evaluation of

symptoms.

Which are the symptoms that you will take into consideration? Which are the
symptoms that you will ignore?

The struggle is difficult mainly because you do not know whether the patient is
giving you the whole story:

Is he omitting some small but strange and therefore important symptoms?

a. From lack of care?

b. Or lack of observation?

c. Or out of shame?

d. Or out of false thinking that certain of his ailments or discomforts do not

concern you?

e. Or he feels that a symptom is insignificant or irrelevant to the case, yet this

very little symptom constitutes the clue to the case?

f. Or he is not aware of the most important thing that is happening in him,

which is perhaps an excessive fear of death, a fear that he is going insane but that
he does not want to acknowledge or to admit to himself?

Intellectuals will give you a false impression about their overall health
condition most of the time.

It is strange that so many times intellectuals have told me that as they understand
(and surely they are fast to understand) that homeopathy is very difficult to
practise as it requires "intelligent" people (like themselves) to be able to describe
their symptoms correctly. The truth is the opposite. Simple uneducated people
describe their symptoms much more intelligently than them because they express
their feelings directly without filtering them as the intellectuals do. They express
nature as it is while the others distort nature interpreting it according to their
whims.

For all these reasons I consider that finding the right remedy is like
accomplishing a miracle.

So our investigation should be: what are the inner conditions when two people
meet -the practitioner and the patient- that enable the miracle of the balance of
health of the patient to take place?

If you want to see the true picture of a person's soul, that person has to undress
in front of you. The idea of the old doctor undressing the patient, never mind
what the problem was, was symbolic of materialistic medicine. The doctor
wanted to see everything he could with his eyes, on the physical/material level.

The homeopathic practitioner who deals with the subtle energies of the human
being wants to see the subjective symptoms, wants to see the patient's inside
structure. The idea is of confession. The individual has to stay naked in front of
the practitioner in order that he will see the whole picture.
There are some requirements, as everybody understands, for someone to undress
in front of you and allow you to see his soul, his sorrows, his hurts, his fears, and
his unnatural desires and perversions, in order to allow you to see him totally
naked in physical ailments, mind and soul.

The first is the desire of the healer to do well, to help the person who seeks help
to restore his health.

The second is a mutual sympathy or homogeneity, which can be created

instantly, or as the taking of the case progresses, which allows communication on
another level not simply the verbal.

Once this communication is established then the patient can decide whether he
can trust the practitioner or not.

The patient perceives the inner intentions of the healer and if they are egotistical
or of self-interest, he will not open up, nor will he "undress", never mind how
hard you may try.

Do not be lured into thinking that because you have cured some patients without
all these requirements, you can bluff the patient. Quite simply, the patient has
had no other occasion or no other way of comparing, as he has not experienced
the warmth of the really interested healer against the coldness of a logical
examiner with a white coat.

Yet this must not be mistaken for familiarity and cheap exhibition of affection or
love. I would say that if this sympathy takes a turn towards the erotic, there is no
chance that the individual will be helped by the healer, as the healer is then
seeking out to take things from the patient and not to give.

The third condition is respect for the freedom and the integrity of the patient.
Do not try to intrude and rape his soul by rude force just because you want to
find the remedy quickly.

The fourth is a silent moment of meditation when you have been given all the
information from the patient. You have taken all the pieces and you are putting
them together, and through the process of constructing the picture it suddenly
clicks and you arrive at the right remedy. The miracle has been accomplished!
This is a great moment, which gives great satisfaction to the healer even before
he has seen the actual result of his prescription.

Do we have today in our settings all these conditions? Surely not.

In order to have these conditions you first of all need a quiet environment, an
environment that will be pleasing and will give the patient a feeling of safety. Do
we have this environment?
I want to show you the art of taking the case under the situation in which we
find ourselves today. I want to communicate to you my thoughts during every
step of the process. This automatically stops the continuity and the rapport with
the patient and makes the whole process extremely difficult and tedious.

I need absolute respect for what we are doing, because I am not doing it myself,
we are taking the case together. Your good intentions will be crucial to the
outcome, whether positive or negative.

If we could synchronise out feelings and intentions, I can assure you that you
could be learning in those few hours we will be together more than you could
learn in a thousand hours.

I know that in the class there are people who have all these qualities and they
exercise them but there are others who are still learning, who are disbelievers.

Is it possible??

During my 4-year course on Alonissos I have shown the art of taking a case
under the situation in which we find ourselves today. I communicated all of my
thoughts to the students during every step of the process and I honestly believe
that if they have followed the whole process with full attention, they will have
learned in these few hours, which we had together, more than they could learn
by themselves in a thousand years!

Over and above, Dana Ullman, M. P. H., describes this subject in his Book
"Consumer’s Guide to Homeopathy" with a heading "A Homeopathic
Perspective on AIDS" as follows:

As horrific as the AIDS epidemic is, it has had one silver lining: it has implanted
into the awareness of the medical community and the general public the
importance of the body's immune system. Prior to the emergence of AIDS, few
people were familiar with or cared about the immune system.

Now more than ever, the general public is interested in exploring ways to bolster
immune response to prevent the progression of AIDS, as well as to reduce the
number and intensity of opportunistic infections and to improve the overall state
of their health. The medical community, however, has focused its AIDS
resources on creating antiviral medications, which despite great hope and
expectation have not achieved the results anticipated. In fact, the leading AIDS
drug, AZT, has been found to prolong the lives of people with AIDS by only
seven or eight months,1 but due to its side effects, the quality of life during this
time is not high.
What is yet to be understood by the medical community is that they need to
direct more attention and research to ways to augment immune response, rather
than ways to inhibit viral replication. By strengthening a person's own defenses,
the body is best enabled to defend itself.

Homeopathy is one way to do this. Although no therapy can or will help every
HIV+ person or everyone with AIDS, homeopathy is beginning to develop a
reputation for helping people at varying stages of this disease. To understand
what homeopathy has to offer, it is necessary to learn something about a
different approach to infectious disease than simply attacking a pathogen.

Louis Pasteur, who initially suggested that bacteria cause disease, later realized
that bacteria may not necessarily be the "cause" of disease as much as the
"results" of disease.2 Like Claude Bernard,3 the father of experimental
physiology, Pasteur came to realize that the susceptibility of the individual, the
"host resistance," was a greater determinant of the development of disease than
the infective agent itself.

Despite the later recanting by Pasteur, he had already set in motion a medical
mind set that focused entirely on eliminating pathogens and that ignored
exploring ways to augment immune and defense response. Just as physicians and
scientists are finally realizing the limitations and problems inherent in antibiotics
as antimicrobial agents, antiviral drugs will inevitably suffer a similar fate. While
physicians tend to know this both rationally and intuitively, they ignore these
obvious problems in their clinical practice, in part because they don't know what
else to do and in part because their biomedical paradigm limits their vision of
alternatives to antimicrobial therapy.

As increasing numbers of physicians learn about homeopathic medicine, they will

be exposed to viable alternative treatments which can play an integral role in the
care and treatment of people with HIV and AIDS. A recent survey of physicians
in the Netherlands verified this possibility. The survey showed that 50% of
Dutch physicians instigated and supported the use of homeopathic and natural
therapies in the treatment of people with AIDS.4

Preventing AIDS

The best and most certain way to prevent AIDS is to avoid exchanging bodily
fluids with people who are HIV+. Exposure to these bodily fluids most
commonly occurs through sexual activity, sharing needles, or receiving blood
transfusions. However, just because an individual is exposed to a person with
HIV does not necessarily mean that the individual will get the virus. And further,
just because an individual becomes infected with HIV does not necessarily mean
that he or she will get AIDS.
The various factors that influence whether exposure leads to infection and
whether infection leads to disease remain unknown. However, as with many
infectious conditions, a stronger immune system reduces the chances of getting
the disease or at least decreases the chances of complications from the infection.
It therefore seems prudent to avoid the factors that inhibit immune response and
to utilize those that augment it. The factors that inhibit immune response include
an unhealthy lifestyle (i. e., smoking, poor diet, significant stress, sedentary
habits) and the use of therapeutic and recreational drugs, while those that
augment immune response tend to be a healthy lifestyle and utilizing natural
therapeutics, including homeopathic medicines.

While the precise mechanism of action that leads to AIDS isn't known, a new
and significant study suggests that homeopathic medicines may have a dramatic
effect on some people with HIV. A study performed by a government research
center in India with 129 asymptomatic HIV+ patients (120 male and 9 female)
showed that during homeopathic treatment over a period of 3 to 16 months, 11
patients changed from HIV+ to HIV-.5 No conventional drugs of any type were
prescribed to these patients.

The medical literature has on rare occasions reported individual patients who for
unknown reasons converted from being HIV+ to being HIV-. This study is the
first to report more than one.

It should be noted that this writer acknowledges that it does not initially make
sense that people can turn from HIV+ to HIV-, because the tests that determine
this status are simply evaluating a person's antibodies, not the disease itself. It is
generally assumed that people who become HIV+ will remain that way
throughout their lives. It therefore seems obvious that the work by the Indian
researchers should be more carefully studied to evaluate this potentially
significant clinical result. It should also be noted that these researchers have
elsewhere published more up-to-date data which shows significant improvement
in immune panels and blood work in HIV+ and AIDS patients as the result of
homeopathic treatment.6

These same researchers also conducted a study on the immunological status of

34 HIV+ patients.7 After six months of individualized homeopathic treatment,
23 (67%) of the 34 subjects' immune profiles improved. Thirteen patients
experienced a 0-10% increase in CD4 lymphocytes (a higher number of CD4
lymphocytes suggests a stronger immune response) and 10 patients experienced a
greater than 10% increase. Because there is a tendency for people with HIV to
have continually decreasing CD4 lymphocytes, this study suggests that
homeopathic medicines provided a benefit to the subjects.

A San Francisco Bay Area homeopath, Lawrence Badgley, MD, reported on a six
month study of 36 patients with AIDS or HIV whom he treated with
homeopathic and other natural medicines. He observed a 13% increase in T4
helper cells and an average weight gain of two pounds.8 AIDS tends to have
increasingly degenerating effects on the body, and improvement in the immune
profile and weight gain seem to be rarely experienced under conventional
medical treatment.

In addition to what homeopathy offers in the prevention of AIDS, other natural

therapies that strengthen the body's own defense should also be considered. For
instance, a recent study of HIV+ patients who were given only a
multivitamin/mineral supplement were found to develop AIDS at a substantially
slower rate than those who did not supplement their diet. If this simple addition
to one's prevention program is so effective, it isn't hard to imagine what more
individualized nutritional and natural medicine programs can do to slow down
onset of this dreaded disease.

Treatment of Acute Illnesses During AIDS

Because of the seriousness of this disease, the treatment of people with HIV or
AIDS requires professional health care, even when their ailments are seemingly
minor. Ideally, they should receive treatment from a homeopath who is an M. D.
or a D. O., but otherwise the best care is one that integrates homeopathic
treatment with appropriate medical diagnosis and, in emergency situations, with
appropriate medical treatment.

People with AIDS are prone to opportunistic infections due to their

immunodeficient state, ranging from fungal infections in the mouth to
respiratory infections. The use of conventional drugs can provide valuable
temporary relief; however, occasional or repeated use of these drugs takes its
own toll on their health and immune system, and thus provides short-term relief
but longer-term immune complications. Safer therapies that are not as
physiologically disruptive as conventional drugs are necessary for the long-term
improvement of people with AIDS. Homeopathic medicines can play an
important role in the treatment of these opportunistic infections.

One of the advantages of using homeopathy in treating people with AIDS is that
they tend to get various unusual symptoms, diseases, and syndromes which evade
immediate diagnosis. A homeopath, however, can prescribe a remedy before a
definitive conventional diagnosis is made. Because homeopathic medicines are
prescribed on the basis of a person's unique pattern of symptoms, a conventional
diagnosis is not necessary for a curative remedy to be prescribed.

Treatment of People with AIDS

Despite the seemingly positive results that homeopathic medicines provide for
people who are HIV+, for those with early onset of AIDS, and for those with
nonextreme cases of AIDS, most homeopaths do not observe significant
improvement in treating people who have advanced stages of AIDS. That said, it
should also be noted that there are exceptions to this general rule, and numerous
homeopaths find that select patients with advanced stages of AIDS experience
dramatic improvement in their quality of life.

The experience of Bill Gray, MD, a homeopath in Davis, California, is typical of

many homeopaths. He has had 33 AIDS patients, only three of whom have
survived. The remaining three patients were the only ones who insisted on
avoiding AZT and ddI (another popular AIDS drug). Dr. Gray has also had 30
HIV+ patients for an average of five years, only one of whom developed AIDS.
Although this one patient has suffered from two bouts of pneumocystis
pneumonia, he is actually doing quite well under homeopathic treatment.

Dr. Gray and most homeopaths utilize classical homeopathy in the treatment of
people with AIDS, using a single remedy prescribed individually to the unique
pattern of symptoms experienced by the patient. This highly individualized
treatment generally includes the use of homeopathic medicines which are highly
potentized (usually higher than the 200th potency).

Because of the urgency of some AIDS patients' situations, some homeopaths

experiment with new homeopathic remedies and with nonclassical approaches to
homeopathy. For instance, Dr. Elliot Blackman, an osteopathic physician in San
Francisco, occasionally prescribes Cyclosporin in homeopathic doses as an
intercurrent medicine (an intercurrent medicine is one that is prescribed after
another medicine which is individually determined). In conventional doses,
Cyclosporin is an immunosuppressing drug, thus suggesting that it can be
effective in homeopathic doses for treating people who have an
immunosuppressed condition (this prescription is not "classical homeopathy"
because each immunosuppressing drug creates its own unique pattern of
symptoms, and the classical use of this drug would be more individualized).

In addition to the nonclassical approach, some homeopaths have been

experimenting with giving AIDS patients homeopathically potentized doses of
their own blood. The clinical benefit of this approach, however, has not yet been
systematically tested.

Alan Levine, MD, a San Francisco physician who integrates homeopathic and
other natural medicines with occasional prescription of conventional drugs, has
one patient who was so sick with AIDS that he developed dementia, a state of
mental deterioration that tends to occur in late stages of AIDS. This patient
refused all conventional drugs from Dr. Levine and from all other physicians.
Using homeopathic medicines, acupuncture, and herbs, the patient is now very
healthy, has no signs of dementia, and has not had a single opportunistic
infection in several years.

This case is mentioned because, despite the small chances of surviving late stages
of AIDS and despite the generally accepted experience that dementia represents
an irreversible neurological change, it is inspiring to know that significant and
even substantial improvement is sometimes possible.

It should be noted that people with AIDS occasionally develop a fever shortly
after taking the correct homeopathic medicine. This fever is considered a
beneficial response of the body to the remedy and should not be suppressed.
Physiologists recognize the therapeutic value of fever as a response to infection,
and homeopathic medicine seems to be one way to augment this healing
response.

Homeopathic Treatment of Infectious Diseases and Immunological

Disorders

In order to fully appreciate the potential of homeopathic medicine in the

treatment of AIDS, it is useful to get some historical perspective as well as to
investigate what homeopathy has to offer in the treatment of viral and
immunological disorders.

Homeopathy has an impressive history of successes in treating infectious disease,

including many of the most serious and potentially fatal infectious diseases
known to humankind. The significant successes of homeopathic treatment of the
infectious diseases that raged during the 1800s in the United States and Europe
created tremendous support for this natural therapy. Death rates in homeopathic
hospitals from cholera, typhoid, yellow fever, scarlet fever, and pneumonia were
commonly one half to as little as one eighth those in conventional medical
hospitals. Besides hospitals, prisons and insane asylums that employed physicians
who specialized in homeopathy experienced a similar success rate compared to
other institutions under the care of conventional physicians.

Just as homeopathy became known in the 19th century for its successful
treatment of infectious diseases of that era, based on growing clinical and
laboratory evidence, it is likely that it will become known in this era for its results
in treating contemporary viral infections.

Although homeopathic medicines are not considered to have traditional antiviral

action, their ability to augment the body's own defenses suggests that they have
antiviral effects. One study on chicken embryo viruses showed that eight of ten
homeopathic medicines tested inhibited the growth of the viruses by 50 to
100%.9 A similar study done by the same researchers did find, however, that
none of the four homeopathic medicines tested for their effects on a mouse virus
had any effect.10 Taken together, these studies suggest that homeopathic
medicines can have significant antiviral effects, but it is necessary to find the
individualized remedy for each situation.

Despite this preliminary work, it is conjectured that homeopathic medicines do

not have traditional antiviral effects but have immunomodulatory effects
("immunomodulatory effects"

refers to a tonification of the body's immune system--that is, an ability to

augment immune response when it needs to be stimulated and to depress an
already overstimulated immune system). One laboratory study showed that the
homeopathic medicine Silicea had dramatic effects on stimulating macrophages,
an important part of the body's immune system, by 55.5% to 67.5%11. On the
other hand, another clinical trial showed the efficacy of individualized
homeopathic medicines on the treatment of people with rheumatoid
arthritis,12 an autoimmune disease, which is when a person's immune system is
overly active, leading the body to attack itself. This study suggests that
homeopathic medicines decreased the overly active immune system.

Other studies have shown the immunomodulatory effects of homeopathic

medicines,13 though their description is too technical for this book (See P.
Bellavite and A. Signorini, Homeopathy: A Frontier in Medical Science.
Berkeley: North Atlantic, 1995).

In Summary

The history of homeopathy's successes in treating infectious disease epidemics,

the research that suggests the immunomodulatory effects of homeopathic
medicines, and the clinical research on HIV+ and AIDS patients that indicates
beneficial response to homeopathic medicines should command attention by
physicians, scientists, and public health officials. Despite this body of work, it is
both surprising and depressing that homeopathic medicine has been consistently
ignored as a viable part of a comprehensive program in treating HIV+ and AIDS
patients.

Homeopathy is not the only alternative that is being ignored by the AIDS
medical community. Even though a large number of people with AIDS,
especially long-term survivors, are using one or more alternative treatments,
there is little data on their use or success. The leading AIDS organizations are
likewise ignoring any serious investigation of their use. Until AIDS activists, the
concerned general public, and open-minded health professionals start insisting
that research on alternatives be performed, the potentially valuable therapies will
continue to be ignored, and the AIDS epidemic will continue to devastate our
society. When these alternative therapies are integrated within a comprehensive
program which includes public health measures that seek to prevent infection,
the AIDS epidemic will finally begin to recede.

Reference:

1. Above information has been taken from various sources in the best interest of
the general public awareness to know much about HIV / AIDS and
Hompśopathy so that they can protect themselves from this deadly disease. I
express my thanks and gratitude to the contributors of the valuable information.
2. "AIDS: The Real Cause" by Dr. George Vithoulkas.
3. "A Homeopathic Perspective on AIDS" by Mr. Dana Ullman, M. P. H.

Depression and Homśopathy (1/2).

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Depression is a serious mental disorder in which a person suffers long periods

of sadness and other negative feelings. The term depression also describes a
normal mood involving the sadness, grief, disappointment, or loneliness that
everyone experiences at times.

Depressed people may feel fearful, guilty, or helpless. They often cry, and many
lose interest in work and social life. Many cases of depression also involve aches,
fatigue, loss of appetite, or other physical symptoms. Some depressed patients try
to harm or kill themselves. Periods of depression may occur alone, or they may
alternate with periods of mania (extreme joy and overactivity) in a disorder called
bipolar disorder. This condition is also known as manic-depressive disorder.

Psychiatrists do not fully understand the causes of depression, but they have
several theories. Some psychiatrists believe that depression follows the loss of a
relative, a friend, a job, or a valued goal. Many psychiatrists believe that
experiences that occur during early childhood may make some people especially
subject to depression later in life.

According to another theory, disturbances in the chemistry of the brain occur

during depression. Brain cells communicate with one another by releasing
chemicals called neurotransmitters. Some experts think that certain
neurotransmitters become underactive during depression and overactive during
mania. Some women experience temporary depression in the weeks following
childbirth. Experts believe that this condition, called postpartum depression, is
caused by fluctuating levels of hormones and difficulty adjusting to the pressures
of parenthood. In a few cases, postpartum depression can be severe.

Treatments for depression include hospitalization, psychotherapy, drugs, and

electroconvulsive (electroshock) therapy. Hospitalization is an essential treatment
for depressed patients who are suicidal. In psychotherapy, the psychiatrist tries to
understand (1) the childhood events that make a person subject to depression
and (2) the events that preceded the patient's current depression. The most
prescribed antidepressant in the United States is a drug called fluoxetine.
Fluoxetine is marketed under the name Prozac. Lithium carbonate is a drug used
in treating bipolar disorder. Electroconvulsive therapy is generally used as a
treatment only for patients who fail to respond to other treatment.

Bipolar disorder is a serious mental illness in which a person alternates between

periods of severe depression and periods of mania (extreme joy, overactivity, or
irritability). The illness is also called manic-depressive illness or manic depression.
Approximately 3 million people in the United States suffer from bipolar disorder.
If treated inadequately, the illness can have tragic consequences, such as suicide.

In a period of depression, a person suffering from bipolar disorder may feel sad,
anxious, irritable, hopeless, or unmotivated. Depressed patients may experience
insomnia or excessive sleeping, decreased or increased appetite, weight loss or
weight gain, slowing of thought and movement, and poor memory and
concentration. Many think about wanting to die and have unrealistic feelings of
guilt.

In a period of mania, a person may experience euphoria (indescribable

happiness). The person may also be unusually irritable or may alternate between
euphoria and irritability. Manic patients sometimes behave inappropriately. For
example, they may laugh uncontrollably at funerals. Periods of mania also are
characterized by increased energy, racing thoughts, increased rate of speech,
decreased need for sleep, exaggerated sense of self-worth, and poor judgment.

Periods of depression and mania may follow one another at intervals of days,
weeks, or months. Some patients experience mania and depression at the same
time. They are among the most severely affected bipolar patients.

Scientists believe genetic factors cause many cases of bipolar disorder. About half
of all patients first show signs of the illness in their teen-age years.

Treatment for the disorder includes drugs and psychotherapy. The most
commonly prescribed medications are lithium, carbamazepine, and valproate.
Mood disorders, also known as affective disorders, mainly involve disturbances
in the person's mood. The two chief mood disorders are major depression
(extreme sadness) and mania (extreme happiness and overactivity). People with
bipolar disorder, also called manic-depressive illness, suffer from alternating
periods of depression and mania. Mood disorders are usually episodic-that is, the
person experiences mood disturbances at relatively brief, distinct periods during
the course of the illness. People with mood disorders typically return to normal
levels of functioning after treatment.

Most people with depression feel sad, hopeless, and worthless. Many also suffer
from insomnia and loss of appetite and have trouble concentrating. Some people
with depression move and think slowly, but others feel restless. Some feel so
hopeless and discouraged that they consider or attempt suicide. About 15
percent of people who seek treatment for depression commit suicide.

Antidepressants

Antidepressant is the name of a group of drugs commonly used to treat major

depression, a severe mental illness. Antidepressants also help treat other
disorders, including chronic pain, anxiety disorders, and obsessive-compulsive
disorder.

Antidepressants are thought to work by regulating the brain's neurotransmission

system. Chemicals called neurotransmitters carry messages from one nerve cell in
the brain to another. These chemicals attach to special molecules on nerve cells
called receptors, both in sending and receiving messages. Antidepressants first
increase the concentration of neurotransmitters in the brain. After several weeks
of treatment, the receptors become less sensitive, and depression lifts.

The three main types of antidepressants are (1) selective serotonin re-uptake
inhibitors (SSRI's), (2) tricyclic antidepressants (TCA's), and (3) monoamine
oxidase inhibitors (MAOI's). SSRI's and TCA's prevent brain cells from
reabsorbing excess neurotransmitters after the chemicals have delivered their
messages. SSRI's block the reabsorption of the neurotransmitter called serotonin.
SSRI's include the most widely prescribed antidepressant, fluoxetine (Prozac).
TCA's, such as the drug amitriptyline (for example, Elavil), block the
reabsorption of several neurotransmitters, including serotonin and
norepinephrine. MAOI's, which include the drug phenelzine (Nardil), inactivate a
protein that breaks down excess neurotransmitters.

Most antidepressants are taken by mouth, and all require the prescription of a
doctor. The drugs may cause various side effects. For example, SSRI's can cause
increased anxiety, poor sleep, nausea, and loss of sexual interest. TCA's can cause
hypotension (low blood pressure), irregular heartbeat, and constipation. MAOI's
may combine with certain foods or drugs to create life-threatening hypertension
(high blood pressure).

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Arsenicum album:

Anxious, insecure, and perfectionistic people who need this remedy may set high
standards for themselves and others and become depressed if their expectations
are not met. Worry about material security sometimes borders on despair. When
feeling ill, these people can be demanding and dependent, even suspicious of
others, fearing their condition could be serious.

Aurum metallicum:

This remedy can be helpful to serious people, strongly focused on work and
achievement, who become depressed if they feel they have failed in some way.
Discouragement, self-reproach, humiliation, and anger can lead to feelings of
emptiness and worthlessness. The person may feel worse at night, with
nightmares or insomnia.

Calcarea carbonica:

A dependable, industrious person who becomes overwhelmed from too much

worry, work, or physical illness may benefit from this remedy. Anxiety, fatigue,
confusion, discouragement, self-pity, and a dread of disaster may develop. A
person who needs this remedy often feels chilly and sluggish and easily tires on
exertion.

Causticum:

A person who feels depressed because of grief and loss (either recent or over
time) may benefit from this remedy. Frequent crying or a feeling of mental
dullness and forgetfulness (with anxious checking to see if the door is locked, if
the stove is off, etc.) are other indications. People who need this remedy are
often deeply sympathetic toward others and, having a strong sense of justice, can
be deeply discouraged or angry about the world.

Cimicifuga:

A person who needs this remedy can be energetic and talkative when feeling
well, but upset and gloomy when depressed—with exaggerated fears (of insanity,
of being attacked, of disaster). Painful menstrual periods and headaches that
involve the neck are often seen when this remedy is needed.
Ignatia amara:

Sensitive people who suffer grief or disappointment and try to keep the hurt
inside may benefit from this remedy. Wanting not to cry or appear too
vulnerable to others, they may seem guarded, defensive, and moody. They may
also burst out laughing, or into tears, for no apparent reason. A feeling of a lump
in the throat and heaviness in the chest with frequent sighing or yawning are
strong indications for Ignatia. Insomnia (or excessive sleeping), headaches, and
cramping pains in the abdomen and back are also often seen.

Kali phosphoricum:

If a person feels depressed after working too hard, being physically ill, or going
through prolonged emotional stress or excitement, this remedy can be helpful.
Exhausted, nervous, and jumpy, they may have difficulty working or
concentrating—and become discouraged and lose confidence. Headaches from
mental effort, easy perspiration, sensitivity to cold, anemia, insomnia, and
indigestion are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Natrum carbonicum:

Individuals who need this remedy are usually mild, gentle, and selfless—making
an effort to be cheerful and helpful, and avoiding conflict whenever possible.
After being hurt or disappointed, they can become depressed, but keep their
feelings to themselves. Even when feeling lonely, they withdraw to rest or listen
to sad music, which can isolate them even more. Nervous and physically
sensitive (to sun, to weather changes, and to many foods, especially milk), they
may also get depressed when feeling weak or ill.

Natrum muriaticum:

People who need this remedy seem reserved, responsible, and private—yet have
strong inner feelings (grief, romantic attachment, anger, or fear of misfortune)
that they rarely show. Even though they want other people to feel for them, they
can act affronted or angry if someone tries to console them, and need to be alone
to cry. Anxiety, brooding about past grievances, migraines, back pain, and
insomnia can also be experienced when the person is depressed. A craving for
salt and tiredness from sun exposure are other indications for this remedy.

Pulsatilla:

People who needs this remedy have a childlike softness and sensitivity—and can
also be whiny, jealous, and moody. When depressed, they are sad and tearful,
wanting a lot of attention and comforting. Crying, fresh air, and gentle exercise
usually improve their mood. Getting too warm or being in a stuffy room can
increase anxiety. Depression around the time of hormonal changes (puberty,
menstrual periods, or menopause) can often be helped with Pulsatilla.

Sepia:

People who feel weary, irritable, and indifferent to family members, and worn
out by the demands of everyday life may respond to this remedy. They want to
be left alone and may respond in an angry or cutting way if anyone bothers them.
They often feel better from crying, but would rather have others keep their
distance and not try to console them or cheer them up. Menstrual problems, a
sagging feeling in internal organs, sluggish digestion, and improvement from
vigorous exercise are other indications for this remedy.

Staphysagria:

Quiet, sensitive, emotional people who have difficulty standing up for

themselves may benefit from this remedy. Hurt feelings, shame, resentment, and
suppressed emotions can lead them to depression. If under too much pressure,
they can sometimes lose their natural inhibition and fly into rages or throw
things. A person who needs this remedy may also have insomnia (feeling sleepy
all day, but unable to sleep at night), toothaches, headaches, stomachaches, or
bladder infections that are stress-related.

Note: Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a

replacement for medical advice. Any person with condition requiring medical
attention should consult a well qualified classical homśopath.

Reference:
World Book 2003

Depression and Homśopathy (2/2).

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

I. - INTRODUCTION

Depression (psychology), mental illness in which a person experiences deep,

unshakable sadness and diminished interest in nearly all activities. People also use
the term depression to describe the temporary sadness, loneliness, or blues that
everyone feels from time to time. In contrast to normal sadness, severe
depression, also called major depression, can dramatically impair a person’s
ability to function in social situations and at work. People with major depression
often have feelings of despair, hopelessness, and worthlessness, as well as
thoughts of committing suicide.

Depression can take several other forms. In bipolar disorder, sometimes called
manic-depressive illness, a person’s mood swings back and forth between
depression and mania. People with seasonal affective disorder typically suffer
from depression only during autumn and winter, when there are fewer hours of
daylight. In dysthymia people feel depressed, have low self-esteem, and
concentrate poorly most of the time—often for a period of years—but their
symptoms are milder than in major depression. Some people with dysthymia
experience occasional episodes of major depression. Mental health professionals
use the term clinical depression to refer to any of the above forms of depression.

Surveys indicate that people commonly view depression as a sign of personal

weakness, but psychiatrists and psychologists view it as a real illness.

II. - PREVALENCE

Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses. At least 8 percent of

adults in the United States experience serious depression at some point during
their lives, and estimates range as high as 17 percent. The illness affects all
people, regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic standing. However,
women are two to three times more likely than men to suffer from depression.
Experts disagree on the reason for this difference. Some cite differences in
hormones, and others point to the stress caused by society’s expectations of
women.

Depression occurs in all parts of the world, although the pattern of symptoms
can vary. The prevalence of depression in other countries varies widely, from 1.5
percent of people in Taiwan to 19 percent of people in Lebanon.

A number of large-scale studies indicate that depression rates have increased

worldwide over the past several decades. Furthermore, younger generations are
experiencing depression at an earlier age than did previous generations. Social
scientists have proposed many explanations, including changes in family
structure, urbanization, and reduced cultural and religious influences.

III. - SYMPTOMS

Although it may appear anytime from childhood to old age, depression usually
begins during a person’s 20s or 30s. The illness may come on slowly, then
deepen gradually over months or years. On the other hand, it may erupt suddenly
in a few weeks or days. A person who develops severe depression may appear so
confused, frightened, and unbalanced that observers speak of a "nervous
breakdown." However it begins, depression causes serious changes in a person’s
feelings and outlook. A person with major depression feels sad nearly every day
and may cry often. People, work, and activities that used to bring them pleasure
no longer do.

Symptoms of depression can vary by age. In younger children, depression may

include physical complaints, such as stomachaches and headaches, as well as
irritability, "moping around," social withdrawal, and changes in eating habits.
They may feel unenthusiastic about school and other activities. In adolescents,
common symptoms include sad mood, sleep disturbances, and lack of energy.
Elderly people with depression usually complain of physical rather than
emotional problems, which sometimes leads doctors to misdiagnose the illness.

Symptoms of depression can also vary by culture. In some cultures, depressed

people may not experience sadness or guilt but may complain of physical
problems. In Mediterranean cultures, for example, depressed people may
complain of headaches or nerves. In Asian cultures they may complain of
weakness, fatigue, or imbalance.

If left untreated, an episode of major depression typically lasts eight or nine

months. About 85 percent of people who experience one bout of depression will
experience future episodes.

A. Appetite and Sleep Changes

Depression usually alters a person’s appetite, sometimes increasing it, but usually
reducing it. Sleep habits often change as well. People with depression may
oversleep or, more commonly, sleep for fewer hours. A depressed person might
go to sleep at midnight, sleep restlessly, then wake up at 5 AM feeling tired and
blue. For many depressed people, early morning is the saddest time of the day.

B. Changes in Energy Level

Depression also changes one’s energy level. Some depressed people may be
restless and agitated, engaging in fidgety movements and pacing. Others may feel
sluggish and inactive, experiencing great fatigue, lack of energy, and a feeling of
being worn out or carrying a heavy burden. Depressed people may also have
difficulty thinking, poor concentration, and problems with memory.
C. Poor Self-Esteem

People with depression often experience feelings of worthlessness, helplessness,

guilt, and self-blame. They may interpret a minor failing on their part as a sign of
incompetence or interpret minor criticism as condemnation. Some depressed
people complain of being spiritually or morally dead. The mirror seems to reflect
someone ugly and repulsive. Even a competent and decent person may feel
deficient, cruel, stupid, phony, or guilty of having deceived others. People with
major depression may experience such extreme emotional pain that they consider
or attempt suicide. At least 15 percent of seriously depressed people commit
suicide, and many more attempt it.

D. Psychotic Symptoms

In some cases, people with depression may experience psychotic symptoms, such
as delusions (false beliefs) and hallucinations (false sensory perceptions).
Psychotic symptoms indicate an especially severe illness. Compared to other
depressed people, those with psychotic symptoms have longer hospital stays, and
after leaving, they are more likely to be moody and unhappy. They are also more
likely to commit suicide.

IV. - CAUSES

Some depressions seem to come out of the blue, even when things are going
well. Others seem to have an obvious cause: a marital conflict, financial difficulty,
or some personal failure. Yet many people with these problems do not become
deeply depressed. Most psychologists believe depression results from an
interaction between stressful life events and a person’s biological and
psychological vulnerabilities.

A. Biological Factors

Depression runs in families. By studying twins, researchers have found evidence

of a strong genetic influence in depression. Genetically identical twins raised in
the same environment are three times more likely to have depression in common
than fraternal twins, who have only about half of their genes in common. In
addition, identical twins are five times more likely to have bipolar disorder in
common. These findings suggest that vulnerability to depression and bipolar
disorder can be inherited. Adoption studies have provided more evidence of a
genetic role in depression. These studies show that children of depressed people
are vulnerable to depression even when raised by adoptive parents.

Genes may influence depression by causing abnormal activity in the brain.

Studies have shown that certain brain chemicals called neurotransmitters play an
important role in regulating moods and emotions. Neurotransmitters involved in
depression include norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin. Research in the
1960s suggested that depression results from lower than normal levels of these
neurotransmitters in parts of the brain. Support for this theory came from the
effects of antidepressant drugs, which work by increasing the levels of
neurotransmitters involved in depression. However, later studies have discredited
this simple explanation and have suggested a more complex relationship between
neurotransmitter levels and depression.

An imbalance of hormones may also play a role in depression. Many depressed

people have higher than normal levels of hydrocortisone (cortisol), a hormone
secreted by the adrenal gland in response to stress. In addition, an underactive or
overactive thyroid gland can lead to depression.

A variety of medical conditions can cause depression. These include dietary

deficiences in vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and folic acid degenerative neurological
disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Huntington’s disease ; strokes in the
frontal part of the brain; and certain viral infections, such as hepatitis and
mononucleosis. Certain medications, such as steroids, may also cause depression.

B. Psychological Factors

Psychological theories of depression focus on the way people think and behave.
In a 1917 essay, Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud explained melancholia,
or major depression, as a response to loss—either real loss, such as the death of
a spouse, or symbolic loss, such as the failure to achieve an important goal.
Freud believed that a person’s unconscious anger over loss weakens the ego,
resulting in self-hate and self-destructive behavior.

Cognitive theories of depression emphasize the role of irrational thought

processes. American psychiatrist Aaron Beck proposed that depressed people
tend to view themselves, their environment, and the future in a negative light
because of errors in thinking. These errors include focusing on the negative
aspects of any situation, misinterpreting facts in negative ways, and blaming
themselves for any misfortune. In Beck’s view, people learn these self-defeating
ways of looking at the world during early childhood. This negative thinking
makes situations seem much worse than they really are and increases the risk of
depression, especially in stressful situations.
In support of this cognitive view, people with "depressive"personality traits
appear to be more vulnerable than others to actual depression. Examples of
depressive personality traits include gloominess, pessimism, introversion, self-
criticism, excessive skepticism and criticism of others, deep feelings of
inadequacy, and excessive brooding and worrying. In addition, people who
regularly behave in dependent, hostile, and impulsive ways appear at greater risk
for depression.

American psychologist Martin Seligman proposed that depression stems from

"learned helplessness," an acquired belief that one cannot control the outcome of
events. In this view, prolonged exposure to uncontrollable and inescapable
events leads to apathy, pessimism, and loss of motivation. An adaptation of this
theory by American psychologist Lynn Abramson and her colleagues argues that
depression results not only from helplessness, but also from hopelessness. The
hopelessness theory attributes depression to a pattern of negative thinking in
which people blame themselves for negative life events, view the causes of those
events as permanent, and overgeneralize specific weaknesses as applying to many
areas of their life.

C. Stressful Events

Psychologists agree that stressful experiences can trigger depression in people

who are predisposed to the illness. For example, the death of a loved one may
trigger depression. Psychologists usually distinguish true depression from grief, a
normal process of mourning a loved one who has died. Other stressful
experiences may include divorce, pregnancy, the loss of a job, and even
childbirth. About 20 percent of women experience an episode of depression,
known as postpartum depression, after having a baby. In addition, people with
serious physical illnesses or disabilities often develop depression.

People who experience child abuse appear more vulnerable to depression than
others. So, too, do people living under chronically stressful conditions, such as
single mothers with many children and little or no support from friends or
relatives.

V. - TREATMENT

Depression typically cannot be shaken or willed away. An episode must therefore

run its course until it weakens either on its own or with treatment. Depression
can be treated effectively with antidepressant drugs, psychotherapy, or a
combination of both.
Despite the availability of effective treatment, most depressive disorders go
untreated and undiagnosed. Studies indicate that general physicians fail to
recognize depression in their patients at least half of the time. In addition, many
doctors and patients view depression in elderly people as a normal part of aging,
even though treatment for depression in older people is usually very effective.

A. Antidepressant Drugs

Up to 70 percent of people with depression respond to antidepressant drugs.

These medications appear to work by altering the levels of serotonin,
norepinephrine, and other neurotransmitters in the brain. They generally take at
least two to three weeks to become effective. Doctors cannot predict which type
of antidepressant drug will work best for any particular person, so depressed
people may need to try several types. Antidepressant drugs are not addictive, but
they may produce unwanted side effects. To avoid relapse, people usually must
continue taking the medication for several months after their symptoms improve.

Commonly used antidepressant drugs fall into three major classes: tricyclics,
monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAO inhibitors), and selective serotonin
reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Tricyclics, named for their three-ring chemical
structure, include amitriptyline (Elavil), imipramine (Tofanil), desipramine
(Norpramin), doxepin (Sinequan), and nortriptyline (Pamelor). Side effects of
tricyclics may include drowsiness, dizziness upon standing, blurred vision,
nausea, insomnia, constipation, and dry mouth.

MAO inhibitors include isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), and

tranylcypromine (Parmate). People who take MAO inhibitors must follow a diet
that excludes tyramine—a substance found in wine, beer, some cheeses, and
many fermented foods—to avoid a dangerous rise in blood pressure. In addition,
MAO inhibitors have many of the same side effects as tricyclics.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors include fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline

(Zoloft), and paroxetine (Paxil). These drugs generally produce fewer and milder
side effects than do other types of antidepressants, although SSRIs may cause
anxiety, insomnia, drowsiness, headaches, and sexual dysfunction. Some patients
have alleged that Prozac causes violent or suicidal behavior in a small number of
cases, but the U. S. Food and Drug Administration has failed to substantiate this
claim.

Prozac became the most widely used antidepressant in the world soon after its
introduction in the late 1980s by drug manufacturer Eli Lilly and Company.
Many people find Prozac extremely effective in lifting depression. In addition,
some people have reported that Prozac actually tranforms their personality by
increasing their self-confidence, optimism, and energy level. However, mental
health professionals have expressed serious ethical concerns over Prozac’s use as
a "personality enhancer," especially among people without clinical depression.

Doctors often prescribe lithium carbonate, a natural mineral salt, to treat people
with bipolar disorder. People often take lithium during periods of relatively
normal mood to delay or even prevent subsequent mood swings. Side effects of
lithium include nausea, stomach upset, vertigo, and frequent urination.

B. Psychotherapy

Studies have shown that short-term psychotherapy can relieve mild to moderate
depression as effectively as antidepressant drugs. Unlike medication,
psychotherapy produces no physiological side effects. In addition, depressed
people treated with psychotherapy appear less likely to experience a relapse than
those treated only with antidepressant medication. However, psychotherapy
usually takes longer to produce benefits.

There are many kinds of psychotherapy. Cognitive-behavioral therapy assumes

that depression stems from negative, often irrational thinking about oneself and
one’s future. In this type of therapy, a person learns to understand and eventually
eliminate those habits of negative thinking. In interpersonal therapy, the therapist
helps a person resolve problems in relationships with others that may have
caused the depression. The subsequent improvement in social relationships and
support helps alleviate the depression. Psychodynamic therapy views depression
as the result of internal, unconscious conflicts. Psychodynamic therapists focus
on a person’s past experiences and the resolution of childhood conflicts.
Psychoanalysis is an example of this type of therapy. Critics of long-term
psychodynamic therapy argue that its effectiveness is scientifically unproven.

C. Other Treatments

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) can often relieve severe depression in people

who fail to respond to antidepressant medication and psychotherapy. In this type
of therapy, a low-voltage electric current is passed through the brain for one to
two seconds to produce a controlled seizure. Patients usually receive six to ten
ECT treatments over several weeks. ECT remains controversial because it can
cause disorientation and memory loss. Nevertheless, research has found it highly
effective in alleviating severe depression.

For milder cases of depression, regular ćrobic exercise may improve mood as
effectively as psychotherapy or medication. In addition, some research indicates
that dietary modifications can influence one’s mood by changing the level of
serotonin in the brain.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Arsenicum album: Anxious, insecure, and perfectionistic people who need this
remedy may set high standards for themselves and others and become depressed
if their expectations are not met. Worry about material security sometimes
borders on despair. When feeling ill, these people can be demanding and
dependent, even suspicious of others, fearing their condition could be serious.

Aurum metallicum: This remedy can be helpful to serious people, strongly

focused on work and achievement, who become depressed if they feel they have
failed in some way. Discouragement, self-reproach, humiliation, and anger can
lead to feelings of emptiness and worthlessness. The person may feel worse at
night, with nightmares or insomnia.

Calcarea carbonica: A dependable, industrious person who becomes

overwhelmed from too much worry, work, or physical illness may benefit from
this remedy. Anxiety, fatigue, confusion, discouragement, self-pity, and a dread
of disaster may develop. A person who needs this remedy often feels chilly and
sluggish and easily tires on exertion.

Causticum: A person who feels depressed because of grief and loss (either
recent or over time) may benefit from this remedy. Frequent crying or a feeling
of mental dullness and forgetfulness (with anxious checking to see if the door is
locked, if the stove is off, etc.) are other indications. People who need this
remedy are often deeply sympathetic toward others and, having a strong sense of
justice, can be deeply discouraged or angry about the world.

Cimicifuga: A person who needs this remedy can be energetic and talkative
when feeling well, but upset and gloomy when depressed—with exaggerated
fears (of insanity, of being attacked, of disaster). Painful menstrual periods and
headaches that involve the neck are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Ignatia amara: Sensitive people who suffer grief or disappointment and try to
keep the hurt inside may benefit from this remedy. Wanting not to cry or appear
too vulnerable to others, they may seem guarded, defensive, and moody. They
may also burst out laughing, or into tears, for no apparent reason. A feeling of a
lump in the throat and heaviness in the chest with frequent sighing or yawning
are strong indications for Ignatia. Insomnia (or excessive sleeping), headaches,
and cramping pains in the abdomen and back are also often seen.
Kali phosphoricum: If a person feels depressed after working too hard, being
physically ill, or going through prolonged emotional stress or excitement, this
remedy can be helpful. Exhausted, nervous, and jumpy, they may have difficulty
working or concentrating—and become discouraged and lose confidence.
Headaches from mental effort, easy perspiration, sensitivity to cold, anemia,
insomnia, and indigestion are often seen when this remedy is needed.

Natrum carbonicum: Individuals who need this remedy are usually mild,
gentle, and selfless—making an effort to be cheerful and helpful, and avoiding
conflict whenever possible. After being hurt or disappointed, they can become
depressed, but keep their feelings to themselves. Even when feeling lonely, they
withdraw to rest or listen to sad music, which can isolate them even more.
Nervous and physically sensitive (to sun, to weather changes, and to many foods,
especially milk), they may also get depressed when feeling weak or ill.

Natrum muriaticum: People who need this remedy seem reserved, responsible,
and private—yet have strong inner feelings (grief, romantic attachment, anger, or
fear of misfortune) that they rarely show. Even though they want other people to
feel for them, they can act affronted or angry if someone tries to console them,
and need to be alone to cry. Anxiety, brooding about past grievances, migraines,
back pain, and insomnia can also be experienced when the person is depressed.
A craving for salt and tiredness from sun exposure are other indications for this
remedy.

Pulsatilla: People who needs this remedy have a childlike softness and
sensitivity—and can also be whiny, jealous, and moody. When depressed, they
are sad and tearful, wanting a lot of attention and comforting. Crying, fresh air,
and gentle exercise usually improve their mood. Getting too warm or being in a
stuffy room can increase anxiety. Depression around the time of hormonal
changes (puberty, menstrual periods, or menopause) can often be helped with
Pulsatilla.

Sepia: People who feel weary, irritable, and indifferent to family members, and
worn out by the demands of everyday life may respond to this remedy. They
want to be left alone and may respond in an angry or cutting way if anyone
bothers them. They often feel better from crying, but would rather have others
keep their distance and not try to console them or cheer them up. Menstrual
problems, a sagging feeling in internal organs, sluggish digestion, and
improvement from vigorous exercise are other indications for this remedy.

Staphysagria: Quiet, sensitive, emotional people who have difficulty standing

up for themselves may benefit from this remedy. Hurt feelings, shame,
resentment, and suppressed emotions can lead them to depression. If under too
much pressure, they can sometimes lose their natural inhibition and fly into rages
or throw things. A person who needs this remedy may also have insomnia
(feeling sleepy all day, but unable to sleep at night), toothaches, headaches,
stomachaches, or bladder infections that are stress-related.

Note: Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a

replacement for medical advice. Any person with condition requiring medical
attention should consult a well qualified classical homśopath.

Reference: Dr. D. B. Cohen (MS Encarata Encyclopedia 2002)

Antibiotics.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Antibiotic is a substance produced by certain bacteria or fungi that kills other

cells or interferes with their growth. In nature, these substances help some
microbes survive by limiting the multiplication of other microbes that share the
same environment. Antibiotics that attack pathogenic (disease-causing) microbes
without severely harming normal body cells are useful as drugs.

Antibiotics are especially useful for treating infections caused by bacteria.

Antibiotics came into widespread use during the 1940's. At that time, they were
often called "wonder drugs" because they cured many bacterial diseases that were
once fatal. The number of deaths caused by meningitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis,
and scarlet fever declined drastically after antibiotics became available. Today,
physicians prescribe antibiotics to treat many diseases caused by bacteria.

In addition, some antibiotics are effective against infections caused by fungi and
protozoa, and a few are useful in treating cancer. Antibiotics are also used to
treat infectious diseases in animals. Farmers sometimes add small amounts of
antibiotics to livestock feed. The antibiotics support the animals' growth for
reasons that are not entirely understood.

Antibiotics are not effective against colds, influenza, or other viral diseases. In
addition, the effectiveness of antibiotics is limited because both pathogenic
microbes and cancer cells can become resistant to them.

Kinds of antibiotics :
Antibiotics are selectively toxic-that is, they damage some types of cells without
harming others. Medically useful antibiotics attack infectious microbes or cancer
cells without excessively hurting human cells. Antibiotics fight different types of
illnesses in a variety of ways.

Antibacterial antibiotics. Antibiotics are selectively toxic against bacteria

because bacterial cells differ greatly from human cells. One of the chief
differences is that bacteria, unlike animal cells, have a cell wall. This wall is a rigid
structure that forms the cell's outer boundary.

The type of cell wall a bacterium has is one factor that determines which
antibiotics can kill it. Scientists use a process called Gram staining to classify cell
walls of bacteria. Hans C. J. Gram, a Danish bacteriologist of the late 1800's,
developed the process. This method classifies bacteria as gram-positive (G+) or
gram-negative (G-).

Some antibiotics selectively kill either gram-positive bacteria or gram-negative

bacteria. These substances are called narrow spectrum antibiotics. The
antibiotic Vancomycin selectively kills such gram-positive bacteria
as Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, and Enterococcus). Aztreonam is a
narrow spectrum antibiotic that kills only gram-negative bacteria, such as
Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Other antibiotics can kill both
gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. These drugs are called broad
spectrum antibiotics. Ceftriaxone is one example of a broad spectrum
antibiotic. No broad spectrum antibiotic can kill all bacteria, and no narrow
spectrum antibiotic can kill all gram-positive or all gram-negative bacteria.

Other kinds of antibiotics. Some antibiotics are effective against infections

caused by fungi and protozoans, whose cells differ from human cells. Antibiotics
that fight fungi include miconazole and amphotericin. Paromomycin is used to
treat amebiasis, an intestinal disease caused by a protozoan.

Anticancer antibiotics attack cells while they are dividing. These drugs are
somewhat selectively toxic because cancer cells generally divide much more
frequently than do normal cells. But some normal cells-such as blood-forming
cells-divide rapidly. Anticancer antibiotics also affect these cells. The
antibiotic doxorubicin is used to treat certain types of leukemia, breast cancer,
and other tumors.

Some widely used antibiotics :

Antibiotic --> Some infections and diseases treated :

Ampicillin G+ and G- infections, including respiratory infections and urinary

tract infections.
Azithromycin Many kinds of pneumonia, and certain other G+ infections.

Ceftriaxone G+ and G- infections, including gonorrhea.

Chloramphenicol Rocky Mountain spotted fever and G+ and G- infections,

including meningitis.

Ciprofloxacin Urinary tract infections and acute diarrheal diseases caused

by certain G- infections.

Dicloxacillin Penicillin-G resistant, methicillin-sensitive staphylococcal

infections.

Doxycycline Pneumonia, G+ and G- infections, bite wounds, acne.

Fluconazole Fungus infections of the skin, mucous membranes, blood, and

brain.

Gentamicin Serious infections, especially G- infections.

Neomycin G+ and G- infections, especially skin infections and those resulting

from burns.

Penicillin G Syphilis, strep throat, and other G+ infections.

Rifampin Tuberculosis.

Streptomycin Tuberculosis and bubonic plague.

Vancomycin Serious staphylococcal, enterococcal, and streptococcal infections

that resist other drugs.

How antibiotics work :

Antibiotics fight microbes and cancer cells by interfering with normal cell
functions. In most cases, this interference occurs in one of three ways: (1)
prevention of cell wall formation, (2) disruption of the cell membrane (covering),
and (3) disruption of chemical processes.

Prevention of cell wall formation. Penicillins and some other antibiotics

destroy microbes by interfering with their cell wall formation. Animal cells do
not form walls. As a result, these antibiotics do not damage them.
Disruption of the cell membrane. All cells have a membrane that controls the
movement of substances in and out of the cell. Some antibiotics,
including amphotericin B and nystatin, disrupt the cell membrane of certain
microbes. A damaged membrane might allow vital nutrients to escape or
poisonous substances to enter and kill the cell. These antibiotics do not harm
human cells because the drugs affect membrane components found only in
microbial cells.

Disruption of chemical processes. All cells produce proteins and nucleic acids,
which are vital to life. Human cells produce these substances in much the same
way as microbial cells do. But in some cases, these processes differ enough so
that antibiotics interfere with the chemical activities in microbial cells, but not in
human cells. For example, streptomycin and tetracycline prevent certain kinds
of microbes from producing proteins, and rifampin interferes with the
formation of nucleic acids.

Dangers of antibiotics :
Many antibiotics are regarded among the safest drugs when properly used. But
antibiotics can sometimes cause unpleasant or dangerous side effects. The three
main dangers are (1) allergic reactions, (2) destruction of helpful microbes, and
(3) damage to organs and tissues.

Allergic reactions, in most cases, are mild and produce only a rash or fever. But
severe reactions can occur, and can even cause death. All antibiotics are able to
produce allergic reactions, but such reactions occur most often with penicillins.
A physician usually asks if a patient has ever had an allergic reaction to an
antibiotic before prescribing that drug. Most people who are allergic to one
antibiotic can take other antibiotics that have significantly different chemical
compositions.

Destruction of helpful microbes. Certain areas of the body commonly harbor

both harmless and pathogenic microbes. These two types of microbes compete
for food, and so the harmless microorganisms help restrain the growth of those
that cause disease. Many antibiotics-especially broad spectrum drugs-do not
always distinguish between harmless and dangerous microbes. If a drug destroys
too many harmless microorganisms, the pathogenic ones will have a greater
chance to multiply. This situation can lead to a new infection called a
superinfection. Physicians usually prescribe a second drug to combat a
superinfection.

Damage to organs and tissues is rare in people using antibiotics that act only
against the cells of pathogenic microbes. Extensive use of some antibiotics,
however, may damage tissues and organs. For example, streptomycin has caused
kidney damage and deafness. Physicians prescribe drugs with such known risks
only if no other drug is effective.

Anticancer antibiotics act against all cells that divide rapidly, and so can affect
normal cells as well as cancer cells. For example, cells in the bone marrow divide
constantly to produce fresh blood cells. Anticancer antibiotics can damage the
bone marrow. Such damage increases the risk of infection by reducing the
number of white blood cells, which help the body fight disease.

Resistance to antibiotics. Some pathogenic microbes develop an ability to

resist the effects of certain antibiotics. The most widespread and worrisome
resistance in pathogenic microbes occurs in bacteria.

Bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics through a type of evolution. In

bacteria-as in other living things-genes carry instructions controlling life
processes. Occasionally, a gene in a bacterium naturally changes in a way that
enables the microbe to resist the effects of an antibiotic. Such a change is called a
mutation. The change may provide resistance to one specific antibiotic or to a
group of chemically similar antibiotics-for example, the penicillins. Bacteria can
also acquire resistance from other bacteria by transferring genetic material. In
some cases, these exchanges enable bacteria to acquire resistance to more than
one type or more than one group of antibiotics.

Bacteria also can become resistant to antibiotics by producing an enzyme that

breaks down the drug. This occurs with Staphylococcus, which may
resist penicillins and cephalosporins. Bacteria can also change their cell
membranes so that antibiotics can not penetrate them. An example of this kind
of bacteria is Pseudomonas. Pseudomonas may develop resistance to
the quinolone antibiotics this way. Enterococcus, a gram-positive bacteria, can
become resistant to vancomycin by changing the proteins to which vancomycin
usually binds. Streptococcus can resist penicillins and cephalosporins in this way.

Testing and producing antibiotics :

Testing. Every year, scientists test thousands of natural and chemically modified
microbial substances for potential use as antibiotics. First, they test these
substances against harmful microbes or cancer cells that have been grown either
in test tubes or on laboratory plates.

A substance that shows strong antibiotic activity against pathogenic microbes or

cancer cells undergoes extensive tests in laboratory animals. If it produces no
harmful effects in the animals, scientists test the antibiotic in human beings. In
the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must approve
human testing. If the drug proves to be safe and effective, it is referred to the
FDA for approval. Finally, if the FDA approves the antibiotic, the developer
begins to produce it for sale.

Production of antibiotics involves several steps. First, cultures of antibiotic-

producing microbes are grown in flasks and then transferred to huge
fermentation vats. The microbes multiply rapidly in the vats because the
environment is controlled to stimulate their growth. After fermentation, the
antibiotic substance is extracted from the culture and purified.

Some natural antibiotic substances are modified chemically to produce

semisynthetic antibiotics. Many such drugs are more effective than the natural
antibiotics from which they were developed.

Drug companies conduct special tests on antibiotics during and after production
to ensure their quality. Finally, manufacturers make the purified antibiotic
substances into pills, liquids, and ointments for medical use.

History :
For more than 2,500 years, people have treated certain skin infections with
molds that form antibiotics. However, modern scientific study of these
substances did not begin until the late 1800's. At that time, the French chemist
Louis Pasteur discovered that bacteria spread infectious diseases. Then Robert
Koch, a German bacteriologist, developed methods of isolating and growing
various kinds of bacteria. Koch also identified specific bacteria that cause certain
diseases.

Scientists then began working to develop drugs that could destroy pathogenic
microbes, but the substances they produced proved either ineffective or
dangerous. A historic breakthrough came in 1928, when British bacteriologist
Alexander Fleming observed that a mold of the genus Penicillium produced a
substance that destroyed bacteria. He called the substance penicillin.

In the early 1940's, American bacteriologist Selman A. Waksman tested about

10,000 types of soil bacteria for antibiotic activity. In 1943, he discovered that
some Streptomyces a type of fungi, produced a substance that had potent
antibiotic properties. A new antibiotic called streptomycin resulted from
Waksman's research. Thousands of antibiotic substances have been found in
nature or have been produced chemically. Relatively few antibiotic substances,
however, have proved safe and effective.

Since the 1990's, resistance to antibiotics has been a growing threat to public
health. Widespread use of antibiotics to treat human infections increases the
number of resistant bacteria. Antibiotic use in livestock promotes the
development of resistant bacteria that can spread to humans. For example,
studies in the Netherlands, Spain, the United States, and the United Kingdom in
the late 1990's revealed that many chickens were infected with antibiotic resistant
strains of a bacterium called Campylobacter. When people cooked the meat of
these chickens, some of the Campylobacter microbes survived, and the people
became infected.

Certain kinds of Enterococcus bacteria are especially troublesome because of

their resistance. In Europe, drug-resistant strains (types) of Enterococcus that
originated in livestock have spread to people. In the United States, Enterococcus
resistant to multiple antibiotics has caused human infections that are difficult or
impossible to treat. Infections caused by antibiotic-resistant varieties of
Enterococcus occur mostly in patients who are already seriously ill.

In the 1990's, scientists combined the antibiotics quinupristin and dalfopristin to

create a drug that works against resistant strains of Enterococcus. In 2000, the
FDA approved linezolid, the first entirely new type of antibiotic developed in
more than 30 years. The antibiotic, sold under the brand name Zyvox, is
effective against gram-positive bacteria, including Enterococcus, that have
become resistant to all other antibiotics. But experts believe antibiotic-resistant
Enterococcus remains a major threat to public health.

ANTIBIOTICS AND HOMŚOPATHIC ANTIDOTES

Adverse Effects of Penicillin

Fever with cold feet. ----- Bell., Cupr-ac.

Wheezing and Pseudoasthmatic attack. ----- Aspidosperma (Quebracho)

When skin eruptions are simultaneously present ----- Grind.

Anorexia (with Mycin group of drugs like Aureomycin) ----- Abrot.

Peripheral Neuritis. ----- Ant-t.

Brachiaglia Nocturna (with the pronounced symptoms of pins and needles). -----
Sec., Act-s.

Pruritus. ----- Apis and Grind. 10 drops mixed in a cup of milk and applied
locally.

Skin lesions from Penicillin. ----- Agar., Sulph.

Chronic cough after Penicillin. ----- Penicillin 3x or 30, Seneg. 30 or 200.

In cases when Srepto Peniciliin had been used. Streptococcin 30 or

Staphelococcin 30 (as an intercurrent remedy).

Heart depressing effects of Penicillin. ----- Ars-a.

Harmful effects of Penicillin. ----- Ars-a., Thuj., Nux-v., Sil.

Specific to counteract the effects of Penicillin. ----- Ars-a.

Diarrhśa from Antibiotics (especially Mycins). ----- Nit-ac.

Allergic reactions to Antibiotics. ----- Sulph., Penicillin, Streptomycin.

Headache due to Streptomycin. ----- Bell.

Ill effects of Chloromycetin: cases of typhoid (where Chloromycetin was given). -

---- Chloromycetin 30, 200 or 1M (according to patient’s Constitution). With
Placebo for a week. In second week ----- Typhoidinum 200 or 1M (with Placebo
for a fortnight).

Intestinal effects of Aureomycin. ----- Aureomycin leaves a very weak liver and
severe trouble with the bowels. In this case, a pure constitutional treatment with
careful observation of idiosyncrasies is most effective.

Ill effects of Allergy (in general). Ill effects of Penicillin. ----- Carb-v. (Dilutions
used: 2x, 3x, 6x, 12x).

References:
World Book 2003.
Homśopathy and Adverse Reactions of Allopathic Drugs, by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad.
 Antibiotics & Homeopathic Antidotes.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

I. - INTRODUCTION

Antibiotics (Greek anti,"against;"bios,"life") are chemical compounds used to kill

or inhibit the growth of infectious organisms. Originally the term antibiotic
referred only to organic compounds, produced by bacteria or molds, that are
toxic to other microorganisms. The term is now used loosely to include synthetic
and semisynthetic organic compounds. Antibiotic refers generally to
antibacterials; however, because the term is loosely defined, it is preferable to
specify compounds as being antimalarials, antivirals, or antiprotozoals. All
antibiotics share the property of selective toxicity: They are more toxic to an
invading organism than they are to an animal or human host. Penicillin is the
most well-known antibiotic and has been used to fight many infectious diseases,
including syphilis, gonorrhea, tetanus, and scarlet fever. Another antibiotic,
streptomycin, has been used to combat tuberculosis.

II. - HISTORY

Although the mechanisms of antibiotic action were not scientifically understood

until the late 20th century, the principle of using organic compounds to fight
infection has been known since ancient times. Crude plant extracts were used
medicinally for centuries, and there is anecdotal evidence for the use of cheese
molds for topical treatment of infection. The first observation of what would
now be called an antibiotic effect was made in the 19th century by French
chemist Louis Pasteur, who discovered that certain saprophytic bacteria can kill
anthrax bacilli. In the first decade of the 20th century, German physician and
chemist Paul Ehrlich began experimenting with the synthesis of organic
compounds that would selectively attack an infecting organism without harming
the host organism. His experiments led to the development, in 1909, of
salvarsan, a synthetic compound containing arsenic, which exhibited selective
action against spirochetes, the bacteria that cause syphilis. Salvarsan remained the
only effective treatment for syphilis until the purification of penicillin in the
1940s. In the 1920s British bacteriologist Sir Alexander Fleming, who later
discovered penicillin, found a substance called lysozyme in many bodily
secretions, such as tears and sweat, and in certain other plant and animal
substances. Lysozyme has some antimicrobial activity, but it is not clinically
useful.

Penicillin, the archetype of antibiotics, is a derivative of the mold Penicillium

notatum. Penicillin was discovered accidentally in 1928 by Fleming, who showed
its effectiveness in laboratory cultures against many disease-producing bacteria.
This discovery marked the beginning of the development of antibacterial
compounds produced by living organisms. Penicillin in its original form could
not be given by mouth because it was destroyed in the digestive tract and the
preparations had too many impurities for injection. No progress was made until
the outbreak of World War II stimulated renewed research and the Australian
pathologist Sir Howard Florey and German-British biochemist Ernst Chain
purified enough of the drug to show that it would protect mice from infection.
Florey and Chain then used the purified penicillin on a human patient who had
staphylococcal and streptococcal septicemia with multiple abscesses and
osteomyelitis. The patient, gravely ill and near death, was given intravenous
injections of a partly purified preparation of penicillin every three hours. Because
so little was available, the patient's urine was collected each day, the penicillin was
extracted from the urine and used again. After five days the patient's condition
improved vastly. However, with each passage through the body, some penicillin
was lost. Eventually the supply ran out and the patient died.

The first antibiotic to be used successfully in the treatment of human disease was
tyrothricin, isolated from certain soil bacteria by American bacteriologist Rene
Dubos in 1939. This substance is too toxic for general use, but it is employed in
the external treatment of certain infections. Other antibiotics produced by a
group of soil bacteria called actinomycetes have proved more successful. One of
these, streptomycin, discovered in 1944 by American biologist Selman Waksman
and his associates, was, in its time, the major treatment for tuberculosis.

Since antibiotics came into general use in the 1950s, they have transformed the
patterns of disease and death. Many diseases that once headed the mortality
tables—such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, and septicemia—now hold lower
positions. Surgical procedures, too, have been improved enormously, because
lengthy and complex operations can now be carried out without a prohibitively
high risk of infection. Chemotherapy has also been used in the treatment or
prevention of protozoal and fungal diseases, especially malaria, a major killer in
economically developing nations. Slow progress is being made in the
chemotherapeutic treatment of viral diseases. New drugs have been developed
and used to treat shingles and chicken pox. There is also a continuing effort to
find a cure for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), caused by the
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

III. - CLASSIFICATION

Antibiotics can be classified in several ways. The most common method

classifies them according to their action against the infecting organism. Some
antibiotics attack the cell wall; some disrupt the cell membrane; and the majority
inhibit the synthesis of nucleic acids and proteins, the polymers that make up the
bacterial cell. Another method classifies antibiotics according to which bacterial
strains they affect: staphylococcus, streptococcus, or Escherichia coli, for
example. Antibiotics are also classified on the basis of chemical structure, as
penicillins, cephalosporins, aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, macrolides, or
sulfonamides, among others.

A. Mechanisms of Action

Most antibiotics act by selectively interfering with the synthesis of one of the
large-molecule constituents of the cell—the cell wall or proteins or nucleic acids.
Some, however, act by disrupting the cell membrane (see Cell Death and Growth
Suppression below). Some important and clinically useful drugs interfere with the
synthesis of peptidoglycan, the most important component of the cell wall.
These drugs include the Â-lactam antibiotics, which are classified according to
chemical structure into penicillins, cephalosporins, and carbapenems. All these
antibiotics contain a Â-lactam ring as a critical part of their chemical structure,
and they inhibit synthesis of peptidoglycan, an essential part of the cell wall. They
do not interfere with the synthesis of other intracellular components. The
continuing buildup of materials inside the cell exerts ever greater pressure on the
membrane, which is no longer properly supported by peptidoglycan. The
membrane gives way, the cell contents leak out, and the bacterium dies. These
antibiotics do not affect human cells because human cells do not have cell walls.

Many antibiotics operate by inhibiting the synthesis of various intracellular

bacterial molecules, including DNA, RNA, ribosomes, and proteins. The
synthetic sulfonamides are among the antibiotics that indirectly interfere with
nucleic acid synthesis. Nucleic-acid synthesis can also be stopped by antibiotics
that inhibit the enzymes that assemble these polymers—for example, DNA
polymerase or RNA polymerase. Examples of such antibiotics are actinomycin,
rifamicin, and rifampicin, the last two being particularly valuable in the treatment
of tuberculosis. The quinolone antibiotics inhibit synthesis of an enzyme
responsible for the coiling and uncoiling of the chromosome, a process necessary
for DNA replication and for transcription to messenger RNA. Some
antibacterials affect the assembly of messenger RNA, thus causing its genetic
message to be garbled. When these faulty messages are translated, the protein
products are nonfunctional. There are also other mechanisms: The tetracyclines
compete with incoming transfer-RNA molecules; the aminoglycosides cause the
genetic message to be misread and a defective protein to be produced;
chloramphenicol prevents the linking of amino acids to the growing protein; and
puromycin causes the protein chain to terminate prematurely, releasing an
incomplete protein.
B. Range of Effectiveness

In some species of bacteria the cell wall consists primarily of a thick layer of
peptidoglycan. Other species have a much thinner layer of peptidoglycan and an
outer as well as an inner membrane. When bacteria are subjected to Gram's stain,
these differences in structure affect the differential staining of the bacteria with a
dye called gentian violet. The differences in staining coloration (gram-positive
bacteria appear purple and gram-negative bacteria appear colorless or reddish,
depending on the process used) are the basis of the classification of bacteria into
gram-positive (those with thick peptidoglycan) and gram-negative (those with
thin peptidoglycan and an outer membrane), because the staining properties
correlate with many other bacterial properties. Antibacterials can be further
subdivided into narrow-spectrum and broad-spectrum agents. The narrow-
spectrum penicillins act against many gram-positive bacteria. Aminoglycosides,
also narrow-spectrum, act against many gram-negative as well as some gram-
positive bacteria. The tetracyclines and chloramphenicols are both broad-
spectrum drugs because they are effective against both gram-positive and gram-
negative bacteria.

C. Cell Death and Growth Suppression

Antibiotics may also be classed as bactericidal (killing bacteria) or bacteriostatic

(stopping bacterial growth and multiplication). Bacteriostatic drugs are
nonetheless effective because bacteria that are prevented from growing will die
off after a time or be killed by the defense mechanisms of the host. The
tetracyclines and the sulfonamides are among the bacteriostatic antiobiotics.
Antibiotics that damage the cell membrane cause the cell's metabolites to leak
out, thus killing the organism. Such compounds, including penicillins and
cephalosporins, are therefore classed as bactericidal.

IV - TYPES OF ANTIBIOTICS

Following is a list of some of the more common antibiotics and examples of

some of their clinical uses. This section does not include all antibiotics nor all of
their clinical applications.

A. Penicillins

Penicillins are bactericidal, inhibiting formation of the cell wall. There are four
types of penicillins: the narrow-spectrum penicillin-G types, ampicillin and its
relatives, the penicillinase-resistants, and the extended spectrum penicillins that
are active against pseudomonas. Penicillin-G types are effective against gram-
positive strains of streptococci, staphylococci, and some gram-negative bacteria
such as meningococcus. Penicillin-G is used to treat such diseases as syphilis,
gonorrhea, meningitis, anthrax, and yaws. The related penicillin V has a similar
range of action but is less effective. Ampicillin and amoxicillin have a range of
effectiveness similar to that of penicillin-G, with a slightly broader spectrum,
including some gram-negative bacteria. The penicillinase-resistants are penicillins
that combat bacteria that have developed resistance to penicillin-G. The
antipseudomonal penicillins are used against infections caused by gram-negative
Pseudomonas bacteria, a particular problem in hospitals. They may be
administered as a prophylactic in patients with compromised immune systems,
who are at risk from gram-negative infections.

Side effects of the penicillins, while relatively rare, can include immediate and
delayed allergic reactions—specifically, skin rashes, fever, and anaphylactic shock,
which can be fatal.

B. Cephalosporin

Like the penicillins, cephalosporins have a Â-lactam ring structure that interferes
with synthesis of the bacterial cell wall and so are bactericidal. Cephalosporins
are more effective than penicillin against gram-negative bacilli and equally
effective against gram-positive cocci. Cephalosporins may be used to treat strains
of meningitis and as a prophylactic for orthopedic, abdominal, and pelvic
surgery. Rare hypersensitive reactions from the cephalosporins include skin rash
and, less frequently, anaphylactic shock.

C. Aminoglycosides

Streptomycin is the oldest of the aminoglycosides. The aminoglycosides inhibit

bacterial protein synthesis in many gram-negative and some gram-positive
organisms. They are sometimes used in combination with penicillin. The
members of this group tend to be more toxic than other antibiotics. Rare adverse
effects associated with prolonged use of aminoglycosides include damage to the
vestibular region of the ear, hearing loss, and kidney damage.

D. Tetracyclines
Tetracyclines are bacteriostatic, inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis. They are
broad-spectrum antibiotics effective against strains of streptococci, gram-
negative bacilli, rickettsia (the bacteria that causes typhoid fever), and spirochetes
(the bacteria that causes syphilis). They are also used to treat urinary-tract
infections and bronchitis. Because of their wide range of effectiveness,
tetracyclines can sometimes upset the balance of resident bacteria that are
normally held in check by the body's immune system, leading to secondary
infections in the gastrointestinal tract and vagina, for example. Tetracycline use is
now limited because of the increase of resistant bacterial strains.

E. Macrolides

The macrolides are bacteriostatic, binding with bacterial ribosomes to inhibit

protein synthesis. Erythromycin, one of the macrolides, is effective against gram-
positive cocci and is often used as a substitute for penicillin against streptococcal
and pneumococcal infections. Other uses for macrolides include diphtheria and
bacteremia. Side effects may include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea; infrequently,
there may be temporary auditory impairment.

F. Sulfonamides

The sulfonamides are synthetic bacteriostatic, broad-spectrum antibiotics,

effective against most gram-positive and many gram-negative bacteria. However,
because many gram-negative bacteria have developed resistance to the
sulfonamides, these antibiotics are now used only in very specific situations,
including treatment of urinary-tract infection, against meningococcal strains, and
as a prophylactic for rheumatic fever. Side effects may include disruption of the
gastrointestinal tract and hypersensitivity.

V. - PRODUCTION

The production of a new antibiotic is lengthy and costly. First, the organism that
makes the antibiotic must be identified and the antibiotic tested against a wide
variety of bacterial species. Then the organism must be grown on a scale large
enough to allow the purification and chemical analysis of the antibiotic and to
demonstrate that it is unique. This is a complex procedure because there are
several thousand compounds with antibiotic activity that have already been
discovered, and these compounds are repeatedly rediscovered. After the
antibiotic has been shown to be useful in the treatment of infections in animals,
larger-scale preparation can be undertaken.
Commercial development requires a high yield and an economic method of
purification. Extensive research may be needed to increase the yield by selecting
improved strains of the organism or by changing the growth medium. The
organism is then grown in large steel vats, in submerged cultures with forced
aeration. The naturally fermented product may be modified chemically to
produce a semisynthetic antibiotic. After purification, the effect of the antibiotic
on the normal function of host tissues and organs (its pharmacology), as well as
its possible toxic actions (toxicology), must be tested on a large number of
animals of several species. In addition, the effective forms of administration must
be determined. Antibiotics may be topical, applied to the surface of the skin, eye,
or ear in the form of ointments or creams. They may be oral, or given by mouth,
and either allowed to dissolve in the mouth or swallowed, in which case they are
absorbed into the bloodstream through the intestines. Antibiotics may also be
parenteral, or injected intramuscularly, intravenously, or subcutaneously;
antibiotics are administered parenterally when fast absorption is required.

In the United States, once these steps have been completed, the manufacturer
may file an Investigational New Drug Application with the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA). If approved, the antibiotic can be tested on volunteers
for toxicity, tolerance, absorption, and excretion. If subsequent tests on small
numbers of patients are successful, the drug can be used on a larger group,
usually in the hundreds. Finally a New Drug Application can be filed with the
FDA, and, if this application is approved, the drug can be used generally in
clinical medicine. These procedures, from the time the antibiotic is discovered in
the laboratory until it undergoes clinical trial, usually extend over several years.

VI. - RISKS AND LIMITATIONS

The use of antibiotics is limited because bacteria have evolved defenses against
certain antibiotics. One of the main mechanisms of defense is inactivation of the
antibiotic. This is the usual defense against penicillins and chloramphenicol,
among others. Another form of defense involves a mutation that changes the
bacterial enzyme affected by the drug in such a way that the antibiotic can no
longer inhibit it. This is the main mechanism of resistance to the compounds that
inhibit protein synthesis, such as the tetracyclines.

All these forms of resistance are transmitted genetically by the bacterium to its
progeny. Genes that carry resistance can also be transmitted from one bacterium
to another by means of plasmids, chromosomal fragments that contain only a
few genes, including the resistance gene. Some bacteria conjugate with others of
the same species, forming temporary links during which the plasmids are passed
from one to another. If two plasmids carrying resistance genes to different
antibiotics are transferred to the same bacterium, their resistance genes can be
assembled onto a single plasmid. The combined resistances can then be
transmitted to another bacterium, where they may be combined with yet another
type of resistance. In this way, plasmids are generated that carry resistance to
several different classes of antibiotic. In addition, plasmids have evolved that can
be transmitted from one species of bacteria to another, and these can transfer
multiple antibiotic resistance between very dissimilar species of bacteria.

The problem of resistance has been exacerbated by the use of antibiotics as

prophylactics, intended to prevent infection before it occurs. Indiscriminate and
inappropriate use of antibiotics for the treatment of the common cold and other
common viral infections, against which they have no effect, removes antibiotic-
sensitive bacteria and allows the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Similarly, the use of antibiotics in poultry and livestock feed has promoted the
spread of drug resistance and has led to the widespread contamination of meat
and poultry by drug-resistant bacteria such as Salmonella.

In the 1970s, tuberculosis seemed to have been nearly eradicated in the

developed countries, although it was still prevalent in developing countries. Now
its incidence is increasing, partly due to resistance of the tubercle bacillus to
antibiotics. Some bacteria, particularly strains of staphylococci, are resistant to so
many classes of antibiotics that the infections they cause are almost untreatable.
When such a strain invades a surgical ward in a hospital, it is sometimes
necessary to close the ward altogether for a time. Similarly, plasmodia, the
causative organisms of malaria, have developed resistance to antibiotics, while, at
the same time, the mosquitoes that carry plasmodia have become resistant to the
insecticides that were once used to control them. Consequently, although malaria
had been almost entirely eliminated, it is now again rampant in Africa, the Middle
East, Southeast Asia, and parts of Latin America. Furthermore, the discovery of
new antibiotics is now much less common than in the past.

ANTIBIOTICS AND HOMŒOPATHIC ANTIDOTES

Adverse Effects of Penicillin

Fever with cold feet. Bell., Cupr-ac.

Wheezing and Pseudoasthmatic attack. Aspidosperma (Quebracho)

When skin eruptions are simultaneouslypresent. Grind.

Anorexia (with Mycin group of drugs likeAureomycin). Abrot.

Peripheral Neuritis. Ant-t.

Brachiaglia Nocturna (with the pronounced symptoms of pins and needles). Sec.,
Act-s.

Pruritus. Apis and Grind. 10 drops mixed in a cup of milk andapplied locally.

Skin lesions from Penicillin. Agar., Sulph.

Chronic cough after Penicillin. Penicillin 3x or 30, Seneg. 30 or 200.

In cases when Srepto Peniciliin had been used. Streptococcin 30 or

Staphelococcin 30 (as an intercurrent remedy.

Heart depressing effects of Penicillin. Ars-a.

Harmful effects of Penicillin. Ars-a., Thuj., Nux-v., Sil.

Specific to counteract the effects of Penicillin. Ars-a.

Diarrhœa from Antibiotics (especially Mycins). Nit-ac.

Allergic reactions to Antibiotics. Sulph., Penicillin, Streptomycin.

Headache due to Streptomycin. Bell.

#. Effects of Chloromycetin: cases of typhoid (where Chloromycetin was given).

----- Chloromycetin 30, 200 or 1M (according to patient’s Constitution). With
Placebo for a week. In second week Typhoidinum 200 or 1M (with Placebo for a
fortnight).

Intestinal effects of Aureomycin. Aureomycin leaves a very weak liver and severe
troublewith the bowels. In this case, a pure constitutional treatment with careful
observation of idiosyncrasies is most effective.

#. Effects of Allergy (in general). Ill effects of Penicillin. ----- Carb-v. (Dilutions
used: 2x, 3x, 6x, 12x).

References:

1. Contributed by Dr. M. Maureen Dale and Dr. Joel Mandelstam (MS Encarta
Encylopædia 2002).

2. Homœopathy and Adverse Reactions of Allopathic Drugs by Dr. Sayeed

Ahmad.
 Virus.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Virus is a microscopic organism that lives in a cell of another living thing.

Although viruses are extremely small and simple, they are a major cause of
disease. Some viruses infect human beings with such diseases as measles,
influenza, and the common cold. Others infect animals or plants, and still others
attack bacteria. Viruses produce disease in an organism by damaging some of its
cells. However, viruses sometimes live in cells without harming them.

Viruses are so primitive that many scientists consider them to be both living and
nonliving things. By itself, a virus is a lifeless particle that cannot reproduce. But
inside a living cell, a virus becomes an active organism that can multiply
hundreds of times.

Viruses are shaped like rods or spheres and range in size from about 0.01 to 0.3
micron. A micron is 0.001 millimeter or 1/25,400 inch. Most viruses can be seen
only with an electron microscope, which magnifies them by thousands of times.
The largest virus is about 1/10 as big as a bacterium of average size.

The study of viruses began in 1898, when a Dutch botanist named Martinus
Beijerinck realized that something smaller than bacteria could cause disease. He
named this particle a virus, a Latin word meaning poison. In 1935, Wendell M.
Stanley, an American biochemist, showed that viruses contain protein and can be
crystallized. This research and other studies led to the development, in the
1950's, of vaccines for measles, poliomyelitis, and other diseases. Virologists
(scientists who study viruses) demonstrated in the early 1900's that viruses can
cause cancer in animals. In the 1980's, research linked viruses to a few cancers in
humans.

The structure of a virus.

Viruses, unlike other organisms, are not made up of cells. Therefore, they lack
some of the substances needed to live on their own. To obtain these substances,
a virus must enter a cell of another living thing. It then can use the cell's materials
to live and reproduce.

A typical virus has two basic parts, a core of a nucleic acid and an outer coat of
protein. The core consists of either DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) or RNA
(ribonucleic acid). The DNA or RNA enables the virus to reproduce after it has
entered a cell. Some RNA viruses contain an enzyme called reverse transcriptase,
which converts virus RNA to a DNA copy inside cells. Such viruses are called
retroviruses. The virus that causes AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome)
is a retrovirus. The coat of a virus consists of individual proteins that give the
virus its shape. This coat protects the nucleic acid and helps the DNA or RNA
get inside a cell. Some viruses have an additional outer membrane that provides
further protection.

How a virus infects an organism.

Most viruses reproduce in specific cells of certain organisms. For example,

viruses that cause colds reproduce in cells of the human respiratory tract. Viruses
cannot live outside their particular cells. They must be carried into the organism
by air currents or some other means, and then transported by body fluids to the
cells.

When a virus comes into contact with a cell that it can enter, it attaches itself to
the cell at areas called receptors. Chemicals in the receptors bind the virus to the
cell and help bring it or its nucleic acid inside. The nucleic acid then takes control
of the cell's protein-making process. Previously, the cell made only the proteins
specified by its own genes. The genes are the cell's hereditary structures, and they
consist of nucleic acid. A cell that has been infected by a virus begins to produce
the proteins that are called for by the nucleic acid of the virus. These proteins
enable the virus to reproduce itself hundreds or thousands of times.

As new viruses are produced, they are released from the cell and infect other
cells. The new viruses become lifeless as soon as they are released. But they
return to life after entering another cell. The viruses then start to reproduce and
thus spread infection to more cells.

When a virus reproduces, it changes a cell's chemical makeup. This change

usually damages or kills the cell, and disease results if many cells are affected.
Some viruses change a cell only slightly because they do not reproduce. The
DNA copy of a retrovirus may hide inside a cell on cell DNA. Such a virus may
cause no immediate symptoms but might later damage the cell.

Virus diseases in human beings include AIDS; chickenpox; colds; cold sores;
hepatitis, a liver disease; influenza; measles; mumps; poliomyelitis; rabies; and
yellow fever. The nature of the disease caused by a particular type of virus is
determined by which cells and tissues in the body the virus tends to invade.

The body protects itself from viruses and other harmful substances by several
methods, all of which together are called the immune system. For example, white
blood cells called lymphocytes provide protection in two ways. Some
lymphocytes produce substances called antibodies, which cover a virus's protein
coat and prevent the virus from attaching itself to the receptors of a cell. Other
lymphocytes destroy cells that have been infected by viruses and thus kill the
viruses before they can reproduce. However, some viruses are able to suppress
the functioning of the immune system and thus enable themselves to reproduce
more easily. Such viruses include those that cause measles, influenza, and AIDS.

Lymphocytes do not start to produce antibodies until several days after a virus
has entered the body. However, the body has additional methods of fighting
virus infections. For example, the body produces a high fever to combat such
virus diseases as influenza and measles. The high fever limits the ability of the
viruses to reproduce. To fight colds, the body forms large amounts of mucus in
the nose and throat. The mucus traps many cold viruses, which are expelled from
the body by sneezing, coughing, and blowing one's nose. The body also makes
protein substances called interferons that provide some protection against many
types of viruses.

The treatment of a virus disease consists mainly of controlling its symptoms. For
example, physicians prescribe a drug called acetaminophen to bring down a high
fever. In most cases, doctors cannot attack the cause of the disease itself, because
most drugs able to kill or damage a virus also damage healthy cells. The U. S.
Food and Drug Administration has approved a few drugs-including zidovudine
(formerly called azidothymidine and commonly known as AZT), adenine
arabinoside (ara-A), and acyclovir-for limited use against certain virus diseases.
Researchers have found other potential antiviral drugs, including interferons. But
these drugs must undergo further testing before their safety and effectiveness are
known.

A few viruses are called slow viruses because they reproduce more slowly than
the others. Some researchers believe a slow virus causes multiple sclerosis, a
disease of the brain and spinal cord. Other viruses, such as the herpesviruses, can
remain dormant in cells for years and then become reactivated and cause
sporadic outbreaks of symptoms. Still other viruses including HIV, the virus that
causes AIDS, can cause prolonged, persistent infections in which the virus
multiplies continuously. Some viruses have been linked to human cancer. For
example, hepatitis B virus is linked to hepatoma, a type of liver cancer. Burkitt's
lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph tissues, may be caused by the Epstein-Barr
virus. In addition, some leukemias are caused by human retroviruses.

Virus diseases in animals.

Viruses cause hundreds of diseases in animals. These diseases include distemper

in dogs and foot-and-mouth disease in cattle. Most virus diseases in animals
occur in certain species. But some of the diseases spread to other species, and a
few of them infect human beings. For example, dogs can give people rabies,
which destroys nerve cells.
Certain viruses can cause cancer in animals. These viruses do not destroy all the
cells they infect. Some of the infected cells have their chemical makeup altered,
which causes them to behave abnormally. These altered cells reproduce in an
uncontrolled manner, forming masses of tissue called tumors. Cancerous tumors
invade and damage surrounding healthy tissue. Researchers have discovered a
similarity between some viruses that cause cancer in animals and certain viruses
that infect human beings.

Virus diseases in plants.

Viruses infect all kinds of plants and can cause serious damage to crops. Plant
cells have tough walls that a virus cannot penetrate. But insects penetrate the cell
walls while feeding on a plant and thus enable viruses to enter. Plant viruses may
infect one or two leaves or an entire plant. They produce billions of viruses,
which are then carried to other plants by insects or air currents. Common
diseases that are caused by plant viruses include tobacco mosaic and turnip
yellows mosaic.

Viruses that attack bacteria are called bacteriophages. The word bacteriophage
means bacteria eater. Bacteria, like plants, have tough cell walls. To penetrate
these walls, most bacteriophages have a structure that works like a hypodermic
needle. This structure consists of a sphere-shaped head that contains a nucleic
acid, and a hollow, rod-shaped tail made of protein. When a bacteriophage enters
a bacterium, the tail first penetrates the cell wall. Then the nucleic acid in the
head moves through the tail and into the cell.

How viruses are used.

Virologists study viruses chiefly to learn how they cause disease and how to
control these organisms. Scientists also use viruses for such purposes as (1)
insect control, (2) cell research, and (3) development of vaccines and other drugs.

Insect control.

Certain viruses cause fatal diseases in insects. Virologists are seeking ways to use
these viruses to kill insects that damage crops. The use of such viruses may
someday replace insecticides, which kill insects but also may harm plants as well
as other animals.
 Cell research.

Viruses are such simple organisms that scientists can easily study them to gain
more knowledge about life itself. Research on bacteriophages has helped
biologists understand genes, DNA, and other basic cell structures. Future
research may provide further knowledge of how cells function and reproduce.

Development of vaccines and other drugs.

Scientists produce vaccines from either dead or live viruses. Those used in dead-
virus vaccines are killed by chemicals and injected into the body. For live-virus
vaccines, virologists select very mild forms of living viruses.

Following is the table of some of the viruses which are responsible for many
common human diseases such as colds, flu, diarrhœa, chicken pox, measles, and
mumps. Some viral diseases such as rabies, hæmorrhagic fevers, encephalitis,
polio, yellow fever, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) can result
in death. German measles and cytomegalovirus can cause serious abnormalities
or death in unborn infants. Of the estimated 1000 to 1500 types of viruses,
approximately 250 cause disease in humans.

FAMILY ----- VIRUS ----- DISEASE

Adenovirus Common cold

Bunyavirus Hantaan Kidney failure
La Crosse Encephalitis (brain infection)
Sin Nombre Lung syndrome
Calicivirus Norwalk Gastroenteritis (diarrhœa, vomiting)
Coronavirus Corona Common cold
Filovirus Ebola Hemorrhagic fever
Marburg Hemorrhagic fever
Flavivirus Hepatitis C (non-A, non-B) Hepatitis
Yellow fever Hepatitis, hemorrhage
Hepadnavirus Hepatitis B virus (HBV) Hepatitis, liver carcinoma
Herpesvirus Cytomegalovirus Birth defects
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) Mononucleosis, nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Herpes simplex type 1 Cold sores
Herpes simplex type 2 Genital lesions
Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8) Kaposi's sarcoma
Varicella-zoster Chicken pox, shingles
Orthomyxovirus Influenza types A and B Flu
Papovavirus Human papillomavirus (HPV) Warts, cervical carcinoma
Picornavirus Coxsackie virus Myocarditis (heart muscle infection)
Echovirus Meningitis
Hepatitis A Infectious hepatitis
Poliovirus Poliomyelitis
Rhinovirus Common cold
Paramyxovirus Measles Measles
Mumps Mumps
Parainfluenza Common cold, ear infections
Parvovirus B19 Fifth disease, chronic anemia
Poxvirus Orthopoxvirus Smallpox (eradicated)
Reovirus Rotavirus Diarrhea
Retrovirus Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)
Human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV-I) Adult T-cell leukemia, lymphoma, neurologic
disease
Rhabdovirus Rabies Rabies
Togavirus Eastern equine encephalomyelitis Encephalitis
Rubella Rubella, birth defects

Antiviral drug is the term for a group of chemical compounds used to treat
diseases caused by viruses. Antiviral drugs usually do not cure viral diseases but
can shorten the duration of the disease and lessen the severity of symptoms.
Many antiviral drugs, however, can cause side effects, such as anemia or kidney
damage.

Many viral diseases can be prevented through the use of vaccines. But vaccines
have not been developed for all viral diseases, and vaccines are not useful for
treating people once they become ill. Other drugs, including antibiotics such as
penicillin, have no effect on viruses.

Viruses use substances within the cells of living organisms, called host cells, to
manufacture enzymes and other materials they need to reproduce. Antiviral
drugs work by interfering with parts of the viral life cycle that are different from
steps completed by the hosts. This allows drugs to attack viruses while not
harming host cells. However, since viruses rely on substances made by hosts to
carry out many steps in their life cycles, there are only a few viral materials that
the drugs can target. Getting drugs into infected cells is also an obstacle. In spite
of these difficulties, researchers have developed many successful antiviral drugs.

Many antiviral drugs are chemical compounds that bind to viral enzymes,
changing the structure so the enzymes cannot be used by the viruses. The drugs
bind only to viral enzymes, while enzymes used by the host cell are not impaired.
The virus, however, cannot reproduce to infect other host cells. The progression
of the disease is thus slowed or halted by the drugs.

The first antiviral drugs were developed in the 1960's. One of the earliest,
acyclovir, is widely used to treat infections of herpesviruses, a group of viruses
that cause chickenpox, mononucleosis, shingles, and cold sores. This drug
mimics a building block of the genetic material DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)
which herpesviruses need to reproduce. Viral enzymes mistakenly add this drug
into a growing strand of DNA and stop its production. Acyclovir is given to
patients by injection, as a pill, or in ointment applied to the skin. Other drugs,
such as zanamivir, used to treat influenza, can be inhaled. Many antiviral drugs
available today have been developed to treat HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Scientists are developing new antiviral drugs as they learn more about the
structure and life cycle of viruses. Researchers analyze the chemical structure of
viral enzymes and proteins. They use computers to design chemical compounds
that will bind to the viruses without causing side effects in the host.

References:

MS Encarta Encyclopædia.

World Book 2003

Bacteria.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Bacteria are simple organisms that consist of one cell. They are among the
smallest living things. Most bacteria measure from 0.3 to 2.0 microns in diameter
and can be seen only through a microscope. (One micron equals 0.001 millimeter
or 1/25,400 inch.) Scientists classify bacteria as prokaryotes.

Bacteria exist almost everywhere. There are thousands of kinds of bacteria, most
of which are harmless to human beings. Large numbers of bacteria live in the
human body but cause no harm. Some species cause diseases, but many others
are helpful.

The importance of bacteria

Helpful bacteria. Certain kinds of bacteria live in the intestines of human beings
and other animals. These bacteria help in digestion and in destroying harmful
organisms. Intestinal bacteria also produce some vitamins needed by the body.
Bacteria in soil and water play a vital role in recycling carbon, nitrogen, sulfur,
and other chemical elements used by living things. Many bacteria help
decompose (break down) dead organisms and animal wastes into chemical
elements. Other bacteria help change chemical elements into forms that can be
used by plants and animals. For example, certain kinds of bacteria convert
nitrogen in the air and soil into nitrogen compounds that can be used by plants.

A chemical process called fermentation, used in making alcoholic beverages and

cheese and many other foods, is caused by various bacteria. Sewage treatment
plants use bacteria to purify water. Bacteria are also used in making some drugs.

Bacterial cells resemble the cells of other living things in many ways, and so
scientists study bacteria to learn about more complex organisms. For example,
the study of bacteria has helped researchers understand how certain
characteristics are inherited. Most types of bacteria reproduce quickly. This rapid
reproduction enables scientists to grow large quantities for research.

Harmful bacteria.

Some species of bacteria cause diseases in human beings. These diseases include
cholera, gonorrhea, leprosy (Hansen's disease), pneumonia, syphilis, tuberculosis,
typhoid fever, and whooping cough. The bacteria enter a human being's body
through its natural openings, such as the nose or mouth, or through breaks in the
skin. In addition, air, food, and water carry bacteria from one person to another.
Harmful bacteria prevent the body from functioning properly by destroying
healthy cells.

Certain bacteria produce toxins (poisons), which cause such diseases as

diphtheria, scarlet fever, and tetanus. Some toxins are produced by living
bacteria, but others are released only after a bacterium dies. A form of food
poisoning called botulism is caused by toxins from bacteria in improperly canned
foods.

Bacteria that usually live harmlessly in the body may cause infections when a
person's resistance to disease is low. For example, if bacteria in the throat
reproduce faster than the body can dispose of them, a person may get a sore
throat.

Bacteria also cause diseases in other animals and in plants. Anthrax is a bacterial
disease that infects many animals, especially cattle and sheep. Plant diseases
caused by bacteria include fire blight, which occurs in apple and pear trees, and
soft rot, which decays some fruits and vegetables. Bacteria also cause growths
called crown galls, which attack various plants.
Protection against harmful bacteria.

Many bacteria live on the skin and in the mouth, intestines, and breathing
passages. But the rest of the body tissues are normally free of bacteria. The skin,
and the membranes that line the digestive and respiratory systems, prevent most
harmful bacteria from entering the rest of the body. When harmful bacteria do
enter the body, white blood cells surround and attack them. Also, the blood
produces antibodies, substances that kill or weaken the invaders. Toxins are
neutralized by certain antibodies called antitoxins. Sometimes the body cannot
make its own antitoxins fast enough. In such cases, a physician may inject an
antitoxin from an animal, such as a horse or rabbit, or from another person.

Dead or weakened bacteria are used in making drugs called vaccines, which can
prevent the diseases caused by those species of bacteria. Vaccines are injected
into the body, causing the blood to produce antibodies that attack the bacteria.
Some vaccines protect the body from infection for several years or longer. Drugs
called antibiotics are made from microorganisms that inhabit the air, soil, and
water. Antibiotics can kill or weaken disease-causing bacteria. However,
extensive use of antibiotics may encourage the spread of bacteria resistant to the
drugs. The drugs then become ineffective.

People use chemicals called antiseptics to prevent bacteria from growing on

living tissues. Other chemicals, known as disinfectants, are used to destroy
bacteria in water and on such items as clothing and utensils. Bacteria can also be
killed by heat, and so heat is often used to sterilize food and utensils.

The structure of bacteria

Nearly all kinds of bacteria are enclosed by a tough protective layer called a cell
wall. The cell wall gives the bacterium its shape and enables it to live in a wide
range of environments. Some species are further enclosed by a capsule, a slimy
layer outside the cell wall. The capsule makes the cell resistant to destructive
chemicals. All bacteria have a cell membrane, an elastic, baglike structure just
inside the cell wall. Small molecules of food enter the cell through pores in this
membrane, but large molecules cannot pass through. Inside the membrane is the
cytoplasm, a soft, jellylike substance. The cytoplasm contains chemicals called
enzymes, which help break down food and build cell parts.

Like the cells of all living things, bacterial cells contain DNA (deoxyribonucleic
acid). DNA controls a cell's growth, reproduction, and all other activities. The
DNA of a bacterial cell forms an area of the cytoplasm called the nucleoid. In all
other organisms except cyanobacteria (blue-green algæ), the DNA is in the
nucleus, a part of the cell separated from the cytoplasm by a membrane.

Scientists generally divide bacteria into groups according to shape. Round

bacteria are called cocci, and rod-shaped ones are bacilli. Bacteria that look like
bent rods are vibrios. There are two types of spiral-shaped bacteria, spirilla and
spirochetes. Two or more bacteria linked together may be described by the
prefixes diplo- (pair), staphylo- (cluster), or strepto- (chain). For example,
streptococci are a type of round bacteria linked together in chains.

The life of bacteria

Where bacteria live. Bacteria live almost everywhere, even in places where other
forms of life cannot survive. The air, water, and upper layers of soil contain
many bacteria. Bacteria are always present in the digestive and respiratory
systems and on the skin of human beings and other animals.

Certain bacteria, called aerobes, require oxygen to live, but others, known as
anaerobes, can survive without it. Some anaerobes can exist either with or
without oxygen. Other anaerobes cannot live with even a trace of oxygen in their
environment.

Some bacteria protect themselves against a lack of food, oxygen, or water by

forming a new, thicker cell membrane inside the old one. The cell material
surrounding the new membrane dies. The remaining organism becomes inactive
and is called a bacterial spore. Bacterial spores may live for decades or even
longer because they can resist extremely high or low temperatures and other
harsh conditions. If food, oxygen, and water again become available, the spores
change back into active bacteria.

How bacteria move.

Bacteria are carried long distances by air and water currents. Clothing, utensils,
and other objects also carry bacteria. Various kinds of bacteria have flagella (thin
hairs) that enable them to swim. Some species that lack flagella move by
wriggling.

How bacteria obtain food.

Most kinds of bacteria, called heterotrophic bacteria, feed on other organisms.
Some species, known as autotrophic bacteria, manufacture their own food. For
example, photosynthetic bacteria make food from carbon dioxide, sunlight, and
water. Certain bacteria may be autotrophic or heterotrophic, depending on the
food available. The majority of heterotrophic bacteria feed on dead organisms.
Others are parasites. Some parasitic bacteria cause little or no harm to the host
organism, but others cause diseases.

How bacteria reproduce.

Most bacteria reproduce asexually--that is, each cell simply divides into two
identical cells by a process called binary fission. Most bacteria also reproduce
quickly, and some species double their number every 20 minutes. If one of these
cells were given enough food, over a billion bacteria would be produced in 10
hours. Industrial and laboratory processes often produce such enormous
numbers of bacteria. But in nature, bacteria lack an adequate food supply to
maintain such a high rate of reproduction.

When bacteria reproduce by binary fission, the DNA in each of the two resulting
cells is identical to the DNA in the original bacterium. Some bacteria can
exchange DNA by a kind of simple sexual process called conjugation.
Conjugation involves the direct transfer of DNA from one type of bacterial cell,
called a male, to another type, called a female. DNA also may be transferred by
viruses. Bacteria also may pick up fragments of DNA from dead bacterial cells.
By transferring DNA, bacterial cells transfer individual traits. For example,
bacterial cells that are resistant to certain antibiotics may transfer this
characteristic to nonresistant bacterial cells.

Scientists have developed techniques that allow them to isolate fragments of

DNA responsible for particular traits. Inserting these fragments into different
bacteria, called recombinant DNA technology, produces useful new kinds of
bacteria. For example, some of these bacteria chemically break down oil and also
help clean up oil spills. Others are used to make substances with medical
applications, such as insulin.

History

The first living things on the earth probably included simple forms of bacteria.
The oldest known fossils are those of bacteria that lived about 31/2 billion years
ago. Some scientists believe certain bacteria gradually developed into multicelled
organisms that were the ancestors of the more complex plants and animals of
today.
Bacteria were first described in the mid-1670's by Anton van Leeuwenhoek, a
Dutch amateur scientist. For many years, scientists believed that bacteria came
from nonliving matter. But in the late 1800's, the French chemist Louis Pasteur
showed that only living things can produce living things. Pasteur and Robert
Koch, a German physician, helped develop the science of bacteriology (the study
of bacteria).

Types of Bacteria

Microbiologists broadly classify bacteria according to their shape: spherical, rod-

shaped, and spiral-shaped. Pleomorphic bacteria can assume a variety of shapes.
Bacteria may be further classified according to whether they require oxygen
(aerobic or anaerobic) and how they react to a test with Gram’s stain. Bacteria in
which alcohol washes away Gram’s stain are called gram-negative, while bacteria
in which alcohol causes the bacteria’s walls to absorb the stain are called gram-
positive.

TYPE ----- CHARACTERISTICS

Acetic acid Rod-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic; highly tolerant of acidic conditions; generate
organic acids
Actinomycete Rod-shaped or filamentous, gram-positive, aerobic; common in soils; essential to
growth of many plants; source of much of original antibiotic production in
pharmaceutical industry
Coccoid Spherical, sometimes in clusters or strings, gram-positive, aerobic and anaerobic;
resistant to drying and high-salt conditions; Staphylococcus species common on human
skin, certain strains associated with toxic shock syndrome
Coryneform Rod-shaped, form club or V shapes, gram-positive, aerobic; found in wide variety of
habitats, particularly soils; highly resistant to drying; include Arthrobacter, among
most common forms of life on earth
Endospore- Usually rod-shaped, can be gram-positive or gram-negative; have highly adaptable,
heat-resistant spores that can go dormant for long periods, possibly thousands of
forming years; include Clostridium (anaerobic) and Bacillus (aerobic)
Enteric Rod-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic but can live in certain anaerobic conditions;
produce nitrite from nitrate, acids from glucose; include Escherichia coli,
Salmonella (over 1000 types), and Shigella
Gliding Rod-shaped, gram-negative, mostly aerobic; glide on secreted slimy substances;
form colonies, frequently with complex fruiting structures
Lactic acid Gram-positive, anaerobic; produce lactic acid through fermentation;
include Lactobacillus, essential in dairy product formation, and Streptococcus, common
in humans
Mycobacterium Pleomorphic, spherical or rod-shaped, frequently branching, no gram stain, aerobic;
commonly form yellow pigments; include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, cause of
tuberculosis
Mycoplasma Spherical, commonly forming branching chains, no gram stain, aerobic but can live
in certain anaerobic conditions; without cell walls yet structurally resistant to lysis;
 among smallest of bacteria; named for superficial resemblance to fungal hyphae
(myco- means "fungus")
Nitrogen-fixing Rod-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic; convert atmospheric nitrogen gas to
ammonium in soil; include Azotobacter, a common genus
Propionic acid Rod-shaped, pleomorphic, gram-positive, anaerobic; ferment lactic acid;
fermentation produces holes in Swiss cheese from the production of carbon dioxide
Pseudomonad Rod-shaped (straight or curved) with polar flagella, gram-negative, aerobic; can use
up to 100 different compounds for carbon and energy
Rickettsia Spherical or rod-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic; cause Rocky Mountain spotted
fever and typhus; closely related to Agrobacterium, a common gall-causing plant
bacterium
Sheathed Filamentous, gram-negative, aerobic; "swarmer" (colonizing) cells form and break
out of a sheath; sometimes coated with metals from environment
Spirillum Spiral-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic; include Bdellovibrio, predatory on other
bacteria
Spirochete Spiral-shaped, gram-negative, mostly anaerobic; common in moist environments,
from mammalian gums to coastal mudflats; complex internal structures convey
rapid movement; include Treponemapallidum, cause of syphilis
Sulfate- and Commonly rod-shaped, mostly gram-negative, anaerobic;
include Desulfovibrio, ecologically important in marshes
Sulfur-reducing
Sulfur- and Commonly rod-shaped, frequently with polar flagella, gram-negative, mostly
anaerobic; most live in neutral (nonacidic) environment
iron-oxidizing
Vibrio Rod- or comma-shaped, gram-negative, aerobic; commonly with a single flagellum;
include Vibrio choleræ, cause of cholera, and luminescent forms symbiotic with deep-
water fishes and squids

References:

MS Encarta Encyclopædia.

World Book 2003

Allopathy.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

We are all acquainted with the prevalent mode of treatment

today ALLOPATHY. In the treatment of acute distressing conditions and in
emergencies allopathic drugs are of considerable value. These drugs can instantly
relieve acute pain and distress. Moreover, with the great strides made in the field
of surgery many valuable lives have been saved, thus reducing the mortality rate.
But the treatment of chronic diseases with drugs of the orthodox system poses a
grave problem. Allopathic drugs are, fundamentally, palliative. Moreover, their
long term use is often associated with the risk of side-effects. Thus in relieving a
diseased condition, other abnormal physiological and pathological conditions
may develop. In other words a drug-induced disease is produced. Such diseases
are called Iatrogenic Disease ("Iatrogenic" meaning "Physician-Induced"),
which are far more difficult to treat than natural diseases.

In the year 1964-1965 the drug THALIDOMIDE entered the market. It was
hailed as the safest of all tranquilizers and was prescribed freely, even to the
pregnant woman. And then, in the 1966, it was discovered that women who had
taken this drug during pregnancy gave birth to babies that were deformed, babies
that had just stumps for arms and legs. The West German health authorities
alone reported 10,000 cases of birth deformities due to THALIDOMIDE. That
was truly the saddest period in medical history.

When the CORTICOSTEROIDS were introduced into the market they were
called the "Wonder-Drugs". Arthritics found a miraculous relief in their
agonizing pains, and the inflammatory condition of the affected joints was
greatly reduced. But, alas ! the relief was short-lived. As soon as the drug was
stopped the symptoms came back, and with a vengeance. Moreover, the long-
term use of CORTISONES had serious side-effects. Kidney dysfunction,
diabetes, peptic ulcers were aggravated ; some patients developed cataract and
some women developed an unwarranted growth of facial hair.

One of the greatest Homśopaths of our present time, Dr. George Vithoulkas
said in his interview of 20th July, 2000 to Dr. Peter Morell as under :

What I am saying is that the overuse of chemical prescription drugs is producing

such devastating side-effects that rapid changes in the over all health status of the
Western population will be apparent within the next few generations (two or
three). We will witness outrageous consequences. I am not saying this for the
American people only, but for the entire civilized world that is over-using
conventional therapeutics (prescription drugs and vaccinations). The American
people are using such drugs excessively and therefore they will be the first to
manifest lasting health consequences. It is scary to see the explosion in the form
of epidemics of chronic conditions like Alzheimer’s Disease, Diabetes, Asthma,
Neuromuscular Diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis, Connective Tissue Diseases,
Allergic Conditions, Panic Attacks, Anxiety States, Phobic States, Insanity, etc.

In addressing a meeting of the AIH in Washington DC on 21st June, 2000, Dr.

George Vithoulkas said :

"Classical Homśopathy is the most powerful healing technique existing in the

world". "I see the health of people in general so degraded, with no hope of
regeneration. And Homśopathy holds the hope of regeneration".
"With the massive way Antibiotics are being prescribed they are going to destroy
the immune system. It is going to be open to new diseases, that are going to be
incurable".

In Paragraph 53 of the Organon, Dr. S. Hahnemann says that "The pure

homśopathic method of healing is the only correct one, the only possible to
human art ; it is the most direct one, just as certainly as there is but one possible
straight line between two given points."

The following are some of the Adverse Reactions of Allopathic Drugs :

ANTIBIOTICS :

• Causing fśtal abnormalities.

• Following antibiotic therapy in influenza, neurological complications may
develop.
• Increased bacterial mutations are caused by antibiotics, thereby increasing
the problem of infections.
• Dermatitis due to penicillin following the external application of it in the
treatment of skin disease is becoming increasingly common.
• Streptomycin can cause more skin trouble than either Penicillin or the
Sulphonamides.
• Antibiotics produce bone marrow depression.
• Chloramphenicol may cause contact dermatitis and urticaria.
• Some widely used Antibiotics are :

Ampicillin, Azithromycin, Ceftriaxone, Chloramphenicol, Ciprofloxacin,

Dicloxacillin, Doxycycline, Fluconazole, Gentamicin, Neomycin, Penicillin G,
Rifampin, Streptomycin, Vancomycin.

SULPHA GROUP OF DRUGS :

• Sulphonamides may cause Erythema Nodosum and Exfoliative

Dermatitis.
• Cyanosis due to abuse of Sulpha Compounds.
• Blocking of renal tubules by Sulpha Crystals may bring on suppression of
urine production and auria results.
• Sulpha drugs can produce fever if given in increased doses.
• Sulphonamides may cause Diarrhśa.
• Fixed Eruptions, Morbilliform Rash, Urticaria.
• Aplastic Anćmia and Hćmolytic Anćmia.
• Myocarditis, Cholangitis and Hepatitis.
CORTICOSTEROID THERAPY :

• Long administration produces irreversible changes.

• Corticosteroid Therapy may lead to Cataract formation.
• A moderate or high dose of Corticosteroid Therapy over a prolonged time
may cause posterior subcapsular lens opacities.

SEDATIVES, NARCOTICS, TRANQUILISERS :

• Hypotension is the most serious feature of Meprobamate over dosage.

• Eczematous itching, Rashes, Urticaria and Purpura.
• Agitation, Depression, Insomnia, Nightmares, Fainting Spell and
Parkinsonism.
• Jaundice occurs in 1 – 3% after the first administration of
Chlorpromazine.
• Agranulocytosis may also occur.

COLTAR DERIVATIVES :

• Massive gastrointestinal bleeding could be related to Aspirin consumption.

• Aspirin weakens the heart.
• Aspirin causes Duodenal Ulcer.
• Acetyl Salicylic Acid or Aspirin causes Bronchial Asthma.
• Allergy to Aspirin causes Urticaria, Localised Śdema, Gastrointestinal
Symptoms, Gastric Bleeding.

OTHER DRUGS :

• Excessive amounts of Vitamin ‘D’ taken by expectant mothers may cause

Cardiac Malformalities.
• Excess of Vitamin ‘D’ causes hypercalcćmia and hypercalcćmic children
have a high Degree of Supravalvular Aortic Stenosis.
• The side effects of Quinindine therapy known as Cinchonism are
common and cause Nausea, Vomiting, Diarrhśa, Tinnitus and Temporary
Deafness and Fever.
• Asthma and Contact Eczema have been the ill-effects of the
Antihistaminic Agents.
The treatment of chronic diseases with modern drugs poses a grave problem.
Commenting on the therapeutic value of allopathic drugs, Sir Anthony Carlisle
had once said :

"In your ideas of the powers of remedies do not be too sanguine for you are
liable to continuous disappointment."

Consequently, many patients are now turning to the unorthodox system of

treatment. And, in India especially, there are many who are now going in for
Homśopathy.

Medicines of systems like Homśopathy, for example, have a firm scientific

foundation. Homśopathy is based on the Law of Similars "Similia Similibus
Curantur" (let likes be cured by likes). The homśopathic medicines used in the
times of Dr. S. Hahnemann are used even today because of their efficacy. But
how many allopathic drugs of yesterday can be found on the chemists’ shelves
today ? They have all had their day, and their alluring names have faded into
oblivion, only to be replaced by newer drugs. We must not forget that a system
that continuously needs revision and renewal just cannot be considered quite a
reliable one.

Advantages of Homeopathy.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

• Homœopathy is gentle and effective system of medicine.

• Homœopathy gives long lasting to permanent cure.
• Homœopathy treats the patient as a whole and not just the disease.
• Homœopathic remedies are gentle, non-toxic, harmless, safe and without
any side-effects.
• Unlike Antibiotics, homœopathic remedies do not disturb digestive
system nor do they lower the immune system (Body’s resistance).
• Homœopathy is friendly to children, young and old.
• In most of the cases homœopathy can avoid surgery.
• Homœopathy is very effective in various allergic disorders in addition to
other diseases of all kinds.
• Homœopathy is a gift of God as well as blessings to the ailing human
beings.
• Homœopathy is a boon in the hands of qualified doctors (Classical
Homœopaths) who strictly follow the rules and instructions laid down by
Dr. S. Hahnemann in his book "Organon of Medicine". Mixopathy has no
place in homœopathy.
 • Homœopathy is equally effective and safe to human beings, animals and
birds.
• Homœopathic remedies do not have expiry dates, provided they are kept
properly.
• Homœopathy is founded upon the steadfast pillars of truth and will ever
more be so.
• Homœopathic treatment is given to correct the root cause of the illness.
• Homœopathic medicines are administered in minute doses that act gently
and stimulate the body’s self-healing response.
• Homœopathic remedies are all natural medicines. Some are herbs, some
minerals or other natural substances. They are prepared by a special
process of step by step dilution and succusion (shaking) which makes
them capable of effecting in a much deeper way than the remedy could
without this process.
• Homœopathic treatment is ideal to optimize the body’s natural defenses
against microbes. With the appropriate homœopathic treatment, people
recover from infectious diseases, even the most serious ones, gently and
rapidly.
• Homœopathy works in harmony with the immune system, unlike
Allopathic Drugs which suppress and destroy the immune system.
• Homœopathic remedies are not addictive – once relief is felt, patient
should stop taking them.

Mahatma Gandhi said – "Homœopathy is the latest and refined method of

treating patients economically and non-violently."

Golden advice from "Kent".

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

* Experienced homœopathic observers know very well that the burning, stinging,
enlarged glands, infiltration, hardness of the part, weakness, loss of flesh in a
scirrhus of a mamma will not lead to a remedy that will act curatively, also that
œdema of extremities, weakness, albumen in urine and heart symptoms, dyspnœa
and anxiety furnish no basis for a remedy for the patient. All know that remedies
given on such symptoms are only expected to comfort, and will not restrain the
progress of disease nor very much prolong life.

* The case is incurable until the case can be taken in a manner to Present what is
true of the patient.

* It has often occurred that a remedy has made brilliant cures when it suited the
patient, even though it was not known to possess a strong likeness of the
disease ; but let the likeness be first to the patient and last to the disease. The
patient is first and the disease is last.

* Study the patient and everything of the patient.

* The hip-joint patient has pain in the knee, perhaps some trouble in the uterus,
or headache which is said to be due to constipation.

To what is the constipation due ? Perhaps they had not thought of that.

* The center of man is his LOVES. When the loves go wrong he is sick in his
will, the very center. This we find in dealing with those who threaten to destroy
their own life or the life of another.

EXAMPLE :

A faithful, noble wife has no fault to find with her husband in her natural life,
but finds herself with an aversion to him, does not want him to touch her. This is
a symptom of the innermost of man, it is not on a par with the skin and the toe-
nails.

* The second point of consideration in the study of the patient is the intellectual
functions, the reasoning faculties.

* Memory disturbances come next in order in the mind but in study are less
important.

* Next to the mental symptoms in importance are the PHYSICAL

GENERALS. The physical generals cannot be cured with Remedies that do not
have the mental conditions.

* First of these to be considered is the patient's relation to heat and cold. He may
be very warm, desiring cool things, cool air, cool applications, cool food and light
clothing ; or he may want heat, cannot be too warm. He may be so cold that
there is lack of vital heat.

* His desire for MOTION or REST is the next important physical general.
Perhaps he cannot keep quiet, never comfortable unless he is walking. At the
same time his shoulder may be more painful on motion of that part ; working the
arm from the shoulder, and all that relates to that part, may be worse from
motion.
* The patient is first before his parts. Again you may have the patient himself
worse from motions, and all his aches and pains worse from motion. How he is
affected by the air is another physical general. He may be better or worse in the
open air. If the patient is a woman, her menstruation must be considered.

Menstruation is a function of the body, and she will say that she is worse or
better during menstruation, or worse just before or just after menstruation. The
patient as a unit may be worse or better after eating ; himself all over may be
better or worse after the rectal evacuation, better after stool ; these are important
generals of the body.

* As the blood is, so is the love. The colour of the discharge expresses the
condition of the blood when there is a deterioration which renders them
greenish. The greenish colour to discharge from the vagina, as in cancer,
represents the condition of the blood.

* When a symptom is common to all or to many remedies it is not important.

Hahnemann's emphasis is upon the symptoms strange, rare, and peculiar. These
are most important.

* We go first to the generals and then to the particulars, proceeding from center
to circumference.

* Then we come to the particulars, the thing for which the patient comes to be
treated. Most cases of hip-joint disorder cured by me in the past twenty-five
years were cured by remedies not in the hip-joint list. By beginning the
investigation in relation to the patient, you may find none of the particulars in
the remedy selected, but the remedy cures the patient, and the particulars
disappear.

EXAMPLE : DRY HACKING COUGH the patient was steadily emaciating.

Dr. Kent looked at the young man and noticed he had no overcoat on though it
was very cold weather. Asking him why he wore no overcoat, Dr. Kent found
that he was never chilly, but wanted the cold air, felt better in the open air,
wanted to walk and work rapidly. LYCOPODIUM stopped his cough and he
increased in weight and was cured.

* You can give different remedies in succession without holding to any one, and
after years, the patient is no better, they are not curing the patient.
* Very sensitive patients should not be given too high a potency. For
oversensitives it is best to begin not higher than 1M. This can be repeated two,
or sometimes three times, and then a higher potency used. Each potency can be
used two or three times with benefit.

* Remedies will seldom be found in the lists of all the particulars ; you must omit
some, but be certain to omit the particulars and not the generals.

* Start with the most important, proceed to the less and less important, on to the
least important.

* You must get at the thing that is at the bottom.

* The man himself is prior to his organs, more interior than his organs. The
condition of the organs is the result of disorder more interiorly.

* You become expert in the use of the repertory, increasing from year to year, as
long as you live. It is a life work, a beautiful work, worth living to perform.

* In the woman the menstrual symptoms, of all particulars, are nearest to the
generals ; they are close to the life of the woman.

* Sexual symptoms, especially desires and aversions, are analogus to loves and
aversions.

* The condition of the blood is analogus to the loves. Few remedies have
recorded the condition of the blood, that it will not coagulate, but it is a high
grade symptom. It is common for blood to clot, and rare for it not to clot.

* The study of man as to his nature, as to his life, as to his affections, underlies
the true study of homœopathics.

* The more interior first, the mind, the exterior last, the physical or bodily
symptoms.

* The doctor who violates the law also violates his conscience, and his death is
worse than the death of the patient.

* Removing symptoms may not restore health to the patient. Curing the patient
will remove the symptoms and restore his health (Organon No. 8).

* We must be guided by the symptoms that are strange, rare, and peculiar.

* However, some of the common symptoms may become peculiar where their
circumstances are peculiar -- i. e. --- Trembling before a storm, or during stool,
or before menses, or during urination, is rare and strange.
--- Weakness is also common if constant, but it comes only before menses, or
before stool, or during a storm, it is at once quite uncommon, and changes the
view of the case.

--- Chilliness, if constant, is common to many people, but if comes only before
or during menses, before or during stool, or while urinating, or only when in bed
in the night, or only while eating - then it is strange and peculiar, or uncommon.

* The mental symptoms, composed of his reasoning powers, loves and hates,
and memory. And then his general bodily symptoms and their circumstances,
such as worse from cold, from warmth of every kind, from weather, wet and dry,
from motion or rest, time of day, etc. These are of highest importance when they
apply to the whole body.

--- The pain in the shoulder was worse before a storm.

DULCAMARA cured at once.

--- Cold air may aggravate the patient but ameliorate the headache.

--- The patient is often better by motion, but his parts, if inflamed, are worse
from motion.

--- Parts are better by heat when the patient is better from cold, and vice versa.
The headache is better from cold, and the body is better by heat.

If we do not consider these circumstances, we do injustice to the Patient and his

parts.

* Common symptoms alone will lead to failure of the prescription.

We might as well attempt to prescribe for nervous dyspepsia, gastritis, jaundice,

gallstone colic, enteritis, constipation, or a bilious temperament. The beginner
often fails because he has secured only the common symptoms.

* Many cases coming for advice express the particulars, and fail to give the
symptoms that characterise the patient. This must be one of the most frequent
causes of failure with the young physician.

EXAMPLE :

With menses too late or suppressed or scanty, the patient weeping, with aversion
to fats, nausea, vomiting, weight after eating, the young man will
say PULSATILLA at once ; but wait a moment.
The patient is very chilly, likes the house, never needs the open window, is worse
from motion, wants to keep very quiet ; now you change your mind and give
her CYCLAMEN. Or, if she is better in motion and in open air, and craves it,
and is too warm, then PULSATILLA. The physician cannot be careless, and
cure as Hahnemann did.

* I (Kent) seldom administer medicine until the paroxysm has been completed.
When the first dose is followed by a perceptible aggravation, a second dose
should never be administered until the amelioration, which follows the
aggravation, has ceased.

* An amelioration that begins forthwith also demands that all medicine be

stopped, but such amelioration is seldom so striking as when the amelioration
has been preceded by a slight aggravation. Immediate amelioration often
indicates the absence of deep-seated disease.

* The law seems to fail where the selection has been perfect, and the potency
suitable by meddling with the action of the remedy. This fault is a common one
and depends upon ignorance of the philosophy of Homœopathy.

* A deep seated trouble changing under the action of a remedy, coming to the
surface, though the suffering be increased ten fold the remedy must not be
disturbed or the cure may never be realised. Though the patient say "I am so
much worse, just see how I suffer", he must have sac lac.

* The ulcer may close and a diarrhœa appear as intractable as the ulcer. This
shows that the proper disease has no tendency to recover.

* Nature operates under fixed principles. Now it must be known first of all that
diseases recover from above downward from within out and in the reverse order
of their coming. When the phenomena of disease do not follow this
circumscribed limit of directions the disease is growing worse or at least
progressing.

* It is so common for a patient to return after a correct prescription saying, "I

am much worse today". The physician must now look into the case. If the new
symptoms are such as were noticed in the early progress of the disease the cure is
certain if properly conducted.

* If the new manifestation is felt on deep organs that have not heretofore been
touched or given rise to symptoms, the disease may be known to be deep seated
and most likely incurable.
* Sharp aggravations after a prescription the direction being from within out is a
sign of speedy recovery.

* Following a prescription for chronic rheumatism, if heart symptoms intervene

the patient never will recover.

* If the acute symptoms following a careful prescription are prolonged, the

recovery will be slow.

* The law will fail to be of service to him who knows not how to apply it.

* When you do not know what to do, why do you do anything ?

The great mistake rests in the ambition to do something. No man should consent
to do a wrong as a substitute for an unknown right way. Be sure that you are
right, then go ahead.

* When we have to do with an art whose end is the saving of human life, any
neglect to make ourselves thoroughly masters of it, becomes a crime.
(Hahnemann).

* There are physicians who call themselves homœopaths, but are so only in
name, as they do not follow the methods worked out by Hahnemann.

* The name of the disease does not reveal the symptoms in any case of sickness ;
the symptoms are the sole basis of the prescription.

* The intelligent physician does what law and principles demand and nothing
more ; but the ignorant one knows no law and serves only his wavering
experience, and appears to be doing so much for the patient, in spite of which
the patient dies.

* You cannot depend on lucky shots and guess work, every thing depends on
long study of each individual case.

* Science ceases to be scientific when disorderly application of law is made.

* The physician spoils his case when he prescribes for the local symptoms and
neglects the patient.

* It is better to do nothing at all than to do something useless ; it is better to

watch and wait than to do wrong.

* Large doses really aggravate the disease, high potencies aggravate the
symptoms of the disease.

* A man who cannot believe in GOD cannot become a Homœopath.

* Repeated doses may suppress the symptoms but will not cure ; you are getting
only the primary action, the curative action is not at work.

* It is worse than useless to give a second dose until the effects of the first dose
have ceased.

* Pathology has no place in an effort to select a medicine for the sick.

* When a remedy has benefited a patient satisfactorily, never on your life, change
your remedy, but repeat that remedy so long as you can benefit the patient. Do
not regard the symptoms that have come up.

* Never prescribe for a chronic case when you are in a hurry ; take time. Never
give a dose of medicine until you have duly considered the whole case.

* A keynote prescriber is but a memory prescriber ; he has memorised only and

has not made it a part of his understanding.

Such prescribers are almost useless and it is among them that we find "falling
from grace".

* If a cure is made in the course of two or three years it is indeed a speedy cure.
It takes from two to five years to cure chronic diseases.

* In advance phthisis with pathological symptoms, if you prescribe for the old
symptoms which should have prescribed for some years before, you kill your
patient.

* A sycotic is never cured unless a discharge is brought back.

* Treat the cause and not the effects of disease.

* The mind symptoms, if you can know them, are the most important. If the
pathological symptoms seem to contra-indicate a remedy, and the mental
symptoms to indicate it, these are to be taken.

* In cases without symptoms, the patient must be kept on sac lac until you can
discern some general, such as aggravation of symptoms in the morning, or at
midnight. If the patient is only "tired", without guiding symptoms, you may
know that it is liable to terminate in some grave disorder. Consumption, Bright's
Disease, Cancer, or the like.

* The healthier the patient becomes the more likelihood there is for an eruption
upon the skin.

* Never leave a remedy until you have tested it in a higher potency if it has
benefited the patient.
Reference :

"New Remedies – Clinical Cases Lesser Writings Aphorisms and Precepts" of J.

T. Kent.

Secrets of good health.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

* Jealousy, resentment, anger, envy, stress, anxiety, fear, sorrow and hatred have
a direct effect on one’s health.

* To maintain a high quality of life one should aim to maintain a high standard of
health which can be obtained through ensuring a strong immune system.

* Stress is a killer. It ruins the quality of life.

* Worries causes high blood pressure, heart trouble, stomach ulcers and
insomnia. If you find that you worry more when you are tired – have a rest
during the day. A midday siesta if only for 20 minutes is worth 2 hours in bed at
night.

* Develop a mental attitude that is calming and logical.

* Do not cry over spilt milk.

* Worrying destroys our ability to concentrate and makes us lose all power of
decision.

* What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world – and loses his health.

* The remedy for worry is to get completely occupied doing something

constructive, mentally or physically and keep busy.

* Think and act cheerfully – and you will feel cheerful.

* An angry man is always full of poison.

* We seldom think of what we have but always of what we lack.

* Our peace of mind and joy depend solely on our mental attitude.
* Our life is what our thoughts make it.

* It has been proved that who suffer from emotional stresses have lower levels
of killer white cells so cannot fight disease and are more likely to die young.

* Stress is the most potent cause of ageing. You can win over this problem
through relaxation and positive thinking.

* Negative thinking works in a vicious circle.

* Smoking, chewing tobacco and alcohol are the factors most likely to cause an
early death.

* Daily exercise and controlling obesity will keep you fit and fine physically and
mentally.

* Discover how to rapidly turn negative emotions into a positive outlook.

* A smile creates happiness in the home, fosters goodwill in business, brings rest
to the weary cheer to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and is nature’s best
antidote for trouble.

* Stress can lead to infertility. Women who experience extreme stress are at an
increased risk of miscarriage.

* Stress often leads to over-eating and extra weight.

* Severe stress during pregnancy may cause birth defects.

* Unresolved emotional conflicts resulting from Stress in our life are clearly one
of the most important causes of Cancer.

* People whose blood pressure rise during "Mental Stress" are six times more
likely to have a heart attack or other severe heart event within six years than
people who handles the stress more calmly.

* Stress can cause your face to have more wrinkles.

* Stress worsens your immune system.

* Stress increases the rate of wound infection by three fold.

* The stress is a contributory factor in a wide variety of health problems such as :

-- High Blood Pressure.

-- Coronary Heart Disease.
-- Gastrointestinal Disorders, such as Ulcers.
-- A risk factor in Cancer.
-- Chronic Pain problems.
-- Suppress the body’s immune system.
-- Influences mental and physical health such as Anxiety, Depression and other
severe emotional problems.

* Once you learn how to forgive it will pave the way to better health.

* Anger can lead to a variety of health problems such as :

-- Headaches.
-- Problems of digestion.
-- Insomnia.
-- Increased anxiety.
-- Depression.
-- High Blood Pressure.
-- Skin problems, such as eczema.
-- Heart Attack.
-- Stroke.

Not only that, but anger can lead to other negative emotions like bitterness,
hopelessness, futility and over all sadness.

* The disease begins in the Mind, in thought, feeling and will, and is then
expressed in the physical body. The Mind is therefore, the beginning of disease
as also of cure.

Sterility in female and male.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Several lacs of females and males are suffering from STERILITY in India and
all over the world. There is a general understanding that perhaps homśopathy has
nothing to offer on this subject. As a fact of the matter, homśopathy can greatly
assist to those couples who are not blessed with a child in spite of their ardent
desire and efforts due to sterility either on the part of the female or the male.
Homśopathy can change their life to happiness by begetting children in their
homes as well as fertile and healthy life. However, on the other hand, treating
sterility homśopathically is the most safest and effective in the hands of qualified
classical homśopathic practitioners.

STERILITY means difficult or no conception and in other word it is inability

on the part of the female or the male partner to produce any offspring.
Formerly and even now the ignorant society or the relations attributed the non-
birth of children to the sterility in the female and ignored the husband altogether.
It should be noted that in man sterility and impotence are two different terms.
Impotence means inability to sexually gratify a woman and sterility means
inability to impregnate her. An impotent can be sterile. For conception, only the
discharge of semen with living sperms is required. It does not matter whether the
erection is strong or the retentive power is long or the female is duly satisfied.
The sterility on the part of the male is the absence of living sperms in the semen.
Either they are not present at all or are dead. In such a case a man cannot
produce however virile he may be. Gonorrhśa and Syphilis are the common and
unquestionable causes of depriving the semen of spermatozoa.

Thus the first step to be taken is to get the semen tested before the cause is
assigned to the sterility of the wife. If the semen is found lacking in sperms, a
well qualified homśopathic practitioner can assist in producing them in plenty.
However, if the semen is found quite normal then the cause should be treated
out in the female.

CAUSES OF STERILITY IN FEMALES :

• Sometimes the cause is the presence of acidic secretions specially lactic

acid in the vagina and soon as the semen is discharged all the sperms are
killed as they cannot live in acid. But the acidity is only detrimental to
pregnancy when the male organ is too small to ejaculate the semen direct
into the uterus.
• In individual females the depth of the vaginal cavity varies. In every
female the depth is equal to the length of her finger. Thus, female
possessing a long middle finger requires a long organ and vice versa. A
male organ a little (1 or 2 inches) longer than her middle finger is quite
sufficient for her individual purpose.
• Having intercourse when both the partners are not willing.
• The correct posture of intercourse is also imperative. Thus, female should
lie flat on the back with the man upon her with his face downwards. Her
legs should be intercross each other over the man. This posture brings the
uterus a little forward and it increases the possibility of impregnation.
• Intercourse should take place 3 hours after meals. Intercourse should not
be taken place just after meals or taking plenty of water.
• It is also injurious when one (female or male) is extremely hungry or
thirsty.
• Sexual meeting should never be arranged during menses.
• Place of sexual meeting should be free from interruption and it should be
peaceful and comfortable. One should not have any fear of some ones
intrusion or arrival during the act of intercourse.
• Diet which is sour or rich in acids should be given up.
• Leucorrhśa, painful and scanty menses, amenorrhśa, excessive menstrual
flow are also responsible for sterility.
• Sometimes sterility is due to failure of the ovaries to yield the ova.
Conception is only possible when sperm comes in contact with the ovum
of the same side.
• Female’s right and left ovaries produce one ovum every month. One
month there is the right ovum and the other month the left. The left
sperm and right ovum, and the right sperm and the left ovum cannot
unite. Thus pregnancy does not take place.
• It should be found out if she is FRIGID or if there is any abnormality in
menses. It is also imperative to find her sexual feelings.
• When there is a fault in ovaries, menses are scanty and there is pain in the
breast.
• New growths – fibroids and cancer, etc.
• Sterility is also caused if there is any tumour in uterus or ovary.
• Discharge of mucus from vagina after an embrace in female and sterility
as a result thereof.
• Prolapsus of uterus. Uterine displacement.
• Hypertrophy of the cervix.
• Too frequent intercourse.
• Irregularity of menses.
• Dysmenorrhśa.
• Constipation.
• Inflammation of vagina due to leucorrhśa.
• Dwindling of breast and ovaries.
• Excessive and premature menses.
• Hard work (less of sexual passion).
• Sterility in female with excessive sexual desire.
• Mental worries, grief and hiding of her sorrows.
• Constitutional cause.
• Sometimes sterility is due to the weakness of the uterus which is incapable
of holding the fśtus. This weakness of the uterus is also the common
cause of abortion.
• For having children, remember to have intercourse on the last day of the
menstrual period or on the third, fifth or seventh day after the period has
ceased.
• Chronic diseases.
• Other causes of sterility may be diabetes, ulceration of the os uteri, fibroid
tumours and enlargement of the uterus.
• Hysteria.
• Debilitating diseases like anćmia, tuberculosis, causing amenorrhśa and
scanty menses.
• Endocrinal deficiencies. Obesity due to defective thyroid secretion.
• Incompatibility between husband and wife.
• Absence of any essential part of the genitalia i. e. removal of uterus, tubes
or ovaries.
 • Atresia of cervix and rudimentary uterus.
• Imperforate hymen.
• Malformation or destruction of tubes – due to inflammatory condition
like gonorrheal salpingits, appendicitis, etc. (If the lining membrane of the
tube is affected, the sterility would be absolute).
• Partial stenosis of the tubes. It is associated with imperfectly developed
uterus (almost an incurable condition).

RUBIN’S TEST is performed to see whether the tube is potent or not, blocked
or permeable. Another way of test of the potency and permeability of the tubes
is by introduction of a dye (lipoidol), injected into the uterus ; a subsequent X-ray
will show not only that the tubes are blocked or not, but also the sites where they
are blocked.

• Inflammatory conditions : such as endometritis, endocervicitis.

• Cystic ovaries or destroyed as well, due to tumours, etc.
• Vaginismus.
• Trauma to the parts.

CAUSES OF STERILITY IN MALE :

• Impotency of long standing.

• Short and curved penis.
• Undescended or atrophied testes.
• Defective seminal discharges : no sperms or undeveloped sperms or a few
sperm non-motile sperms ; this may be due to some previous or present
disease of the testes, like mumps, tuberculosis, gonorrhśa, syphilis, etc.
• Sexual neurasthenia.
• It should be found out if he is having habits of masturbation or suffering
from night-falls, spermatorrhśa, impotence or any venereal diseases.
• Loss of sexual powers with lascivious fancies.
• Semen thin and odourless.
• On attempting coition, penis relaxes.
• Involuntary emissions, discharge too quick, spasms during coition, effects
of masturbation, disposition to handle organs.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT.

FEMALE STERILITY.
Agnus Castus.

Sterility, with suppressed menses, and want of sexual desire. Swelling and
inflammation of the uterus. Transparent leucorrhśa. Leucorrhśa spotting linen
yellow.

Aletris Farinosa.

When sterility is due to weakness of the uterus. This remedy tones up the uterus.
Amenorrhśa or delayed menses from atony ; weariness of mind and body.
Leucorrhśa white stringy with debility. Weak emaciated people.

Aurum Met.

Sterility due to depression and tendency to suicide. Menses too late ; and scanty
or absent. Leucorrhśa profuse and corroding, yellow, thick white, not offensive,
aggravation by walking.

Aurum Mur. Nat.

Specific for sterility. It may be given in 3x trituration. It cures ulceration,

induration, chronic metritis, ulcers of the os, swelling of the ovary. Also covers
prolapsus of the uterus.

Baryta Carb.

Sterility due to dwindling of ovaries and mammary glands, yet the lymphatics
become enlarged and infiltrated. Catamenia too feeble, and of too short duration.

Baryta Mur.

Sterility. Catamenia too early. Leucorrhśa. Indurations, tumour or atrophy of

ovaries. Nymphomania.

Borax.
Sterility. Leucorrhśa corrosive and thick like starch. Catamenia premature and
too copious, of a pale red colour. Dread of downward motion and labour.

Calcarea Carb.

Sterility with catamenia too early, and too profuse. Calcarea Carb. has cold,
clammy feet, as if there were damp stockings on. Obesity.

Caulophyllum.

Sterility after leucorrhśa in a woman married ten years ago was cured with this
remedy.

Conium Mac.

Sterility with suppressed menstruation. Unsatisfied sexual desire and sufferings

therefrom. Obstinate constipation of long standing. Faintness after stool.

Eupatorium Pur.

Sterility from ovarian atony.

Filix Mas.

Sterility. Pale face with blue rings around eyes. Worm symptoms especially with
constipation.

Gossypium Her.

Sterility from uterine torpor.

Helonias.
Sterility with loss of sexual desire. Profound mental gloom. Leucorrhśa with
atony and anćmia. Women with prolapsus from atony. Menses too frequent and
profuse in women who are feeble from loss of blood. Flow passive : dark,
coagulated, offensive. Always better when doing something, when the mind is
engaged. Fault finding and cannot endure the least contradiction.

Iodium.

Atrophy of ovaries and breasts, with sterility. Catamenia at one time too late, at
another too early. Menses premature, violent and copious. Eats ravenously yet
emaciates. Lachrymose disposition and mental dejection. Effects of
amorousness ; of disappointed love.

Kali Brom.

Sterility from excessive sexual indulgence and atrophy of ovaries.

Millefolium.

Sterility with too profuse menstruation, or tendency to miscarry. Hćmorrhage

from uterus from too violent exertions. Suppressed menstruation with epileptic
attacks.

Natrum Carb.

Discharge of mucus from vagina after an embrace or coition in the women and
sterility as a result thereof. Joyous talkativeness.

Natrum Mur.

Sterility. With too early and too profuse menstruation. Coition painful from
dryness of vagina. Leucorrhśa with headache. Abundant discharge of transparent,
whitish and thick mucus from vagina. Obliged to weep. Hypochondriacal, tired
of life. Joyless, taciturn. Anxiety respecting the future.
Pituitary.

It regulates action of ‘corpus luteum’ in sterile women and favours conception in

many cases. Uterus, breasts and other sexual organs are not fully developed.

Phosphorus.

Sterility on account of excessive voluptuousness, or if menstruation comes on

too late and is too profuse.

Platinum.

Sterility in women with excessive sexual desire. It has cured sterility of 12 years
standing. Catamenia too early and too profuse (blood dark and coagulated).
Leucorrhśa, like white of egg flowing chiefly after urinating and on rising from a
seat.

Sepia.

It is the head remedy for sterility. There is irregularity of menses with leucorrhśa
and constipation. Menses are too late and scanty or early and profuse, with sharp
cutting pains. Leucorrhśa is yellow, greenish with much itching. Prolapse of the
uterus and vagina. Vagina painful during coition. Lack of affection for those
whom she loved before is a marked mental symptom. Sadness and dejection with
tears.

Sulphuricum Acidum.

Sterility, with catamenia premature and too profuse. Acrid and burning, or milk-
like leucorrhśa. Prolapse of vagina. The patient is weak and exhausted.

Thuja.

Sterility with leucorrhśa. Anćmia may also be present. Hair on the face and legs
of women with offensive perspiration about the genitals.
Thyroidinum.

The uterus is very small in size. Excessive obesity. Uterine fibroid. Fatigued
easily, with weak pulse, tendency to fainting, palpitation, cold hands and feet, low
blood pressure, chilliness and sensitive to cold.

MALE STERILITY.

Chininum Sulph.

Absence of spermatozoa with suppression or diminution of sexual desire.

Conium Mac.

Absence of spermatozoa accompanied with impotency ; insufficient erections.

Want of energy in coition. Emissions provoked by presence of women.

Damiana (Turnera Aph.)

Absence of spermatozoa in impotency due to sexual neurasthenia. Chronic

prostatic discharge.

Iodium.

Indicated in persons who have violent or constant erections with increased

sexual desire ; testicles become small and painful.

Strychninum.

When azoospermism is accompanied with great sexual desire and/or swelling of

testicles.

NOTE :
Any information given in this article is not intended to be taken as a replacement
for medical advice. Any person with a condition requiring medical attention
should consult a qualified classical homśopath. If you wish, you may please
contact the Author by e-mail for further information and treatment.

Speedy prescribing.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Anger --- Arn., Bry., Cham., Chin., Gels., Nux-v.

Bad Eggs --- Carb-v.

Bad Fat --- Ars., Carb-v.

Bad Fish --- All-c., Carb-v.

Bad Food --- Carb-v.

Bad News --- Gels.

Bad Water --- All-c., Crotal-h.

Bathing Cold --- Mag. Phos.

Bee Sting --- Led.

Breavement --- Ign.

Bites --- Hyper., Led.

Blood Poisoning --- Pyro.

Bone, Injury to --- Rut., Symph., Hecla.

Bruises --- Arn., Led., Rut.

Burns and Scalds --- Urt-u.

Coffee, Abuse of --- Nux-v.

Cold, With Damp --- Dulc.

Cold, Dry Winds --- Acon., Hep.

Damp, Cold Weather --- Gels.

Damp, Cold Winds, Exposure to --- All-c., Calc-c.

Damp Sheets --- Rhus-t.

Damp, Warm Weather --- Carb-v.

Dentition --- Cham.

Depressing Emotions --- Gels.

Dog Bites --- Hydrophob.

Eating, Excess in --- Bry., Nux-v.

Effects of Pleasurable --- Coff.

Exam. Funk --- Anac., Gels.

Eyes, Injuries to --- Acon., Symph.

Eyes, Overstrain --- Rut.

Fat --- Carb-v., Ipec., Puls.

Fear --- Acon.

Feet Wetting --- Puls.

Fractures --- Rut., Symph.

Fruit --- Ars., Chin.

Grief --- Ars., Ign.

Head, Blow on --- Hyper.

Head, Getting Wet --- Bell., Rhus-t.

Ice Cream --- Puls.

Nerves, Injuries to --- Hyper.

Pastry --- Puls.

Punctured Wounds --- Hyper., Led.

Riding in Carriage --- Cocc.

Storms --- Gels., Phos.

Sun (Too Much) --- Acon., Bell., Gels., Glon.

Vertigo from Sunlight --- Agar-m.

Hæmorrhage.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

By the term "Hæmorrhage" is meant the escape of blood from those vessels in
which it is naturally contained, whether the discharge be external, or into one of
the internal cavities of the body. Profuse and long continued hæmorrhages being
dangerous and the results often most serious, it is undesirable, except in
emergencies, to trust to domestic treatment. In consideration, however, of the
frequent suddenness of such occurrences, the impossibility of securing at all
times the immediate attendance of a qualified medical man, and the importance
of being prepared to act promptly to afford temporary relief, the following
immediate treatment is suggested.

Hæmorrhage Diathesis :

In some patients a predisposition to hæmorrhages exists which may be hereditary

or acquired, and is designated the "Hæmorrhagic Diathesis". This condition
probably consists in defective contractility of the arteries, which may also be
fragile or soft from diseased processes, so being unable to resist the force of the
circulation, especially in congestion ; and in loss of coagulability of blood, from a
defective or altered character of the fibrine, the chief agent in coagulation and
some change in the red corpuscles.

Hence the most trivial wound bleeds almost uncontrollably and even life may be
jeopardized by a slight injury or surgical operation. The hæmorrhagic diathesis
may not in all cases be hereditary, but caused by diseases of the liver, spleen, etc.,
which then exert a deleterious influence upon the constituents of the blood.

Arterial Hæmorrhage :

Bright red blood which escapes in rhythmic spurts, corresponding to the beats of
the heart.
Venous Hæmorrhage :

Dark red in colour and the blood flows evenly.

Capillary Hæmorrhage :

Oozing of blood. Hæmorrhage may also be :

a). Primary :

- At the time of operation or injury.

b). Reactionary or Recurrent :

- Occurring later when the blood pressure rises and ligature slips or a vessel
opens up.

c). Secondary :

- As a rule about 10 days after injury and always due to sepsis.

SPECIAL TYPES ARE :

Accidental Hæmorrhage :

Bleeding from the uterus during pregnancy. It may be revealed or concealed.

Antepartum Hæmorrhage :

That which occurs before labour starts.

Cerebral Hæmorrhage :

Rupture of a cerebral blood vessel. Likely causes are aneurysm, hypertension,

apoplexy (the symptoms are coma, accompanied by stertorous breathing, and a
varying degree of paralysis of the opposite side of the body to the lesion).
Concealed Hæmorrhage :

The blood collects in a cavity of the body.

Contrecoup Hæmorrhage :

That which occurs at a distance from where the force was applied e. g. a blow on
the skull may cause the brain to strike the bony casing directly opposite the site
of original force, causing bruising of the nerve tissues.

Extradural Hæmorrhage :

Bleeding inside the head, but outside the dura. The result of injury to the skull
causing signs of raised intracranial pressure. The cerebrospinal fluid is not blood
stained. It is treated by trephining, removal of clot and ligature of bleeding vessel.

Inevitable Hæmorrhage :

That which is unavoidable, as in placenta prævia.

Intradural Hæmorrhage :

Bleeding beneath the dura matter. It may be due to injury and causes signs of
compression. The cerebrospinal fluid will be blood stained.

Post-Partum Hæmorrhage :

That which occurs after child birth.

Revealed Hæmorrhage :

Bleeding which is obvious.

Subarachnoid Hæmorrhage :

Of the cerebral vessels between the pia and arachnoid mater.

HOMŒOPATHIC TREATMENT.

Threatening abortion. ----- Cinnm. Q, 3.

In abortion, at third month. ----- Trill. Q, 6.

After abortion, worse from motion, mental or sexual excitement. ----- Sil. 30.

Causes anæmia. ----- Ferr. 3 – 6.

With prolapse ani (debility). ----- Coll. Q, 3.

Asthenic. ----- Ham. Q, 6.

Asthenic, with exhaustion. ----- Rat. 3 –6.

In atonic constitutions. ----- Mill. Q.

Black. ----- Ars., Elaps., Kali-m., Kali-p.

Black, from bowels (typhoid). ----- Rhus-t. 6 – 30.

Black, from all outlets. ----- Sul-ac. 3 – 30.

With feeling as if bones were broken. ----- Trill. Q, 6.

From bowels. ----- Sec.. Sil.

Of decomposed blood from bowels (chorea) ----- Lach. 30 – 200.

Bright. ----- Acon., Ant-t., Ars., Dros., Ferr-p., Graph., Hyos., Ipec., Kali-p.,
Mill., Nat-m., Trill.

With dysuria. ----- Mit. Q.

Bright in typhus ----- Nit-ac. 6.

Incoagulable. ----- Apis 30.

Bright fluid. ----- Mill. Q.

Bright, with shock from injury. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

With Bright’s Disease. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

From abuse of Chamomile. ----- Chin. 6 – 30.

Passive, blackened coagula, worse from Movement. ----- Sec. 30.

Lumpy, light, coagulates easily. ----- Ferr. 3 – 6.

Coagulates slowly or not at all. ----- Ars. 3 – 30.

Clotted. ----- Kali-m. 3 – 12.

Thick clots, fluid, or in one grumous mass, thick and tarry. ----- Plat. 30.

Causes collapse and death (Cyanosis, Asphyxia) ----- Anthr. 30.

Relieves congestion. ----- Meli. Q, 6.

Causes convulsions. ----- Chin. Q, 6.

After violent cough. ----- Coch. 3.

Dark. ----- Ant-c., Apis, Caust., Ign., Lyc., Nat-m., Nit-ac., Ph-ac.

Dark, easily coagulating. ----- Puls. 6 – 30.

Incoagulable, dark, in typhoid. ----- Lach. 30 – 200.

Dark, from nose, gums and bowels. ----- Am-c. 6.

Causes delirium. ----- Chin. Q, 6.

Hæmorrhagic Diathesis. ----- Sec. 30.

From different parts of body. ----- Anthr. 30.

In drops, crimson. ----- Gels. Q, 30.

Bad effects. ----- Chin., Ferr., Ham., Nux-m., Stront.

Bad effects, after blood letting. ----- Bism., Lyc.

Of external ears. ----- Bufo 6.

At 10, every evening and during day when Removing dress. (Syphiltic ulceration
of penis). ----- Lac-c. 30.

From over-exertion. ----- Nit-ac. 6.

From external and internal parts. ----- Arn. 3 – 30.

Exudations, hæmorrhage. ----- Anthr. 30.

Six, profuse, on twentieth day after typhoid Malarial fever. ----- Ham. Q, 6.

With yellow fever, at an early stage. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

Fluid. ----- Ars. 3 – 30.

Frequent and profuse, pouring out freely, then ceasing for a time. ----- Phos. 6 –
30.

From gums. ----- Lach. 30 – 200.

Occasional, profuse with hæmoptysis. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

Causes hysteria. ----- Stict. 6.

From inner parts. ----- Calc., Phos. 6 – 30.

From inner parts, particularly if blood is dark. ----- Nux-v. 6 – 30.

Causes iritis, after confinement. ----- Chin. Q, 6.

All kinds, mostly from lungs and bowels. ----- Mill. Q.

From leech bites. ----- Alum. 6 – 30.

With cold legs. ----- Trill. Q, 6.

Lips white. ----- Ipec., Ver. 30.

Of mechanical origin. ----- Arn. 30, Mill. Q.

Between menses. ----- Mang. 3 – 30.

From all mucous membranes ----- Ham. Q, 6.

With tranquil mind. ----- Ham. Q, 6.

After miscarriage. ----- Bell., Nit-ac. 30.

From nose and teeth, at intervals. ----- Kreos. 3 – 30.

From nose, lungs and rectum. ----- Kali-i. 30.

In old women, after climacteric period. ----- Merc. 6.

From all orifices. ----- Aran. Q, 3 – 30.

Oozing from every orifices and even pores. ----- Crot-h. 3 – 6.

Post-partum, preventive. ----- Mill. Q.

Passive. ----- Ph-ac., Sec., Ter.

Passive clotted. ----- Thlaspi Q, 6.

Passive, dark. ----- Thlaspi Q, 6.

Passive, dark, grumous (Menorrhagia). ----- Ferr. 3 – 6.

Passive, with diseased liver or spleen. ----- Card-m. Q.

Passive, profuse, from all parts. ----- Thlaspi. Q, 6.

Passive, blood thin, blood corpuscles wanting in Consequence of dissolution

(Hæmaturia). ----- Sec. 30.

With bluish black prepuce (Syphilis). ----- Kreos. 3 – 30.

Profuse. ----- Nit-ac., Phos., Trill.

Profuse, bright, arterial. ----- Ham. Q, 6.

Profuse, passive. ----- Kreos. 3 – 30.

Profuse, in pneumonia. ----- Kali-m. 3 – 30.

Profuse, especially of nose, kidneys and uterus. ----- Trill. Q, 6.

With thread like pus. ----- Sec. 30.

From rectum. ----- Cact. Q, 3 – 6.

Repeated from nose and mouth, with bluish red, lentil shaped spots all over body
(Purpura). ----- Rhus-t. 6 – 30.

From rhagades. ----- Nit-ac. 6.

Septic. ----- Kali-p., Lach.

Seemingly stop and in a few hours return. ----- Puls. 6 – 30.

From free surface and from tissues. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

Typhoid, with fetid stools, followed by prostration. ----- Kreos. 3 – 30.

Tendency. ----- Crot-h., Lach., Phos.

From extracting teeth. ----- Alum. 6 – 200.

Tendency, with cancer uteri, fungoid, malignant sarcoma, cauliflower excrescence

in degraded states of system. ----- Crot-h. 3 – 6.

Tendency to, in old or in temperate subjects. ----- Crot-h. 3 – 6.

Follows detaching a piece of membrane from tonsil. ----- Lac-c. 30.

From various organs. ----- Urt-u. Q.

From various parts, blood dark, viscid, clotted, forming Itself into long black
strings, hanging from bleeding orifice. ----- Croc. Q, 30.

After arrest, disposition to be vehement. ----- Ign. 6 – 200.

Vicarious. ----- Lach. 30 – 200.

Vicarious from nose, stomach, anus, urethra. ----- Phos. 6 – 30.

Viscid. ----- Kali-m. 3 – 12.

Watery. ----- Nat-m. 12 – 30.

Watery, or bright. ----- Dulc. 3 – 30.

Sensation of weight in part from which blood flows. ----- Sep. 12 – 200.

After wounds. ----- Arn., Cop.

It is a great hæmorrhagic ; there is bleeding of black blood from every orifice. ----
- Sul-ac. 6 – 200.

It is an anti-hæmorrhagic and anti-uric acid remedy.

Hæmorrhage from uterine fibroid with aching in back.

Uterine hæmorrhage. Frequent epistaxis. Bleeding in nasal operation. Especially
passive hæmorrhage. ----- Thlaspi Q, 6.

NOTE :

Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a

replacement for medical advice. Any person with a condition requiring medical
attention should consult a well qualified classical homœopath.

Impotency.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Impotency signifies a permanent condition of inability to effect sexual

intercourse successfully. It is the worst calamity one can encounter in life which
takes away the pleasure and bliss of youth. It is very humiliating for a person to
find himself ineffective while performing coitus, since on the other part the
female partner expects the male partner to give her immense sexual pleasure and
gratification during the course of sexual union. Real bliss of married life lies in
the sexual harmony of the couple. Thus a woman can never love an impotent.
The impotent person is not regarded at all by women even though he is rich,
handsome and affluent in wealth. Only because of this factor, in many instances,
young and rich women of high families are heard of having eloped with or been
seduced by their menials without caring their husbands. They reject their
impotent husbands and enter into illicit relationship with someone else. A
woman is happier and more contented with a poor man who is potent and virile
than a man devoid of sexual power. The impotency of a person also brings
disharmony in domestic life. Occasionally it frustrates people to commit suicide
or makes insane too.

Therefore prior to marriage, young persons should consult a qualified doctor to

check about his sexual problems and potency. Unless and until he is perfectly
healthy in his sexual performance, he should shelve the idea of getting married
till he is medically and sexually fit to satisfy his wife fully to her gratification.

The symptoms of impotency are as follows :

1. Speedy discharge (premature ejaculation).

2. Reduction in the time occupied by male in sexual acts.
 3. Imperfect or partial erection of a short duration and subsides before the
sexual act is started.
4. Erection does not take place at any time of the day or night or if it occurs,
it is very flaccid.
5. Male finishes without causing much excitement in the female and it does
not make any difference whether she is satisfied or not.
6. Strong and frequent erection followed by premature ejaculation is a signal
for imminent sexual impotence.
7. Penile erection is seldom activated. Very rarely is a few drops of semen
discharged.
8. No sexual passion, no erection, no discharge.
9. Semen thin and odourless.
10. Absence of morning erections.
11. Nocturnal discharges without erections or the erections are loose and
during dreams it occurs at the mere attempt of kissing, embracing or just
during insertion of the penis or before it.
12. Hanging of testicles loose.
13. Immediate softening of erection after seminal emission.

There are also several factors responsible for impotency, such as :

1. Complication of diabetes mellitus.

2. Psychological disturbances e. g. anxieties, worries, fears, etc.
3. Debilitating illnesses e. g. pernicious anćmia, leukćmia, etc.
4. Bad effects of alcoholism, drugs and tobacco.
5. Masturbation and artificial sexual devices.
6. Long continued celibacy.
7. Venereal diseases e. g. syphilis and gonorrhśa.
8. Sexual excesses.
9. Neurological condition e. g. peripheral neuritis, spina bifida, tabes dorsalis,
etc.
10. Deficient secretion of testosterone.
11. Repeated radiation through X-ray, cobalt, chemotherapy, etc.
12. Vitamin deficiency.
13. Tumour of the brain, spinal cord and testes.
14. Congenital malformation of the lower portion of spinal cord.
15. Pelvic inflammatory diseases.
16. Vertebral and spinal injury.
17. Obesity.
18. Coitus interruptus.
19. Suppression of sexual desire.
20. Early marriage (Before the age of twenty). Smaller the age, the more
unripe the system is.
 21. To cohabit with a woman who is much older or of very small age. (Thus a
man should marry a girl about six to nine years younger than him.
Regarding girls, they should get married only after she has experienced 36
menstrual periods, as advised in the Vedas).
22. Exercising a sexual intercourse in distorted positions.
23. Intercourse just after a full meal or when extremely hungry or when very
much tired.
24. Intercourse when one is afflicted with grief and anxiety.
25. Washing of the male organ with cold water just after coition.

The potency of a male can be calculated by the following factors :

1. The distance at which the stream of urine falls when passed with
deliberate force.
2. The responsive upward move of the testicles at the time of coughing.
3. The potency of a male is in proportion to the degree of rigidity of erection
at the time of a nocturnal emission.
4. Early morning erection of penis with a full bladder is the good evidence
of normal physiological and anatomical functioning.
5. A man who has a strong and hard thigh is possessed of strong sexual
organs. A man who is unable to walk with his knees straight but keeps
them slightly bent due to weakness of the muscles of the thighs, is sure to
be weak in sexual vigour.

Young men are emphasized that they should not rely upon short period
treatments in the hands of quacks or unqualified doctors and instead they should
consult any well qualified homśopaths to win over their problems once for all.
One should bear in mind that impotency cannot be cured permanently in a
shorter period of time.

It is needless to add that in the market there are several medicines available with
great publicity of those products but they are stimulating and if prescribed
without first adapting the system for their use produce reverse results. Such
medicines produce a temporary stimulation followed by reaction and the user
becomes even worse.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT.

The following is the brief description of homśopathic remedies for impotency.

Interested persons should study the Author’s Book "Homśopathic
Management of Male Sexual Disorders", published by B. Jain Publishers (P)
Ltd., New Delhi (India), for affluent knowledge and information on various
other sexual problems in a much greater details.

Absence of sexual desire and erections with impotency. ----- Camph.

Absence of erections. Impotence. ----- Caust.

Diminished sexual desire with absence of erections. ----- Mag-c.

Entire absence of erections and desire. ----- Nuph.

Feeble erections or none at all. ----- Phos.

Absence of erections, and all sexual desire. ----- Sumb.

Erection absent, when coition is attempted. ----- Arg-n.

Erections absent, even after amorous caresses. ----- Calad.

Erection absent with excitement. ----- Sel.

Weakness or total absence of erections. ----- Lyc.

Flaccidity and relaxation of penis. ----- Prun.

Penis relaxed and shrunken. ----- Cann-i.

Penis relaxed during embrace. ----- Nux-v.

Penis cold and relaxed. ----- Gels., Dios.

Penis remain relaxed during excitement and sexual desire. ----- Calad.

Effects of onanism ; face sunken, abashed look ; melancholy ; Nocturnal

emissions ; backache, legs weak ; organ relaxed. ----- Staph.

Complete impotence. ----- Coloc.

Impotency with mental depression. ----- Calad.

Complete loss of sexual power, testicles atrophied. ----- Iod.

Impotence occasioned by a cold ; preceding diabetes. ----- Mosch.

During coition, feeble erection. Impotence. ----- Sel.

Impotency in elderly men. ----- Lyc.

Impotency with melancholy, loss of memory. ----- Kali-br.

Impotency ; genitals cold, testicles shrunk, penis shrunk and cold with urinary
troubles. ----- Sabal-s.

An excellent remedy for impotency. Give 5-10 drops a dose thrice daily. -----
Damiana.

Impotency due to masturbation. ----- Calad.

Impotency due to fall or blow. ----- Arn., Hyper.

An excellent remedy for neurasthenic impotency. ----- Yohim.

NOTE :

Any information given in this article is not intended to be taken as a replacement

for medical advice. Any person with a condition requiring medical attention
should consult a qualified classical homśopath.

The Author of this article is pleased to offer his best services for the treatment of
impotency or any other sexual disorders based on classical homśopathy and thus
interested persons can get in touch with him by e-mail for further information.

Drugs during Breast-feeding.

Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

THE BENEFITS OF BREAST-FEEDING

Perhaps the most important advantage to breast-feeding is that breast milk

provides an infant with significant protection against chronic diseases such as
allergies and asthma; and infectious diseases including meningitis, diarrhea, ear
infections, and pneumonia. The immune components of breast milk constantly
change to meet the infant’s need to be protected against new infections. As the
infant’s own immune system grows more capable, the concentration of
antibodies and anti-infection agents in the milk gradually declines. Breast-feeding
also benefits the mother by reducing her risk of developing ovarian cancer, pre-
menopausal breast cancer, osteoporosis, and hip fractures in later life.
Breast-feeding facilitates bonding between a mother and infant that is
emotionally satisfying to both participants. The mother develops nurturing
behaviors. The infant, in turn, learns trust.

During breast-feeding the following Allopathic Drugs should be avoided since

they have adverse effects both on the health of the mother and the infant:

CAPTORIL.

This drug should not be taken by pregnant women, as it can harm the fetus,
especially in the second and third trimesters. Breast-feeding women should be
aware that captopril is known to appear in breast milk. Captopril has not been
proven safe for children.

Possible side effects include itching, skin rash, loss of taste, and extremely low
blood pressure. Less common side effects include blurred vision, confusion,
light-headedness, constipation, depression, fatigue, muscle pain or weakness,
light sensitivity, nausea, peptic ulcer, sleepiness, fainting, wheezing stroke, or
heart failure. A reaction that includes chest pain, sweating, vomiting, diarrhea, or
swelling of the arms, legs, mouth, or throat (including difficulty swallowing)
requires immediate medical attention. Yellowing of the skin or eyes may indicate
a liver problem, which also requires immediate medical care.

Although captopril may be prescribed in combination with a diuretic or digitalis

(found in the drug digoxin), it can react adversely with these drugs. It also may
react adversely with aspirin, certain blood pressure medications such as beta
blockers, lithium, nitroglycerin, anti-inflammatory medications, and potassium
supplements (including salt substitutes that contain potassium).

CLARITHROMYCIN.

Clarithromycin has not been proven safe for children under the age of 12 or for
pregnant women. Breast-feeding mothers should be aware that the drug may
appear in breast milk.

The drug’s side effects are usually minimal, but may include nausea, indigestion,
diarrhea, headache, or an altered sense of taste. Severe diarrhea, sometimes
caused by the drug’s effect on the intestine, requires immediate medical attention.
Clarithromycin may interact adversely with blood-thinning drugs such as
warfarin, as well as with the drugs carbamazepine, theophylline, astemizole,
digoxin, and phenytoin.

ERYTHROMYCIN.

Patients with liver disease should not take this drug. It should be used with
caution by patients with a history of allergies, impaired kidney function, or
abnormal heart rhythm. It is generally safe for use during pregnancy (except in
the form known as erythromycin estolate); however, breast-feeding mothers
should be aware that this drug appears in breast milk.

Possible side effects include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite,
or diarrhea. Also seen are skin rash, hives, eye irritation, yellowing of the eyes or
skin, dizziness, rapid heartbeat, or temporary hearing loss.

Erythromycin can react adversely with a variety of drugs. These include other
antibiotics (including penicillin), blood-thinners, carbamazepine, digoxin,
lovastatin, phenytoin, and theophylline. Erythromycin should never be combined
with astemizole.

QUINAPRIL.

This drug should not be taken by pregnant women, as it can harm the fetus,
especially in the second and third trimesters. Breast-feeding mothers should be
aware that this drug is known to appear in breast milk.

Possible side effects include dizziness, lightheadedness, fatigue, nausea, chest or

abdominal pain, muscle pain, coughing, or vomiting. An allergic reaction to this
drug, characterized by such symptoms as facial swelling and difficulty swallowing
or breathing, requires immediate medical attention, as does any sore throat or
fever that develops during treatment.

Although quinapril may be prescribed in combination with certain diuretics, it

can react adversely with these drugs. It also may react with lithium, tetracycline,
cyclosporine, and potassium supplements, including salt substitutes containing
potassium. It should not be combined with alcoholic beverages unless approved
by a doctor.
VENLAFAXINE.

Its safety for pregnant or breast-feeding women is not known.

A variety of possible side effects are associated with venlafaxine, including

nausea, diarrhea, dry mouth, sweating, dizziness, blurred vision, weight loss,
sleepiness, or increased blood pressure.

Venlafaxine may have serious, sometimes fatal, interactions with another group
of antidepressants known as monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. These drugs,
such as phenelzine and tranylcypromine, should be discontinued at least two
weeks before starting treatment with venlafaxine. Other drug groups that may
have adverse interactions with venlafaxine include tranquilizers, narcotic pain
relievers, sleep aids, and cimetidine.

TRIMETHOPRIM.

Patients with anemia, impaired liver or kidney function, or folic acid deficiency
should avoid this drug or use it with caution. Pregnant or breast-feeding women
should also avoid using this drug.

Possible side effects may include skin rash or itching, headache, sore mouth, loss
of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, or increased blood
potassium. Some infections can develop resistance to this drug and may require
other forms of treatment. Trimethoprim can interact adversely with amantadine,
cyclosporine, dapsone, phenytoin, procainamide, rifampin, and cholestyramine.

TRIAMCINOLONE.

Its safety for pregnant or breast-feeding women has not been adequately studied.

This drug may interact adversely with bronchodilators (both inhaled and tablet
forms), warfarin, diabetes drugs (including insulin), digoxin, phenytoin,
carbamazepine, and primidone. Treatment with triamcinolone should not be
stopped abruptly because it may trigger a dangerous imbalance in the body’s
endocrine system.

TRAMADOL.

Its safety for children under the age of 16, or for pregnant or breast-feeding
women has not been determined.
Possible side effects include dizziness or drowsiness. For this reason, people
taking this drug should not drive, operate dangerous machinery, or engage in
other risk-related activities. Other possible side effects include nausea,
constipation, vomiting, sweating, diarrhea, or dry mouth. An overdose can cause
breathing difficulties or seizures.

Tramadol may interact adversely with carbamazepine, quinidine, and drugs that
depress the central nervous system such as tranquilizers, sedatives, and
monoamine oxidase (MAD) inhibitors. In addition, tramadol should not be
combined with alcoholic beverages.

THEOPHYLLINE.

Theophylline should not be used by breast-feeding women and should be

avoided during pregnancy.

Side effects may include nausea or restlessness, especially when starting treatment
with theophylline. Other possible side effects are diarrhea, headache, increased
urination, insomnia, low blood pressure, or skin rash. Changes in heart rate,
another possible side effect, should be checked by a doctor. Symptoms of
overdose can include the side effects described above or more severe effects
including high fever, convulsions, or coma.

Theophylline may interact adversely with the medication in a flu shot. It also may
interact with cimetidine, ciprofloxacin, clarithromycin, doxycycline,
erythromycin, phenytoin, propanolol, and birth control pills.

TETRACYCLINE.

Patients with severe liver disease or pregnant or breast-feeding women should

not take this drug.

Possible side effects include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, itching, light
sensitivity, facial swelling, headache, blurred vision, chest pain, sore throat,
difficulty swallowing, or in infants, a bulging soft spot on the head. Children may
develop discolored teeth with long-term use.

Tetracycline may interact adversely with antacids and other common

gastrointestinal medications, oral contraceptives, blood thinners, lithium,
penicillin, isotretinoin, cholestyramine, and sucralfate.
FEXOFENADINE.

This drug should not be used by breast-feeding women or children under the age
of 12. Its safety for use during pregnancy has not been determined.

Possible side effects include headache, insomnia, cold or flu, nausea, fatigue,
indigestion, and menstrual pain. Unlike many other antihistamines, fexofenadine
causes little or no drowsiness. Symptoms of overdose may include fainting,
confusion, irregular heartbeat, or seizures.

TERCONAZOLE.

This drug has not been proven safe for use in children or in pregnant or breast-
feeding women.

Possible side effects may include genital pain and burning sensations, body pain,
headache, fever, or chills.

TERAZOSIN.

Terazosin has not been proven safe for use in children under the age of 12 or in
pregnant or breast-feeding women.

Possible side effects include lightheadedness (especially upon standing),

dizziness, fainting, headache, stuffy nose, difficulty breathing, heart palpitations,
nausea, muscle weakness, fatigue, sweating, numbness, fluid retention, or blurred
vision. Dizziness is most likely to occur at the start of treatment or when the
dosage is increased. At these times, patients should avoid driving, operating
dangerous machinery, or engaging in other risk-related activities.

Terazosin may interact adversely with other blood pressure medications,

especially beta blockers, estrogens, and certain non-steroidal anti-inflammatory
drugs such as aspirin. Patients should also avoid alcohol use and tobacco
smoking while taking this drug.

TEMAZEPAM.
Temazepam should not be used by pregnant or breast-feeding women, or by
young people under the age of 18. With long-term use (more than a few weeks),
temazepam can both lose its effectiveness and become addictive. When
treatment is stopped, some patients experience a recurrence of insomnia that
lasts for one or two nights.

Dizziness or drowsiness the next day are two possible side effects of temazepam,
especially when starting treatment. Patients who experience a lack of mental
clarity should avoid driving, operating dangerous machinery, or engaging in risk-
related activities. Other possible side effects include fatigue, headache,
nervousness, or nausea. Also observed in some patients are sweating, blurred
vision, depression, diarrhea, increased dreaming, restlessness, tremors, or
hallucinations. Abruptly stopping treatment can cause muscle cramps,
convulsions, tremors, or vomiting. An overdose can cause low blood pressure,
difficulty in breathing, confusion, seizures, or coma.

Temazepam may interact adversely with various drugs, including antidepressants,

antihistamines, tranquilizers, narcotics, barbiturates, and oral contraceptives. In
addition, it should not be combined with alcoholic beverages.

SUMATRIPTAN.

Its safety for young people under the age of 18 and pregnant or breast-feeding
women has not been determined.

Possible side effects may include dizziness, stiff neck, muscle weakness, sore
throat, tingling, or skin rash. Irregular heartbeat, change in blood pressure,
tightness in the chest or throat, difficulty breathing, or fainting are sometimes
observed. Sumatriptan may react adversely with medications containing
ergotamine, a drug commonly found in other migraine preparations.

SUCRALFATE.

Its safety for children, or pregnant or breast-feeding women, has not been
determined.

Possible side effects may include constipation, dizziness, drowsiness, nausea,

diarrhea, or a dry mouth. Sucralfate may interact adversely with antacids,
antispasmodic drugs, certain antibiotics, and blood-thinners, as well as
cimetidine, digoxin, ketoconazole, phenytoin, quinidine, ranitidine, tetracycline,
and theophylline.
SERTRALINE.

Its safety for children under the age of 12 or pregnant or breast-feeding women
has not been determined.

A variety of possible side effects are associated with sertraline, including

headache, agitation, fatigue, insomnia, sleepiness, constipation, diarrhea,
vomiting, a dry mouth, sweating, irregular heartbeat, tremors, or problems with
male sexual performance. Less common side effects are abnormal hair growth,
breast enlargement (in both females and males), difficulty breathing or
swallowing, sensitivity to bright light, weight loss, or behavioral changes.

Sertraline may interact adversely with diazepam, digitoxin, warfarin, tolbutamide,

cimetidine, lithium, various diabetes medications including insulin, and
monamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. This drug should not be combined with
alcoholic beverages.

RANITIDINE.

This drug has not been proven safe for pregnant or breast-feeding women or for
children under the age of 16. It should be used with caution by patients with
impaired liver or kidney function. Patients who take it for ulcers of the stomach
and small intestine should not stop treatment abruptly.

Headache is the most common side effect of this drug. Less common side
effects are diarrhea, dizziness, anemia, hair loss, joint or muscle pain, skin rash,
rapid or slow heartbeat, and drowsiness.

Ranitidine may interact adversely with blood-thinning drugs such as warfarin, as

well as with diazepam, glipizide, enoxacin, itraconazole, ketoconazole,
midazolam, procainamide, sucralfate, theophylline, and triamterene.

KETOPROFEN.

Pregnant women should not use ketoprofen in the third trimester of pregnancy.
Breast-feeding women, patients with allergies to the drug, those who suffer
asthma with aspirin use, and patients with ulcers, bleeding disorders, impaired
kidney function, or liver disease should not take ketoprofen.

Ketoprofen may have negative effects when taken with other anti-inflammatory
drugs, steroids, aspirin, insulin, phenytoin, verapamil, nifedipine, lithium, and
diuretics. Alcoholic beverages can increase the risk of ulcers or bleeding in the
stomach.

PROMETHAZINE.

Promethazine’s safety for use during pregnancy and breast-feeding has not been
determined.

Patients with disorders affecting breathing, including asthma and sleep apnea,
should not take promethazine. It should be used with caution by patients with
seizure disorders, heart disease, liver conditions, peptic ulcers, high blood
pressure, prostate enlargement, or narrow-angle glaucoma. Promethazine may
affect the accuracy of a pregnancy test.

Patients who experience drowsiness should not drive, operate dangerous

machinery, or engage in other risk-related activities. Other possible side effects
include dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, jaundice, blood
pressure changes, disorientation, or light sensitivity. An overdose of
promethazine can cause a slower heart rate, breathing difficulties, or loss of
consciousness.

Promethazine may cause health problems if taken with certain narcotic pain
relievers, sedatives, tranquilizers, and antidepressant drugs. This drug should not
be taken with alcoholic beverages.

PREDNISONE.

Pregnant and breast-feeding women should avoid prednisone.

Possible side effects may include insomnia, depression, mood swings, headache,
dizziness, muscle cramps, skin rash, acne, high blood pressure, weight gain, or
fluid retention. Long-term use may cause various eye problems or Cushing’s
syndrome, a hormonal disorder characterized by obesity, muscle weakness, brittle
bones, and purplish, thick skin.

Prednisone may interact adversely with cyclosporine, carbamazepine,

ketoconazole, amphotericin B, phenytoin, rifampin, birth control pills, diabetes
medications, estrogen supplements, and certain diuretics.

OXAPROZIN.
It should be avoided by pregnant or breast-feeding women, and by persons with
bleeding or blood cell disorders, or a severe impairment of kidney function. It
should be used with caution by persons with reduced liver or kidney function.
The safety and effectiveness of this drug for children under the age of 12 have
not been established. Small doses are advisable for persons over the age of 60
until tolerance is determined. Driving and other risk-related activities should be
restricted if drowsiness or dizziness occurs.

Possible side effects of oxaprozin may include altered or blurred vision,

constipation, depression, diarrhea, dizziness, headache, hives, indigestion, itching,
mouth sores, nausea, ringing in the ears, skin rash, increased skin sensitivity to
sunlight, sleep disturbances, and vomiting. Rare but serious side effects include
kidney damage and gastrointestinal pain, ulceration, and bleeding.

Drinking alcoholic beverages with this drug may increase the risk of stomach
ulceration or bleeding. Oxaprozin may interact adversely with other drugs
including acetaminophen; anticoagulants; aspirin; beta blockers; diuretics such as
hydrochlorothiazide and furosemide; enoxaparin; indomethacin; lithium;
methotrexate; sulfinpyrazone; valproic acid; and warfarin.

OMEPRAZOLE.

This drug should not be taken by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to it; pregnant or breast-feeding women; or persons with active bone
marrow or blood cell disorders. The safety and effectiveness of omeprazole for
children under the age of 12 have not been established. Driving and other risk-
related activities should be avoided if drowsiness and dizziness occur.

The most common side effects of this drug are abdominal or stomach pain. Less
common side effects are chest pain, constipation, diarrhea, dizziness, gas,
headache, heartburn, muscle pain, nausea and vomiting, skin rash or itching, and
unusual drowsiness or fatigue. Rare but more serious effects include bone
marrow depression, kidney or liver damage, urinary tract infection, or yeast
infection of the esophagus.

Drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco increase stomach acid secretion and
should be avoided while taking this drug. Omeprazole may interact adversely
with certain drugs including ampicillin, amoxicillin, warfarin, clonazepam and
some other benzodiazepines, cyclosporine, diazepam, digoxin, ketoconazole, and
phenytoin.

OFLOXACIN.
This drug should not be taken by people who have had a previous allergic
reaction to it or to cinoxacin, ciprofloxacin, or norfloxacin; pregnant or breast-
feeding women; or persons under 18 years old (ofloxacin may impair normal
bone growth and development). It should be used with caution by persons with
impaired liver or kidney function or known or suspected disorders such as severe
cerebral atherosclerosis, epilepsy, or factors that predispose a person to seizures
(convulsions). The safety and effectiveness of the eyedrops have not been
established in children under one year old. Driving and other risk-related
activities should be avoided if the user experiences drowsiness, dizziness, or
impaired vision.

Common minor side effects of ofloxacin may include abdominal or stomach

pain or discomfort, diarrhea, dizziness, drowsiness, headache, lightheadedness,
nausea, vomiting, nervousness, and insomnia. Rare but more serious side effects
may include severe allergic reactions, excessive confusion, hallucinations, drug-
induced hepatitis, restlessness, speech problems, tremor, seizures, and tendon
rupture as a result of heavy exertion. The eyedrops may cause temporary burning
or stinging, redness, itching, tearing, or dryness in the eye.

Ofloxacin may interact adversely with large amounts of caffeine and with other
drugs including antacids containing aluminum or magnesium, calcium
supplements, iron salts, probenecid, sucralfate, theophylline, warfarin, and zinc
salts.

NORTRIPTYLINE.

Nortriptyline should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to it; pregnant or breast-feeding women; persons recovering from a
recent heart attack or with narrow-angle glaucoma; or persons who have taken a
monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitor drug within the past 14 days. Nortriptyline
should be used with caution by persons with liver damage or problems with
urination. Its safety and effectiveness for children have not been established.
Exposure to excessive heat or cold should be avoided. Driving and other risk-
related activities should not be undertaken if drowsiness occurs. This drug
should be discontinued gradually rather than abruptly.

Common side effects of nortriptyline that should disappear as the body adjusts
to the drug include anxiety, drowsiness, blurred vision, confusion, constipation, a
dry mouth, fatigue, headache, insomnia, lightheadedness, memory problems,
nausea, peculiar tastes in the mouth, decreased urination, and weight gain or loss.
More serious but less common side effects include aggravation of paranoid
psychoses and schizophrenia; hallucinations; irregular heart rhythm; nightmares;
seizures; and uncoordinated movements or balance problems. Nortriptyline may
cause sensitivity to sunlight and may activate latent diabetes, epilepsy, or
glaucoma.

Alcoholic beverages should be completely avoided while using this drug.

Nortriptyline may also interact adversely with other drugs including antiseizure
medications; birth control pills; antihistamines, barbiturates, tranquilizers,
narcotics, and sleeping medications; carbamazepine; cimetidine; epinephrine;
fluconazole; fluoxetine; and monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors.

NIZATIDINE.

This drug should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to it or by pregnant or breast-feeding women. It should be used with
caution by persons with reduced kidney function. The safety and efficacy for
children under the age of 16 have not been determined. Driving and other risk-
related activities should be avoided if dizziness or confusion occurs. This drug
should not be stopped abruptly when being used to treat peptic ulcers. The over-
the-counter form should be used to treat heartburn only.

Mild side effects may occur with use of nizatidine including constipation,
diarrhea, dizziness, fatigue, headache, itching, nausea, stomach upset, and
sweating. More serious effects include confusion, decreased sexual ability,
excessive fatigue, fever, increased heart rate, unusual bleeding or bruising, and
weakness. Confusion and dizziness are especially likely to occur in adults over 60
years old. Most side effects should disappear as the body adjusts to nizatidine.

Alcoholic beverages, citrus fruit, garlic, onions, protein-rich foods, and tomatoes
increase stomach acid secretion and should be avoided while taking this drug.
Nizatidine may also interact adversely with other drugs including amoxicillin,
high-dose aspirin, pentoxiylline, and theophylline.

NITROFURANTOIN.

Nitrofurantoin should not be used by pregnant women, especially in the third

trimester; by breast-feeding women; persons with impaired kidney function; or
infants less than one month old. It should be used with extreme caution by
persons with anemia, diabetes, electrolyte imbalances, vitamin-B deficiency, or
any debilitating disease.

Nitrofurantoin is a potentially toxic drug with many side effects. Stomach

irritation is the most common. Nitrofurantoin may also cause abdominal or
stomach pain, diarrhea, loss of appetite, nausea, or vomiting. A normal but
harmless side effect is a change in the color of urine for the duration of
treatment. Occasionally this drug may have serious, adverse effects on the lungs
or liver. The elderly have an increased chance of experiencing side effects.

This drug may interact adversely with other drugs including acetazolamide,
anticholinergic medications, magnesium trisilicate, nalidixic acid, oral antacids,
probenecid, sodium bicarbonate, and sulfinpyrazone.

NIFEDIPINE.

Nifedipine should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to this drug; pregnant or breast-feeding women; or persons with low
blood pressure, reduced liver or kidney function, or a significant narrowing of
the aorta. Hot environments can exaggerate the effects of this drug, dropping
blood pressure to undesirably low levels. Driving and other risk-related activities
should be restricted if dizziness and drowsiness occur with use of nifedipine. The
safety and effectiveness of this drug have not been determined for children
under the age of 12. The regular capsules should not be used by persons over 71
years old. Nifedipine should not be stopped abruptly but should be tapered off
under a physician’s supervision.

Common side effects of this drug include dizziness, flushing, headache,

lightheadedness, low blood pressure, nausea, swelling of the feet and ankles, and
weakness. Rarely, nifedipine may increase angina, especially in persons who have
stopped taking beta blocker drugs. There is an increased chance of side effects in
persons over the age of 60.

Nifedipine may interact adversely with alcoholic beverages, grapefruit juice,

cigarette smoking, and certain drugs including amiodarone, cimetidine,
cyclosporine, digitalis, digoxin, diltiazem, insulin, magnesium, oral hypoglycemic
drugs, phenytoin, theophylline, and ranitidine.

NAPROXEN.

Naproxen should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to this drug or an asthmatic reaction to aspirin; pregnant or breast-
feeding women; or persons with peptic ulcers or any form of gastrointestinal
ulceration or bleeding, bleeding or blood cell disorders, liver disease, or severe
impairment of kidney function. It should be used with caution by persons with
reduced liver or kidney function. The safety and efficacy of this drug for children
under the age of two have not been established. Reduced dosages are advised for
persons over the age of 60 until their tolerance of naproxen has been
determined. Driving or other risk-related activities should be restricted if
drowsiness or dizziness occur with the use of this drug.

Certain mild side effects may occur with naproxen that should disappear as the
body adapts to the drug. These include bloating, constipation, diarrhea, difficulty
sleeping, dizziness, drowsiness, headache, heartburn, indigestion,
lightheadedness, loss of appetite, nausea, nervousness, soreness of the mouth,
sweating, or vomiting. More serious but uncommon adverse effects include
activation of peptic ulcer disease or ulcerative colitis, bleeding in the stomach or
bowel, difficulty breathing, changes in menstruation, and liver or kidney damage.
This drug may also cause increased sensitivity to sunlight.

Naproxen may interact adversely with alcoholic beverages and certain other
drugs including anticoagulants (blood thinners) such as warfarin; aspirin,
salicylates, or other anti-inflammatory drugs; lithium; methotrexate; beta blockers
such as acebutolol, atenolol, metoprolol, and timolol; furosemide and thiazide-
type diuretics; and probenecid.

NABUMETONE.

Nabumetone should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to this drug or an asthmatic reaction to aspirin; pregnant or breast-
feeding women; or persons with peptic ulcers or any form of gastrointestinal
ulceration or bleeding, bleeding or blood cell disorders, liver disease, or severe
impairment of kidney function. It should be used with caution by persons with
reduced liver or kidney function and persons taking drugs that reduce blood
clotting. The safety and efficacy of this drug for children under the age of 12
have not been established. Reduced dosages are advised for persons over the age
of 60 until their tolerance of nabumetone has been determined. Driving or other
risk-related activities should be restricted if drowsiness, dizziness, or impaired
vision occurs with use of this drug.

Certain mild side effects may occur with nabumetone that should disappear as
the body adapts to the drug. These include bloating, constipation, diarrhea,
difficulty sleeping, dizziness, drowsiness, headache, heartburn, indigestion,
lightheadedness, loss of appetite, nausea, nervousness, soreness of the mouth,
sweating, or vomiting. More serious but uncommon side effects include
activation of peptic ulcer disease or ulcerative colitis, asthma or difficulty
breathing, bleeding in the stomach or duodenum, blurred vision, impairment of
normal blood clotting, and liver or kidney damage. This drug may also cause
increased sensitivity to sunlight.

Nabumetone may interact adversely with alcoholic beverages and with certain
other drugs including anticoagulants (blood thinners) such as warfarin; aspirin,
other salicylates, and other anti-inflammatory drugs; beta blockers; diuretics; and
probenecid.

MUPIROCIN.

Mupirocin should not be used by persons who have had a previous allergic
reaction to this drug; pregnant or breast-feeding women; or persons with
extensive burns or open wounds. It should not be applied to an area of skin
larger than that prescribed by a physician. The safety and efficacy of the regular
ointment have not been established for children under the age of 5, while the
safety and efficacy of the nasal ointment have not been established for children
under the age of 12.

The most common side effects of this drug include burning, stinging, pain, or
itching at the infection site. Less common side effects are rash, nausea, reddening
or dry skin, tenderness, swelling, and hives. One of the ingredients in this
ointment, polyethylene glycol, may be toxic to the kidneys if it is applied over an
extensive burn or wound.

Mupirocin may interact adversely with certain medications and should not be
used with other ointments or treatments unless prescribed. Other intranasal
medications should not be used with the intranasal form of this drug.

MOMETASONE FUROATE.

Breast-feeding women should not use the drug and pregnant women should not
use it indiscriminately or for prolonged periods. Its use in children should be
limited to the least amount effective.

The most frequent side effects of mometasone furoate are localized burning,
itching, tingling, stinging, or dry skin. If used in especially thin or sensitive skin
areas, this drug may cause skin damage. If used over large surface areas, in areas
of broken skin, with bandages, or over a long period, too much of the drug may
be absorbed into the body, producing serious adverse reactions such as
suppression of the body’s normal production of certain hormones. Because of
their higher skin surface to body weight ratio, children are more susceptible to
toxicity than adults.

Mometasone furoate is not known to interact adversely with any foods or other
drugs. However, patients should exercise caution to prevent over-absorption of
the drug if prescribed along with oral corticoids.
METOPROLOL.

This drug should not be used by persons with a previous allergic reaction to it;
pregnant or breast-feeding women; persons with congestive heart failure, an
abnormally slow heart rate, or disorders of heart impulse transmission (such as
patients with cardiac pacemakers); or persons taking a class of antidepressants
known as monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. It should be used with caution
by persons with reduced liver function or asthma and by people over the age of
60. Its safety and effectiveness in children under the age of 12 have not been
established. It may have a negative effect on driving or other risk-related
activities. Metoprolol should not be discontinued abruptly but should be tapered
off gradually over one to two weeks.

Common side effects of this drug include drowsiness, fatigue, cold hands and
feet, slow heart rate, lightheadedness, and decreased sexual desire. Possible risks
of long-term use include congestive heart failure in advanced heart disease,
worsening angina in coronary heart disease, and increased asthma attacks in
asthmatic persons.

Exposure to heat can lower blood pressure and exaggerate the effects of
metoprolol. Exposure to cold can further reduce the diminished circulation in
hands and feet that may occur with this drug. Alcohol may exaggerate the drug’s
ability to lower blood pressure and increase its sedative effect. Smoking may
reduce the drug’s potency. Excessive salt intake should be avoided when using
this drug.

Metoprolol can interact adversely with certain drugs including other

antihypertensive drugs; albuterol; aminophylline; amiodarone; aspirin;
barbiturates such as phenobarbital; calcium channel blockers; chlorpromazine;
cimetidine; clonidine; digoxin; diltiazem; epinephrine; fluoxetine; furosemide;
hydralazine; indomethacin and possibly other aspirin substitutes or nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs; insulin; nifedipine; oral antidiabetic drugs; oral
hypoglycemic drugs; oral contraceptives (birth control pills); tranquilizers;
reserpine; theophyllinevenlafaxine; and verapamil.

METHYLPREDNISOLONE.

It should not be used by persons who have had an allergic reaction to it in the
past or by pregnant or breast-feeding women. It should also be avoided by
persons with active tuberculosis, peptic ulcer disease, eye infections caused by
the herpes simplex virus, or recent surgical joining of two bowel segments. It
should be used with caution by persons with reduced kidney function and people
over the age of 60. Prolonged use in infants and children should be avoided.
Methylprednisolone should be discontinued 72 hours before vaccination against
measles, rabies, smallpox, or yellow fever and should not be resumed for at least
14 days after vaccination. This drug should not be stopped abruptly after long-
term treatment but should be tapered off in decreasing dosages.

Common side effects of methylprednisolone include increased appetite, weight

gain, retention of salt and water, and elimination of potassium in the urine.
Prolonged use of the oral form is associated with serious side effects such as
mood alterations, increased blood sugar, possible diabetes, osteoporosis (loss of
bone strength), hypertension (high blood pressure), arrhythmia (abnormal
heartbeat), peptic ulcer, cataracts, glaucoma, reactivation of latent tuberculosis,
retarded growth and development in children, and increased susceptibility to
infection.

Methylprednisolone may interact adversely with certain drugs including

amphotericin B; antacids; antihypertensive (high blood pressure) drugs; aspirin;
barbiturates ; carbamazepine; cyclosporine; digoxin; ephedrine; drugs containing
estrogen; insulin; ketoconazole; nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as
ibuprofen, indomethacin, ketoprofen, and naproxen; oral anticoagulants (blood
thinners); oral antidiabetic drugs; oral contraceptives (birth control pills);
phenytoin; and certain vaccines. Heavy smoking may add to the effects of
methylprednisolone, and drinking alcoholic beverages can increase the risk of
peptic ulcers in persons taking this drug orally.

LOVASTATIN.

It should not be used by persons who have had an allergic reaction to lovastatin;
persons with active liver disease or active peptic ulcers; or pregnant or breast-
feeding women. It should be used with caution by persons with reduced liver
function and habitual users of alcohol. The safety and effectiveness of lovastatin
for people under the age of 20 have not been established. Driving and other risk-
related activities should be restricted if dizziness and blurred vision occur while
taking this drug.

Common side effects of lovastatin include constipation, diarrhea, dizziness, gas,

headache, heartburn, nausea, skin rash, and stomach pain. Less common side
effects are blurred vision, fever, muscle aches or cramps, severe stomach pain,
and unusual tiredness or weakness. Long-term use of this drug may result in
abnormal liver function tests.

Lovastatin may interact adversely with certain drugs including clofibrate,

cyclosporine, erythromycin and other macrolide antibiotics such as asithromycin
and clarithromycin, gemfibrozil, niacin, and warfarin.
LORAZEPAM.

Lorazepam should not be taken by people with a known sensitivity to

benzodiazepine tranquilizers; persons with acute narrow-angle glaucoma; or
pregnant or breast-feeding women. It should be used with caution by people
with liver or kidney disease. Its safety and effectiveness have not been established
in children under the age of 18.

The most frequent side effects of this drug are drowsiness, dizziness, weakness,
and unsteadiness. Less frequent side effects are disorientation, depression,
nausea, change in appetite, headache, sleep disturbance, agitation, skin problems,
vision problems, and memory impairment.

Lorazepam may interact adversely with other drugs including alcohol, sedatives,
antihistamines, barbiturates, narcotics, antidepressants, carbamazepine, levodopa,
phenytoin, cimetidine, isoniazid, and rifampin.

LORATADINE.

This drug should not be used by breast-feeding mothers or people undergoing

skin tests for allergies.

The most common side effects of loratadine are skin rash, headache, drowsiness,
or dizziness. Less common side effects include heart rhythm disturbances and
skin sensitivity to sunlight.

Extreme drowsiness may result if loratadine is used with other central nervous
system depressants such as alcohol, barbiturates, tranquilizers, muscle relaxants,
narcotics, pain medication, or tricyclic antidepressants. Monoamine oxidase
(MAO) inhibitors, a class of antidepressants, can increase the side effects of
loratadine. Loratadine taken concurrently with the antifungal drugs ketoconazole,
itraconazole, or fluconazole may cause serious heart rhythm disturbances.
Antibiotics such as azithromycin, clarithromycin, or erythromycin may have a
toxic interaction with loratadine.

LORACARBEF.

This drug has not been proven safe for pregnant or breast-feeding women or for
children under six months of age.
The most common side effects of loracarbef are diarrhea, abdominal pain, and
skin rashes. Less common side effects are colitis, nausea and vomiting, loss of
appetite, headache, sleepiness, nervousness, insomnia, and dizziness. Use of
loracarbef with potent diuretics increases the risk of kidney disease. Use with
probenecid, an antigout drug, increases the levels of loracarbef in the
bloodstream.

LISINOPRIL.

Lisinopril should not be taken by pregnant women. It should be used with

caution by breast-feeding women and people with diabetes mellitus, heart or
blood vessel disease, heart attack, stroke, kidney or liver disease, or systemic
lupus erythematosus. Its safety for children has not been established.

The side effects of taking lisinopril are relatively minimal. Dizziness and
lightheadedness may occur from lowered blood pressure. However, a rarely
observed side effect includes swelling of the face, extremities, eyes, lips, and
tongue after the first dose, resulting in difficulty swallowing or breathing and
potential obstruction of the airway.

Certain foods and other drugs may interact adversely with lisinopril. Potassium
supplements and foods high in potassium should be avoided. The use of
alcoholic beverages with this drug may dramatically lower blood pressure.
Diuretic drugs (those that increase the elimination of urine) may lower blood
pressure excessively, and potassium-sparing diuretics may increase blood
potassium. Indomethacin, a nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drug, may decrease
the effect of lisinopril.

LEVOTHYROXINE.

Levothyroxine may be used during pregnancy but should be used with caution by
breast-feeding mothers. Patients sensitive to lactose may not tolerate this drug
because lactose is used in its manufacture.

Side effects from levothyroxine are rare and usually due to overdosage, which
causes thyroid overactivity. Symptoms of overdose include anxiety, agitation,
diarrhea, weight loss or gain, sweating, flushed skin, tiredness, heart palpitations,
or chest pain.

Levothyroxine may increase the effect of oral blood-thinning drugs and may
increase the requirements for insulin or oral antidiabetic drugs. Its absorption
may be reduced by cholestyramine and colestipol.
In 1996 the Wall Street Journal exposed a controversy surrounding Synthroid, a
brand-name version of levothyroxine. This controversy culminated in a class-
action lawsuit brought against the manufacturers of Synthroid by users of the
drug. The drug’s users charged the manufacturer with suppressing research
indicating that less expensive generic versions of levothyroxine are biologically
equivalent to the brand-name versions. In August 1997 the manufacturer agreed
to pay participants in the class-action lawsuit $98 million, but never admitted any
wrongdoing.

NORGESTREL / ETHINYL ESTRADIOL.

The drug should not be used by breast-feeding mothers. Because of the risk of
blood clots, it should be discontinued three to four weeks before surgery and for
two weeks after surgery.

The most common side effects of this drug are nausea, vomiting, bleeding
between menstrual periods, weight gain, fluid retention, breast tenderness,
difficulty wearing contact lenses, and brown, blotchy spots on exposed skin.
Other side effects may include changes in appetite, headache, nervousness,
depression, dizziness, loss of scalp hair, rash, and vaginal infections.
Uncommon—but serious and potentially fatal—side effects are blood clots and
blockage of blood vessels. There is at present no confirmed evidence that oral
contraceptives increase the risk of cancer of the reproductive organs, and several
studies have found no overall increase in the risk of developing breast cancer.
Some studies have found an increase in the incidence of cervical cancer.

Certain drugs may interact with oral contraceptives to make them less effective in
preventing pregnancy or cause an increase in breakthrough bleeding. These
include rifampin; drugs used for epilepsy such as barbiturates and phenytoin;
phenylbutazone; and certain antibiotics.

KETOROLAC.

The safety of this drug for pregnant or breast-feeding women or for children has
not been determined. The eyedrop solution should not be used by patients
wearing contact lenses. Abdominal or stomach pain, bruising at the site of
injection, drowsiness, indigestion, and nausea are the most common side effects
of both the oral and injected forms of the drug. Less common side effects are
bloating or gas, burning or pain at the injection site, constipation, diarrhea,
dizziness, a feeling of fullness in the abdominal or stomach area, headache,
increased sweating, vomiting, edema, decrease in urine output, renal failure, and
gastrointestinal bleeding, ulceration, and perforation.
A temporary stinging and burning sensation in the eye is the most common side
effect of the eyedrop solution. Less common side effects are eye irritation,
allergic reactions, superficial eye infections, and superficial inflammation of the
eye’s cornea.

Ketorolac may interact adversely with aspirin, acetaminophen, and other non-
steroidal anti-inflammatory agents, as well as with lithium, methotrexate,
probenecid, ketoprofen, nabumetone, naproxen, and oxaprozin. Use of ketorolac
with blood-thinning drugs, cefamandole, cefoperazone, cefotetan, heparin,
moxalactam, plicamycin, or valproic acid may increase risk of bleeding.

GEMFIBROZIL.

This drug has not been proven safe for use in children under the age of 12 or in
pregnant or breast-feeding women.

Possible side effects include constipation, diarrhea, headache, nausea, indigestion,

vomiting, skin rash, or abdominal pain (including appendicitis). Other side
effects sometimes observed are anemia, dizziness, fainting, impotence, blurred
vision, confusion, irregular heartbeat, muscle or joint pain, itching, or sleepiness.
Gemfibrozil may interact adversely with glyburide, lovastatin, or various blood-
thinning drugs.

FLUOXETINE.

Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding are advised not to take fluoxetine,
and people taking it should not consume alcohol.

Common adverse side effects of fluoxetine include anxiety, insomnia, headaches,

dizziness, changes in appetite, weight loss, nausea, and diarrhea.

DOXYCYCLINE.

Patients with liver disease and pregnant or breast-feeding women should not use
this drug. It may be taken by children over the age of eight at a dosage based on
body weight. Possible side effects include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, skin rash,
itching, light sensitivity, headache, facial swelling, chest pain, difficulty
swallowing, or bulging forehead (in infants). Children may develop discolored
teeth, especially with long-term use.
Doxycyline may interact adversely with antacids and other common
gastrointestinal medications, birth control pills, barbiturates, blood-thinners,
penicillin, phenytoin, sodium bicarbonate, and carbamazepine.

DOXAZOSIN MESYLATE.

Patients with liver disease or untreated angina (severe chest pain) should not use
doxazosin mesylate. Its safety for children and pregnant or breast-feeding
women has not been established. Patients with impaired liver or kidney function,
coronary artery disease, low white-blood-cell count, mental depression, or a
history of stroke should use this drug with caution.

The most common side effects include fatigue and headache. Some patients
experience light-headedness or dizziness, especially when the dosage is increased,
and as a result, should not drive, operate dangerous machinery, or engage in
other risk-related activities. Other possible side effects include constipation,
indigestion, nausea, muscle cramps or weakness, nosebleed, skin rash, ringing in
the ears, insomnia, eye pain, or depression. This drug can be combined safely
with most other medications.

DIAZEPAM.

It is not safe for use during pregnancy, while breast-feeding, or in children under
six months of age. It should not be combined with alcoholic beverages.

Side effects of this drug may include drowsiness, lightheadedness, fatigue, or

poor muscle coordination. Patients who experience these symptoms should not
drive, operate dangerous machinery, or engage in other risk-related activities
while taking diazepam. Other side effects include blurred or double vision,
confusion, depression, dizziness, headache, slurred speech, nausea, constipation,
skin rash, or low blood pressure. Patients taking diazepam for an extended
period (more than four weeks) may experience withdrawal symptoms if use is
stopped abruptly; these symptoms may include abdominal cramps, sweating,
vomiting, tremors, or convulsions. An overdose of this drug may cause
sleepiness, confusion, or coma.

Diazepam may interact adversely with a wide variety of drugs. These include
other tranquilizers, anticonvulsant drugs, antidepressants (especially MAO
inhibitors), barbiturates, narcotics, and birth control pills. Other potentially
adverse drug interactions include cimetidine, digoxin, fluoxetine, ranitidine, and
rifampin.
CIPROFLOXACIN.

Pregnant women, breast-feeding women, and children under the age of 18

should not take this drug.

Possible side effects include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, headache, skin
rash, sensitivity to light, or restlessness. Serious side effects should be reported to
a doctor, as allergic reactions to this drug, while rare, can be fatal. Allergic
symptoms may include facial swelling, shortness of breath, tingling or itching,
hives, or unconsciousness.

Patients with severe liver disease, impaired kidney function, or with epilepsy or
other disorders or injuries affecting the central nervous system should use this
drug with caution. Those who experience dizziness or lightheadedness with this
medication should not drive, operate dangerous machinery, or engage in other
risk-related activities. Because of the possible risk of tendon rupture, strenuous
physical activity should be avoided or approved by a doctor.

Ciprofloxacin should not be combined with the drug theophylline, as serious or

fatal reactions can result. It may interact adversely with phenytoin and warfarin.
Ciprofloxacin may be less effective when used in combination with vitamin
supplements containing zinc or iron or with antacids containing calcium,
aluminum, or magnesium.

WARFARIN.

This drug should not be used by children under the age of 18 or by pregnant or
breast-feeding women.

Possible side effects of warfarin include hemorrhage (severe bleeding), chest

pain, joint pain, headache, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, or swelling.
Other side effects may include diarrhea, nausea, fever, hair loss, skin
inflammation, discolored (purplish) toes, or gangrene. Excessive bleeding from a
nosebleed, cut, puncture, or unusual menstrual flow should be checked by a
doctor.

Warfarin may react adversely with dozens of medications including over-the-

counter drugs such as aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), and ibuprofen (Advil,
Motrin). For this reason, patients taking warfarin are usually advised to carry a
drug identification card.
Foods that may diminish warfarin’s effectiveness are those rich in vitamin K
such as leafy green vegetables, cauliflower, asparagus, fish, beef liver, and bacon.
Patients taking this drug should also avoid alcoholic beverages.

ZOLPIDEM.

It should not be used by children under the age of 18 or by pregnant or breast-

feeding women. When treatment is discontinued, some patients experience a
recurrence of insomnia.

Dizziness or drowsiness the day after taking zolpidem are possible side effects,
especially when beginning treatment. Patients who experience a loss of mental
clarity should avoid driving, operating dangerous machinery, or engaging in other
risk-related activities. Other possible side effects may include nausea, diarrhea,
blurred vision, skin rash, tremors, memory loss, or abnormal thoughts or
behavior. Withdrawal symptoms, such as vomiting or cramps, may occur if
treatment is stopped abruptly.

Zolpidem may interact adversely with drugs that affect the central nervous
system such as narcotics, tranquilizers, and antidepressants. It should not be
combined with alcoholic beverages.

HOMOEOPATHIC TREATMENT.

In view of the above adverse reactions and side effects of Allopapthic Drugs, it is
in the best interest of the breast-feeding mothers that they should undertake the
homoeopathic treatment from the well qualified classical homoeopath for their
problems. Homoeopathy is the best and safest both for the feeding mothers and
the infants without any side effects. For Homoeopathic treatment you may
please contact the Author of this Article by e-mail for further details.

Reference:

Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia.

 Homoeopathy and "Viagra"
(Sildenafil Citrate).
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Erectile dysfunction is a persistent or recurrent inability to attain, or maintain

until completion of sexual activity, an adequate penile erection. This replaces the
earlier term "Impotence". Erectile dysfunction can seriously mar the quality of
life of the patients. A range of drugs like Alcohol and medications like
Antihistamines, Antidepressants and Antihypertensions can cause erectile
dysfunction.

The factors which contribute for organic erectile dysfunction include :

Chronic Illness :

Atherosclerosis, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease, Renal Failure, Hepatic Failure,

Multiple Sclerosis, Spinal Pathology, Peyronie’s Disease, Depression, Anxiety,
Hyperthyroidism, Hypothyroidism, Hypogonadism, Hyperprolactinaemia.

Surgery :

Radical Prostatectomy, Resection of the rectum, Major Pelvic Surgery.

Trauma :

Neurological, Spinal Cord Injury, Pelvic Injury.

Drugs :

Alcohol, Substance of abuse, Smoking.

Radiotherapy :

External beam, Irradiation of the pelvis.

Medications :

Antihypertensives, Thiazide Diuretics, Beta-Blockers, Antidepressants

(Tricyclics), Harmones (Steroidal Antiandrogens), Tranquillzers (Phenothiazines),
H2 Antagonists, Lipid Lowering Substances like "Statins".

Majority of sexual dysfunctions are primarily psychogenic in origin. Anxiety

concerning sexual performance and fear of sexual failure are the most salient
immediate causes of erectile difficulties. A history of sexual abuse, guilt about
sexuality, and early homosexual experiences are among the more common
factors that underline sexual dysfunction. Psychological causes include
depression like major depressive episode or dysthymia, stress, anger, interpsychic
problems, performance anxiety, low self-esteem. A man may have a good
erection with masturbation, but not when sexually active with his regular partner.

In Allopathy "Sildenafil Citrate" is the new oral therapy for the treatment of
erectile dysfunction. It usually acts within an hour of administration. The drug
enables erections to occur in response to but not in the absence of sexual
stimulation. The manufacturer recommends caution if Sidenafil is used in
patients with bleeding disorders or peptic ulcers or eye disorders or with poor
cardiac status. Blood pressure is reduced transiently by Sildenafil 100 mg.
However, larger blood pressure reductions may be observed when Sildenafil is
given with nitrates.

Sildenafil under the brand name "VIAGRA" is being sold in America and now
even in Indian market Sildenafil is available under different brand names. It is
very unfortunate that media has given very much importance to this drug by
highlighting on the advantages by ignoring its serious side effects especially in
those who are suffering from cardiovascular diseases. It is surprising to know
that during April 1998 to February 2000, 522 people died from cardiovascular
problems due to the side effects of Sildenafil. A majority of people who died
were below 65 years of age with no cardiac risk factors (diabetes, hypertension,
high cholesterol or smoking). Secondly, Nitrates alongwith Sildenafil can cause
serious cardiovascular events with fatal outcome.

The Nitrate drugs are :

Isosorbide Dinitrate.
Isosorbide-5-Mononitrate.
Pentaerythritol Tetranitrate.
Glyceryl Trinitrate.
Amyl Nitrate or Nitrite (Inhaled Forms)
Those patients are using the above Nitrates drugs should not use Sildenafil since
it may cause potential life threatening hypotension, dizziness, faintness or even a
heart attack or stroke.

Therefore, Sildenafil ("Viagra" or its other versions) is not the right choice for all
men. In addition to this drug, many people take the help of Vaccum Constriction
Device, Penile Injection Therapy, Intraurethral Therapy, Surgery. All of these
treatments have different complications and side effects.

Adverse Reactions of "Sildenafil" :

Headache, flushing, dyspepsia, nasal congestion, urinary tract infection, abnormal

vision, diarrhoea, dizziness, rash, respiratory tract infection, back pain, flu
syndrome, arthralgia, angina pectoris AV block, migraine, syncope, tachycardia,
palpitation, hypotension, postural hypotension, myocardial ischaemia, cerebral
thrombosis, cardiac arrest, heart failure, abnormal electrocardiogram,
cardiomyopathy , ataxia, hypertonia, neuralgia, neuropathy, paresthesia, tremor,
vertigo, depression, insomnia, somnolence, abnormal dreams, decreased reflexes,
hyperaesthesia, seizure, anxiety, urticaria, herpes simples, pruritus, sweating, skin
ulcer, contact dermatitis, exfoliative dermatitis, vomiting, glossitis, colitis,
dysphagia, gastritis, gastroenteritis, esophagitis, stomatitis, dry mouth, abnormal
liver function tests, rectal hemorrhage, gingivitis, thirst, edema, gout, unstable
diabetes, hyperglycemia, peripheral edema, hyperuricemia, hypoglycemic
reaction, hypernatremia, arthritis, arthrosis, myalgia, tendon rupture,
tenosynovitis, bone pain, myasthenia, synovitis, mydriasis, conjunctivitis,
photophobia, tinnitus, eye pain, deafness, ear pain, eye hemorrhage, cataract, dry
eyes, diplopia, temporary vision loss/decreased vision, ocular redness or
bloodshot appearance, ocular burning, ocular swelling/pressure, increased intra-
ocular pressure, retinal vascular disease or bleeding, vitreous
detachment/traction and paramacular edema, face edema, photosensitivity
reaction. Shock,asthenia, pain, chills, accidental fall, abdominal pain, allergic
reaction, chest pain, accidental injury.

In view of all the above negative factors, complications and adverse reactions,
Homoeopapthy has the best and the safest possible treatment to cure the
problem of erectile dysfunction quite effectively without any complications or
side effects. In general terms "Erectile Dysfunction" means "Impotency". For
more details on this subject, please read my book "Homoeopathic
Management of Male Sexual Disorders", published by B. Jain Publishers (P)
Ltd., New Delhi (India) as well as my Article "Impotency".

HOMOEOPATHIC TREATMENT :
Agnus Castus :

The penis is small and flaccid, so relaxed that voluptuous fancies excite no
erection. The testicles are cold, swollen, hard and painful. Impotence with gleet.
During micturition and at stool there is much secretion of prostatic fluid.
Pollutions from irritable weakness with prostatorrhoea. Gonorrhoea with
suppressed sexual desire. Diminution of sexual power.

Argentum Nitricum :

Erection fails when coition is attempted. Want of desire. Penis shrivelled. Coition
painful, sensitive at orifice. Painful tension during erection. Testicle drawn high
up. Psychological impotency. Apprehensive impotency before coition.

Caladium Seguinum :

Sexual organs relaxed and swelled. Glans flabby from masturbation. Painful
erection without sexual desire, alternating with sexual desire with relaxed penis.
Impotence with mental depression. Nocturnal emission without dream.
Imperfect erection and premature ejaculation of semen. Excitement does not
erect penis. Feeling of coldness in penis.

China Officinalis :

Impotency with excited, lascivious fancy. Swelling of the testes and spermatic
cord. Quick discharge of semen during intercourse followed by profound
neurasthenia.

Conium Maculatum :

Impotence, insufficient erections, and absence of erections. Want of energy in

coition. Erections imperfect, and of too short duration. Easy emission of semen,
even without firm erections. Dejection, after coition. Sometimes emission at
mere presence of women.
Lycopodium Clavatum :

Impotence of long standing. Weakness or total absence of erections. Penis small,

cold, relaxed. Emission too speedy or too tardy during coition. Falling asleep
during coition. Lassitude, after coition or pollutions. Flow of prostatic fluid,
without an erection. Abhorrence of coition.

Nux Vomica :

Excitement easy. Strong sexual desire with painful erection. Increased sexual
desire with frequent erections and pollution in the morning. Pollution with
flaccidity of penis fllowed by coldness and weakness in lower extremities.
Involuntary seminal emission. Nightly emissions with lascivious dreams.
Impotency due to masturbation and sexual excess. Flaccidity of penis during
coition.

Phosphoricum Acidum :

A feeling of heaviness in glans especially when urinating. Absence of sexual

desire. Neurasthenia after sexual intercourse. Weakness of sexual organs with
onanism and little sexual desire. Frequent and very debilitating pollutions.
Onanism. Discharge of semen while straining at stool.

Phosphorus :

Impotency after excessive excitement and onanism. Involuntary emission. Feeble

and too speedy emission during coition. Very strong sexual desire, with constanct
wish for coition.

Selenium :

Impotence ; with lascivious ideas. Pollutions, with flaccidity of penis. Discharge

of semen, drop by drop, during sleep. Flow of prostatic fluid during evacuation
and at other times. Thin and scentless semen. During coition, feeble erection, too
prompt emission, and long-continued voluptuous thrill. Priapism, glans drawn
up.
Staphisagria :

Always has sexual thought. Frequent pollutions, even during a siesta. Face
sunken and melancholic due to bad effect of onanism and too frequent nocturnal
emission. Organs relaxed with backache and weakness of the lower extremities.
Seminal emissions followed by great chagrin and mortification Dyspnoea
develops after coition. Secretion of prostatic fluid during evacuation.

Medorrhinum :

Impotency after suppression of gonorrhoea. Emission during sleep. Semen

watery, causing no stiffness of the linen. Pain, burning along urethra when semen
discharges.

Sabal Serrulata :

Discharge of prostatic fluid. Pain in back much aggravates after coitus. Drawing
pains in spermatic cords ; shrunk testes. Penis shrunk and cold with urinary
troubles. Hard erection, slight twisting chordee as if stretched from the root.
Organs feel cold. Coitus painful at the time of emission. Sexual neurotics.

Turnera Aphrodisiaca (Damiana) :

An excellent remedy for impotency. Give 5-10 drops a dose thrice daily. Sexual
debility from nervous prostration. Chronic prostatic discharge.

Sulphur :

Too quick discharge of semen during coition. Erection fails when coition is
attempted. Incomplete rection during coition. Impotence with mental
depression, relaxed penis, with sexual desire and excitement. Testes relaxed and
hanging down. Watery semen.

Calcarea Carbonica :
Weakness of the genital functions, and absence of sexual desire. Erections of too
short continuance, and emission of semen too slow and too feeble during
coition.

Arnica Montana :

Impotency due to fall or blow. Impotence from excess or abuse.

Nuphar Luteum :

Excessive depression of the male generative system. Entire absence of erections

and desire ; voluptuous ideas which fill imagination do not cause erections. Penis
retracted, scrotum relaxed. Complete absence of erections ; inability to effect
coitus.

Moschus Moschiferus :

Impotency associated with diabetes.

Kali Bromatum :

Impotency with melancholy, loss of memory ; nervous prostration ; epilepsy.

Yohimbinum :

It is a powerful stimulant of the genital function in males. Sexual neurasthenia,

with impotence.

NOTE :

Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a

replacement for medical advice. Any person with a condition requiring medical
attention should consult a well qualified classical homoeopath. If you wish to be
treated homoeopathically, the Author of this Article can offer his good services.
If so, you may kindly contact him by e-mail for details.
Reference :

CIMS, India – regarding Sildenafil.

Masturbation.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Masturbation is the process of bringing about a voluntary excitement of the

sexual centers following generally by the discharge of semen, through some
method other than normal sexual intercourse. In other words, "Masturbation"
means ejaculation of semen by hand. There are various devices resorted to for
the purpose, but because of the hand to practise it, it is widely known as "Hand
Practice". This habit is also known as "Self-Abuse", since it is done by one’s own
self by his own hand.

There are exceptions, when masturbation is also done by some one else i. e., one
engages one’s own wife for this act and rather prefers it even to normal coitus.
This sort of device is found among those who are accustomed to hard friction
and this habit is formed since childhood and therefore they cannot derive much
thrill and pleasure from normal coitus. The other common device is to lie down
on the abdomen and rubbing the penis against the pillow or the bed as if
performing the sexual intercourse and to discharge semen with thrill and
pleasure.

There is haradly any young man who does not masturbate at one time or the
other. The self-abuse is the prime cause of various sexual disorders and it is one
of the earliest abuses when a boy engages himself in this evil act. Masturbation
has serious consequences since it drains the young men of his vital forces and in
many case it causes impotency, if it is over-indulged. Therefore, parents are
advised to keep a watch on their children against all possible factors which can
tempt their children to masturbate.

Following are some of the causes which incites young men to undertake this evil
practice :

1. The main cause is bad company, where children hear and discuss sexual
topics and in the bad society they themselves engaged in masturbation
collectively without any shame. This is the very first and wrong step which
leads to many bad practices to play with the immature sexual organs at the
very tender age. Since this evil act gives intense pleasure, they keep on
 doing quite regularly without knowing the adverse effects of the
masturbation in the future to come. If this practice is over done, it ruins
the matrimonial lives due to impotency.
2. Secondly, house servants also incite young boys to this vice by playing
with their sexual organs. Thus, parents should keep an open eyes and they
should not allow their children for longer hours to be with their domestic
servants in seclusion. Furthermore, sending their boys to distant schools
along with their young children, without any supervision, may also lead to
similar consequences since servants can caress the children if they find
lonely road or place. Further, young children should also not be carried on
cycles in front of the servants or in a car beside the driver.
3. Not only domestic servants, but even young friends or relatives should be
relied upon. Therefore, children should not be allowed to sleep on a
common bed along with the relatives or friends as some of them may
pollute the children or young boys.
4. It has also been found that in many instances, the young ones are taught
the first sexual lesson by the maid-servants. Thus, boys should not be
allowed to be with maid-servants in seclusion or to lie in the same bed.
5. The parents, in the best interest of the boy’s future, they should also take
guard to avoid his boy to lying in the same bed with other young ladies
who are separated from their husbands since it has also been noticed on
several occasions that such ladies due to their ungratified sexual desire,
they lure the boy to spoil him.
6. Furthermore, sleeping more than one children in the same bed should
also be avoided, since they may handle one another’s male organ. Once
they are habitual of this, they would like to masturbate in seclusion places
like bathroom, latrine or in lonely places.
7. The parents should also take care not to indulge themselves in
interecourse where the children are present since it is one of the prime
cause of this evil as the children imitate their parents out of their curiosity.
8. Another cause which invites boy to masturbate is the uncleanliness of the
genital organ, since collection of smegma in the pit of glans leads to sexual
excitement in several cases. Therefore, daily cleanliness of the genital is
needed.
9. The other cause of masturbation is rectal worms. The worms cause
irritation to the anus and consequently it gives rise to erection of penis. In
such circumstances, boy handles his penis which gives intense pleasure to
masturbate and later it forms the habit of masturbation.
10. Over and above, following are also the causes to excite sexual organs to
masturbate :
a. Chronic Constipation.
b. Excessive use of sour foods.
c. Excessive use of stimulating diets such as meat, eggs, tea, etc.
d. Seeing of sexual and love scenes in T. V., cinemas.
e. Reading of amorous literature, novels, etc.
f. Talking of sexual problems with young ladies in seclusion.
There is no definite age is fixed to commence this abuse since long before the
attainment of puberty, boys have been found involved in this practice.

Once the habit of masturbation becomes the part and parcel of life, among
young unmarried boy it may also resort to prostitution, which invites horrible
venereal diseases.

Some of the after-effects of masturbation are :

a. The nervous system is affected the most.

b. Besides the heart, the digestive system, the urinary system as well as the
other systems are adversely affected and consequently the whole body
becomes the museum of diseases with profound weakness.
c. The eyes become sunken, the cheek bones protrude and there is a black
rim round the eyes.
d. Continuous headache and backache.
e. Dizziness and loss of memory.
f. Palpitation of heart on lightest exertion.
g. Nervousness.
h. Unable to perform any heavy physical or mental work.
i. The person dislikes any company and activities and rather likes to sit in
seclusion and suffers from weakness.
j. All the senses are impaired.
k. Vision becomes dim, the tongue begins to stammer and ears tend to
become deaf etc.
l. Lastly T. B. or insanity or some other serious disease catch hold of the
victim to lead his life to a close.
m. Impotency.

Therefore, young men are advised to consult a qualified and honest

homoeopathic practitioner for his expert advice and effective treatment instead
of wasting his money with quacks. Further, those young men who are or have
been engaged in the regular habits of masturbation should not ignore the
necessity to consult the qualified homoeopaths to avoid sexual embarrassment at
the time of marriage.

HOMOEOPATHIC TREATMENT :

* Sexual appetite increased by every attempt to satisfy it until it drives him to

masturbation and madness. ----- Anan.
* A remedy for taking away the habit of masturbation and removing its bad
effects. Penis glans get flabby. Penis relaxed. ----- Calad.

* Weakness of the organ after masturbation and excesses. Even his young and
beautiful wife excites no erections. ----- Agn-c.

* Desire for solitude in order to practice masturbation. ----- Bufo.

* Excitement of sexual desire for masturbation, with lascivious ideas, day and
night. ----- Chin.

* Increase of sexual desire, lascivious ; exposes his person, with desire for
masturbation. ----- Hyos.

* Masturbation and its consequences. ----- Nux-v.

* Great sexual excitement driving him to masturbation. ----- Orig.

* Unnatural increase of sexual desire for masturbation, with mental depression.

Masturbation before the age of puberty and its effect. ----- Plat.

* A very marked increase of sexual desire, with frequent erections, especially at

night, with desire for masturbation. Habit of masturbation in children and for
bad effects thereof. ----- Staph.

* Irresistible inclination to masturbation even during sleep. ----- Thuj.

* Weakness due to masturbation. ----- Chin., Ph-ac.

* Bad effect of masturbation. ----- Staph.

* Constipation due to masturbation. ----- Lyc., Nux-v.

* Dullness of mind due to masturbation. ----- Staph.

* Irresistible tendency to masturbation. ----- Ust.

* Weakness of legs and impaired memory due to masturbation. ----- Dig.

* Weakness of eye sight due to masturbation. ----- Cina.

* Melancholy due to masturbation. ----- Aur.

NOTE :
 1. Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a
replacement for medical advice. Any person with condition requiring
medical attention should consult a well qualified classical homoeopath. In
case of treatment, you may please contact the Author of this Article by e-
mail for further details.
2. For detailed information on this subject, please study the Author’s
book "Homoeopathic Management of Male Sexual
Disorders", published by B. Jain Publishers (P) Ltd., New Delhi (India).

Tonsillitis.
Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

WHAT IS TONSILLITIS.

Tonsils play a very important role in the body defence against allergic diseases.
They are situated at the base of the mouth at the junction of opening of pharynx
and oesophagus. These collections of lymphoid tissues are of three types :

• Pharyngeal Tonsil/Adenoids.
• Palatine Tonsils.
• Lingual Tonsils.

Both Tonsil and Adenoids serve to fight and collect micro-organisms from
entering in the chest through the throat.

THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF ACUTE TONSILLITIS.

• Tendency for repeated attack of cough and cold e. g. in 10-15 days. These
attacks may be accompanied with high fever.
• Pain in the throat which sometimes extends to the ear.
• Unpleasant smell and taste in the mouth.
• Hoarseness.
• Snoring and breathing through the mouth.
• Deafness.

The tonsils which are like two guards fighting and preventing the diseases from
spreading ; over a period of time become enlarged and unhealthy leading to a
condition called Chronic Tonsillitis.
THE SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF CHRONIC TONSILLITIS.

• Recurrent cough.
• Increases susceptibility to other respiratory infections e. g. Sinusitis,
Bronchitis, Bronchial Asthma etc.
• Poor health and growth.
• Lack of usual vigour.
• Development of changes in temperament such as tantrums and bouts of
crying for little reason.
• Difficulty in speech and swallowing.
• Enlarged cervical lymph nodes.

The homoeopathic treatment helps in curing tonsillitis by :

• Reducing the size of the tonsils thus converting enlarged, unhealthy

tonsils to healthy ones.
• Increasing the resistance (immunity) to repeated infections/exposure to
allergens.
• Reducing the intensity and frequency of recurrent attack of cough and
cold.

It is an erroneous idea that the surgical removal of tonsils decreases the

individual’s susceptibility to catch infection.

Experience shows that such a drastic measure increases the susceptibility and the
allergic patients suffer from allergy all the more especially in diseases like
Sinusitis, Allergic Rhinitis and Bronchial Asthma.

PRECAUTIONS IN DIET.

The following foods should be strictly avoided during the period of

homoeopathic treatment :

• Cold Foods And Drinks.

o Cold Drinks.
o Ice Cream.
o Other cold foods.
• Sour Foods.
o Curd.
o Fruit Juice.
 o Tomato Soup.
o Vinegar.
o Pickle.
o Sambhar.
o Rasam.
o Ketchup.
o Fruits – Orange, Lemon, Sour Grapes.
• Oily Foods.
o Fried foods e. g. foods prepared in oil, butter, ghee.

HOMOEOPATHIC TREATMENT.

Belladonna.

It is one of the chief remedies at the beginning of Acute Tonsillitis

especially in children, with high fever and all the symptoms of congestion.
The tonsils are enlarged and inflamed, throat is dry as if glazed, especially
on the right side. Dry cough with foreign body sensation in the throat
associated with difficulty in swallowing liquids. There is hoarseness and
the throat feels constricted.

Baryta Carb.

This is perhaps the most useful and unfailing remedy for Acute Tonsillitis
especially in repeated attacks when the tonsils inflame, smell and
suppurate repeatedly leading to chronic hypertrophy. As per Dr. Burnett
this remedy is the biggest tonsil remedy and when tonsils are enlarged due
to repeated vaccinations Thuja or Silicia should be used. Similarly when
it is due to Tubercular Diathesis, Bacillinum should be used first and
then Baryta Carb.

Merc.-Bin-Iodide.

Inflammation and swelling of left tonsil, velum elongated causing cough,

next day both tonsils involved (left to right). Painful swelling of tonsils
and sub-maxillary glands.
Kali Mur.

Tonsils excessively swollen ; stringy, tough mucus. Swallowing excessively

painful, even water or the softest bread ; must twist his neck to get it
down. One of the best remedies for Follicular Tonsillitis. Tonsils are
inflamed and enlarged so much that the patient can hardly breathe. There
are grayish-white spots/deposits on the tonsils.

Aurum Met.

Tonsils swollen and ulcerated. Drinks find a passage through the nostrils.
Stinging soreness in throat only when swallowing.

Psorinum.

Pain in left tonsil, with swollen feeling. Quinsy, intense pain to ears on
swallowing, profuse, offensive saliva ; tough mucus in throat, must hawk
continually ; tendency to quinsy.

Raphanus.

Heat and burning in throat, at times, chiefly in tonsils, with lancinations.

Swelling, redness and pain in tonsils, as if raw.

Staphisagria.

Tonsillitis, on swallowing a stitch runs up from throat into ear. Both

tonsils inflamed and swollen.

Ustilago.

Left tonsil enlarged, congested, dark reddish, right painful on swallowing

at 2 p. m. ; left painful at 9 p. m. ; next morning congestion of left
extending along Eustachian Tube and causing pain in ear. Lancinations in
right tonsil.
Gun Powder.

Septic tonsillitis.

Hepar Sulph.

When suppuration is inevitable. It is used after Bell. When the sharp,

sticking, lancinating pains with throbbing and chill indicate the beginning
of suppuration – it may even then prevent suppuration, and abscess
formation when given in the incipiency of that process. The tonsils are
large, hearing poor and there is sensation of fish-bone in the throat. It is
followed by Mercurius when pus has already formed.

Lycopodium.

It is indicated when the disease starts in the right side and extends to the
left with high temperature, crying out during sleep and awakening from
sleep, cross and irritable. The tonsils become large and are apt to be
studded with small indurated ulcers.

Mercurius.

It is indicated after Hepar and is suited to a more advanced state when

pus has been formed and you wish it evacuated. The tonsil is enlarged and
encroaches on neighbouring parts and the breathing is
labored. Mercurius given at this stage, low and repeatedly, will cause a
quick-breaking of the abscess, relieving all the symptoms.

Note of Warning : If given earlier the case will be spoilt and the course
of the disease will be greatly lengthened.

As per Dr. Burnett, to completely cure the case, Bacillinum 200, 1M,
10M and even higher is often required. This remedy not only helps the
tonsils and adenoids, but cures a tendency to chronic colds, sinusitis and
most conditions pertaining to nose, throat and chest.

In addition to above remedies, any indicated remedy can be used and

most probably Sulphur, Calc-c., Calc-p. and Sil. are often needed.
 NOTE :

Any information given in this Article is not intended to be taken as a

replacement for medical advice. Any person with a condition requiring
medical attention should consult a well qualified classical homoeopath. If
homoeopathic treatment is needed, the Author of this Article can offer
his best services and he can be contacted by e-mail for further details.

Nymphomania.
By Henry N. Guernsey, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

This formidable disease may be properly reckoned as one of the disorders of the
external parts, since its principal seat is in the vulva, nymphć and clitoris, --
although these organs may only be thus affected in consequence of some morbid
condition of those more interior. Nymphomania consists in an uncontrollable
passion for sexual intercourse, which overcomes all the restraints of modesty,
propriety and decency, and amounts to an actual insanity or monomania on this
single subject of sexual intercourse. Taking its rise in functional disorders of the
sexual system, or in more general morbid constitutional influences, which are
thus ultimated upon the external generative organs, this disease changes the
entire moral character from the most attractive modesty to the most shameless
and repulsive profligacy; and it may lead to paroxysms whose violence rapidly
exhausts the vital energies, and which terminate only in death.

Nymphomania is to be distinguished from erotomania. The former is a purely

sensual passion, alike physical in its origin, in its local influence, in its
development and in its much desired forms of gratification. The latter, although
still to be considered sensual in a strictly moral point of view; from a physical
point of view would seem rather spiritual, --as neither requiring sensual means of
gratification nor dependent upon physical ability. Erotomania is a physical state,
which may find its highest if not its only gratification in the reveries and dreams
of amorous imagination and fancy, by day or by night. Nymphomania is a
physical disease whose progress may be traced through a period of internal
incubation, of external, reluctant and partially restrained development, to a final
condition of open, unrestrained manifestation; characterized by a most intense,
all-controlling sexual desire, and by an equal unconsciousness of shame and of
decency.

Without directly mentioning nymphomania, Hahnemann seems to have had it in

his mind, when he says:
"It is not until the whole of the organism is infected that psora discloses its huge
internal chronic miasm, by a cutaneous eruption (sometimes consisting only in a
few pimples) that is wholly peculiar to it, accompanied by insupportable tickling,
voluptuous itching, and a specific odor."

This disease has repeatedly appeared in strongly marked cases where there was
one constant characteristic of the temperament of constitution; and that was "an
unusual susceptibility of the skin to tettery affections." In these cases the
disorder is so profoundly connected with the entire system, that it induces
paroxysms of convulsions, which indicate that the entire cerebro-spinal nervous
center is involved. The actual monomania, with entire obliteration of all feeling
of modesty or sense of shame, and unconsciousness of all the duties and
proprieties arising from the domestic relation, indicates also an equally complete
subjection of the purely cerebral functions and moral feelings to the same
morbid influence. While the spasmodic closure of the śsophagus, and
impossibility of deglutition and consequent destruction of organic life, show also
that the same disease has possessed itself of the organic nervous center—and so
completely invested "the whole of the organism." The "insupportable tickling
and voluptuous itching" can be no more violently manifested than in the pruritus
so frequently seen in cases of nymphomania; and the same may be said also of
"the specific odor," which, like that of goats, often emanates from the genitals or
from the entire person in such cases.

True nymphomania may be considered, therefore, as a most remarkable

illustration of the psoric diathesis,-- as a most astonishing proof of the truth of
the psoric principle. For if we observe this malady to arise from the more
immediate influence of ascarides or onanism, these latter are but intermediate
steps in the chain of causation,--being themselves the results of the same psoric
influence in the system. The same may be said of the enlarged, hypertrophic
condition of the clitoris so often seen in connection with this disease. The
nymphomania is more apt to make its appearance at either one or the other of
those two epochs of the female life, in which the constitution is stirred up as it
were in its profoundest depths,-- that is, at the accession of puberty, or on the
cessation of the menses,-- but more particularly at the former of these two
periods. And in addition to the influences already mentioned as constitutional or
provoking causes,-- and which will thus exert an important influence in
determining the choice of the remedy,-- we may mention: suppression or great
disturbance of the menstrual function, and organic diseases of the uterus.

But in both of these, as in the other causative influences, the psoric diathesis is
still predominant. For it is from the presence of such deep-seated, morbid
influence, hereditarily implanted in the organic nervous system,-- the source and
support of all organic or vegetative life,--that the menses fail to make their
appearance in due proportion and at the proper time. So the outset of any
organic disease must be attributed to the same ultimate cause.
But in prescribing for this truly distress in complaint, the various attendant
symptoms, as well as the peculiar constitutional indications must be carefully
considered;--it will not be necessary to enumerate here all the varied symptoms,
and morbid moral, mental and physical conditions which may accompany a case
of nymphomania. As in hysteria,--and in fact what is this disease itself but a most
violently aggravated hysterical affection, or morbid excitement of the entire
sexual system of the female,--so in nymphomania, an endless succession and
variety of symptoms may present. There may be leucorrhśa of more or less
peculiar kind; pruritus of the external organs; intense lasciviousness, both
spiritual and physical; inflammation and excitation of the sexual parts; fever, with
fetid breath; nocturnal restlessness; sleep, with dreams which renew the sexual
excitement; paroxysms, with spasmodic closure of the śsophagus; general and
exhaustive convulsions; diarrhśa, etc. And these attacks and symptoms of the
disease may appear in consequence of onanism, or be attended with irresistible
disposition to it; they may accompany menstruation; or appear in its absence; and
finally, may be relieved or brought on by pregnancy. We have devoted
considerable space to this not very frequent form of disease, because the
homśopathic remedies,--as in the somewhat analogous case of delirium tremens,-
- have been found capable of producing the most salutary results and thus of
saving from destruction and of restoring to society some of its most valuable and
important members. And the indications given for the remedies may be useful
also, in the milder and more common forms of amorousness and erotomania, for
the relief of which the physician is often consulted.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Agaricus. Itching and irritation of the genital organs, with strong desire for an
embrace. Great selfishness.

Arsen. a. Sexual desire, with an involuntary discharge of mucus as a parituclar

symptom. Restlessness. Thirst for cold water,--a very little satisfies her. Unhappy,
fatiguing dreams; nothing comes out right in her dreams.

Calc. carb. Pale, leucophlegmatic. Much headache. Vertigo on running up-stairs.

Swelling over the pit of the stomach, like a saucer turned bottom up. Menses too
often and too profuse.

Cannabis s. Great excitation of the sexual instinct, the female being sterile.

Cantharis. Pruritus of the vagina, with strong sexual desire. She must urinate
very frequently, with cutting burning pain.
Carbo veg. She is troubled much with varicose veins in the vulva. Itching at the
same time of both the vulva and the anus. Much belching of wind, which affords
relief for a short time only.

China. Sensation as if the abdomen were too full after eating, with desire to
eructate,--which however affords no relief. Troublesome itching and spasmodic
contraction in the inner parts. Nymphomania of lying-in women.

Cocculus. Particularly in chlorotic females. Shivering over the mammć. Lower

extremities very weak.

Coffea. Voluptuous itching in the genital organs. She is in a state of ecstacy.

Sleeplessness.

Conium. Shriveling of the mammć, with increasing sexual desire. She is much
troubled with vertigo, particularly when lying down and when turning over in
bed. The urine flows and stops, and flows again, at each emission.

Digitalis. Lascivious state of the fancy day and night. Remarkably slow pulse.
Stools of a very light colour.

Dulcamara. Heat and itching in the genitals, with desire for an embrace. All her
symptoms are aggravated by a cool change in the weather. Her sexual desires are
also increased by this change.

Graphites. Inclination to obesity. Enlarged ovaries, which become more tender

and more enlarged every time she takes cold or gets her feet damp. Menses delay.
Itching blotches here and there over the surface of the body, from which oozes
out a colourless, glutinous fluid.

Gratiola. Gnawing about the umbilicus, as if of worms. Tingling in the

hypogastrium and around the imbilicus. Gnawing at the pit of the stomach after
eating, as if of hunger. Irresistible drowsiness and involuntary closing of the eyes
as the other symptoms abate.

Hyosciamus. Excited sexual desire without excitement of the fancy. Lascivious

furor without modesty. She inclines to uncover and expose herself. Convulsive
trembling. Immoderate loud laughter.

Ignatia. Strongly inclined to solitude; and to be very secretive; and to be passive.

Sadness and sighing, with an empty feeling in the pit of the stomach.

Iodium. Dwindling and falling away of the mammć; they hang down heavily and
lose their fatness. Heaviness of the mammć, as if they would fall off. All her
symptoms are relieved by eating.
Lachesis. Tickling and jerking, extending from the thighs to the genital organs,
with sexual excitement. Her symptoms are usually worse after sleeping. She feels
extremely sad, unhappy and distressed in mind on waking in the morning.

Lycopodium. Much borborygmus in the abdomen, or gurgling in the left

hypchondrium. Discharge of wind from the vagina. Sense of dryness in the
vagina. Red sand in the urine. Delay, and severe pain the back, before the
emission of the urine. Sense of fulness up to the throat on eating a small portion.

Mercurius. The symptoms are more constitutional than local. Hence this
remedy must be given rather from its general characteristic indications. The
symptoms are usually aggravated at night and are still worse when in bed.

Moschus. Violent sexual desire, with intolerable titillation in the genital organs.

Nat. carb. Motion as from a fśtus in the uterus. She has a variety of sufferings,
all of which are aggravated during a thunder-storm.

Nat. mur. Falling off of the hair from the mons veneris and from the labia
majora. Much itching of the vulva. She awakens every morning with a bad
headache. Great aversion to bread, of which she was once very fond. Longing
for salt things.

Nux vom. Burning in the vulva, with desire for an embrace. She wakens at three
or four in the morning with sexual desire; does not sleep much afterwards.
Constipation of large and difficult feces.

Opium. Very sleepy, but cannot go to sleep. Constipation; the evacuations are
composed of round, hard black balls. The sexual excitement and other troubles
all disappear from a few doses of Opium.

Phosphorus. In a pregnant female, at the seventh month, nymphomania

appeared with spasms; the symptoms were, weak, empty feeling in the abdomen,-
--cutting pains in the abdomen; a narrow, dry, long and difficult stool, like a
dog’s stool. One dose of Phosph. 19m. completely cured the nymphomania,--she
went her full time, and was happily delivered.

Platina. Excessive sexual desire, particularly in virgin females; Voluptuous

tingling in the vulva and abdomen. Stool difficult, because it adheres to the
rectum and anus like soft clay. Hysterical cough from stifling beneath the upper
fourth of the sternum.

Plumbum. Sensation of drawing from the abdomen to the spine. Constipation;

stool like sheep’s manure.
Pulsatilla. In females with blue eyes, very affectionate, easily excited to tears;
and of a very yielding disposition. She cannot sleep in the early part of the night;
sleeps late in the morning. No thirst. All her symptoms are worse towards
evening; they are relieved in the open air; and worse on returning to a close and
warm room.

Sabina. An almost insatiable desire for an embrace. A sensation of drawing or

dragging from the sacrum to the pubis. Music is intolerable to her.

Silicea. She feels nausea during an embrace. Spinal affections and constipation,--
with increased sexual desire as a consequence.

Staphysagria. Extreme sensitiveness to mental and physical impressions. She

feels mentally and very acutely every little circumstance. The teeth turn black into
their very substance.

Stramonium. Excessive loquacity during the menses. This was always the case.
Stramonium removes also abnormal sexual excitement. During the menses the
smell of semen is very apparent. Her face is bloated with blood. A great many
strange fancies come into her mind.

Sulphur. A weak feeling in the genital organs. Sore feeling in the vagina during
an embrace. Sterility. Also in cases which present the general characteristic
indications for Sulphur.

Thuja. Fig-warts, condylomata, or other excrescences of a similar nature, on or

about the genital organs. Her symptoms are worse after three P. M., and at night,
preventing her from falling asleep.

Veratrum. Nymphomania, particularly of lying-in females. Mania with lewdness

and lascivious speeches. Thirst, with craving for the codest drinks. Menses
preceded or accompanied by vomiting and diarrhśa, or by diarrhśa alone.

Zinc. Sexual desire several times at night. Irresistible desire for onanism. She
always feels best during the menstrual flow. Boring pain in the left ovary,
requiring pressure for partial relief, excepting when the menses are flowing,--then
there is complete relief.

NOTE:

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.
 Mastitis (Inflammation of the breasts).
By Henry N. Guernsey, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Inflammation of one or both breasts, with a manifest tendency to suppuration, is apt to be of

frequent occurrence in nursing women. And in some persons this difficulty, originally arising
from constitutional predisposition, becomes almost a confirmed habit, since they seldom or never
can nurse a child without experiencing the exceeding distress and annoyance of a gathered
breast.

The inflammation may be located principally in the external mamma, affecting

particularly the adipose tissue, and partaking of the nature of erysipelas. Or the
inflammation may be seated more deeply in the substance of the breast. Or again
the inflammation may be developed principally and especially in the mammary
gland itself. Finally, there are cases in which the inflammation seems to involve
the entire substance of the breast and structure of the organ in one
indistinguishable mass. More often, however, the pains scattered through the
breast, and the various diverging painful indurations, lead to the conclusion that
the gland with its ramifications is the particular seat of the disease.

And in thus determining the nature of the affection, the cause of it, or the
manner in which it arises, will often be of service. For if the breast evidently
become inflamed from undue exposure to cold air, in the delicate state of early
lactation, a general inflammation may be expected to ensue; while difficulties
belonging to the process of the scretion and discharge of the contents of the
lactiferous tubes, may sometimes be seen plainly to precede inflammation in
those tubes and in the gland itself. Much is due also to previous history and
constitutional diathesis; influences which in some would prove perfectly
innocuous, in others rapidly develop inflammation, which no less rapidly tends to
suppuration. In such cases the greatest care, assisted by a dose or two of the
antipsoric which seems most suited to the patient’s constitution, will go far to
prevent the suffering inseparable from a gathered breast.

Where the milk is copiously secreted, and either from inability on the part of the
child,---in its absence,---or from obstruction of the milk-tubes, or from
deficiency of the nipple, the milk cannot be freely drawn in the natural way, every
effort should be made without loss of time to secure this end by such other
means as may be possible. Sometimes the breast may be drawn by another child,
or by a friend, or by young puppies; the proper remedy in the mean time should
be carefully selected and faithfully administered, in order as rapidly as possible to
remove all difficulty which may be amenable to such medication, or which may
be resulting from the obstruction. In cold weather the inflamed breasts should be
kept warmly protected; and besides this, the less external application is made to
them the better. If the inflammation is caused and kept up by a tender and
ulcerated state of the nipples, let these be particularly attended to in accordance
with the directions already given. Properly used, the Homśopathic remedies may
be made effectual in resolving the inflammation and averting suppuration, in a
great majority of cases that are attended to at once.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT

Aconite. When a chill in dry, cold air, has been the exciting cause, and a true,
synochal fever prevails.

Belladonna. When the breasts feel heavy; there are red streaks running like radii
from a central point; she is occasionally chilly; a dull and stupid feeling prevails.

Bryonia. Her breasts have a stony heaviness in them; they are hot, hard and
painful, but not very red. She feels sick on first sitting up in bed or in a chair; and
still more sick on standing up. Rough, dry lips, thirst, and constipation stools dry,
looking as if burnt.

Carbo animal. Darting in the mamma, arresting the breathing, and aggravated
by pressure.

Cistus c. Particularly indicated in scrofulous subjects, when there is the greatest

sensibility to cold air. Inflammation and suppuration of the breast, with a sense
of fulness in the chest.

Graphites. In all cases where there are so many old cicatrices from former
ulcerations that the milk can scarcely flow. This remedy, high, will now cause the
milk to flow easily, and ward off the impending abscess; it has proved perfectly
efficacious in many such cases. The same success is claimed for Phytolacca, in
similar cases. I have, however, the greatest confidence in Graphites; this remedy,
although many times tried, has never failed me in a single case.

Hepar. When suppuration seems inevitable, and there is no other particularly

characteristic symptom. Give a single dose, high, and await the result, either in
resolution, or in suppuration.

Lachesis. When the breast has a bluish or purplish appearance and she has chills
at night and flushes of heat by day.

Mercurius sol. Hard swelling of the breast, with sore and raw sort of pain; the
milk is not good, so the babe refuses it. She has scorbutic gums and other general
symptoms of Mercury.
Phosphorus. Inflammation of the mammć even threatening ulceration, with
stitching or cutting pain. (Hectic fever and night sweats). In fistulous ulcers with
blue appearance.

Phytolacca dec. Particularly where the hardness is very apparent from the first.
Sensitive, and more or less painful; even after suppuration has taken place these
characteristics continue.

Silicea. In fistulous ulcers particularly; the discharge being thin and watery, or
thick and offensive. The substance of the mamma seems to be discharged in the
pus; one lobe after another seems to ulcerate and discharge into one common
ulcer, often with great pain; or there may be several orifices, one for each lobe.

Sulphur. Inflammation running in radii from the nipple. Suppuration profuse,

with chilliness in the fore part of the day and heat in the after part. Some
hemorrhoids, in complication.

Verat. viride. Bids fair to be serviceable in all cases where these troubles are
complicated with great arterial excitement.

In some cases the milk seems spoiled. The child refuses to nurse after tasting the
milk; it turns away with disgust, or with crying. In such cases, administer to the
mother, according to the other circumstances, Borax, Cina, Lachesis, Mercurius,
Sulphur, or Silicea.

In case the child vomits the milk soon after nursing, give the mother Calcarea c.,
Silicea, or Sulphur.

NOTE:

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

Coryza (In children).

By Henry N. Guernsey, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)
Coryza, snuffles, or cold in the head, is one of the earliest and most common
affections of the young infant. Sometimes the first that is known of it is, that the
infant’s nose is stopped up, so as to hinder its respiration while at the breast. The
swelling of the mucous membrane of the nares, and especially the accumulation
of the secreted mucus, not only hinder the little sufferer from breathing through
its nose, as is its wont in nursing, but occasion also during its sleep the peculiar
snuffling sound,--similar to snoring in adults,--which gives to this disorder its
popular name. In some cases there is a considerable flow of mucus; and all the
symptoms resemble those seen in the epidemic influenza of older children. Here
the Euphrasia deserves attention,--in addition to the remedies commonly used,--
since it will often be found to correspond in a remarkable manner with the
totality of the symptoms.

In other cases there appears to be "something more than a simple inflammation

of the Schneiderian membrane, since it either scretes a very tenacious mucus in
extreme abundance, or becomes coated with a false membrane, which sometimes
extends even to the tonsils and palate. Cases of this kind are usually associated
with extreme depression of the vital powers, and have received on this account
the name of Coryza Maligna. I have no doubt of their identity with diphtheria,--
of which they constitute the form known as nasal diphtheria." In addition to the
Kali bi., those two more recently proved remedies, Cubeba and Arum triphyllum,
will be suggested to the Homśopathic practitioner, to whom the name by which
the disease may be designated is of small account.

Where the coryza tends to become chronic, and to maintain itself in spite of the
indicated remedies, we must look still deeper into the nature of the case, if not
before. Since this very disposition to persistence evidences some constitutional
taint,--either scrofulous or worse,--which had not otherwise been discoverable.
Indeed, chronic coryza fully developed and established, wants only the
intolerably offensive odor of the discharge to become a veritable ozćna. This
latter will of course consist in an ulcerated state of the mucous membrane of the
nares; and may be purely scrofulous in its origin,-- or dependent upon some
more or less remote syphilitic taint in the system. The history of the case and the
attendant symptoms will usually show the nature of the affection; and in his
diagnosis the physician may sometimes be assisted by observing in spots the
minute traces of a characteristic, copper-coloured eruption. By thus adapting his
remedies to all the conditions and symptoms of the case, he may well hope, in a
short space of time, to remove the primary affection of the nasal mucous
membrane of the young infant, which if not thus early eradicated will presently
extend itself to the adjacent mucous surfaces and become a much more
formidable and intractable kind of disease.

HOMŚOPATHIC TREATMENT
Calcarea c. This medicine may be appropriately given after Chamomilla, when
that remedy seems indicated but fails.

Carbo veg. If the coryza return in the evening.

Chamomilla. When there is a watery or mucous discharge. The child is quieted,

and in fact relieved by carrying it up and down the room.

Dulcamara. The child gets worse at every cold change in the weather, or from
exposure to cold air.

Kali bi. An invaluable remedy when the discharge from the nose is tough and
stringy; sometimes it seems to extend to the throat and to cause chocking.

Mercurius. The nostrils are red, raw and ulcerated.

Nux v. The catarrh is worse at night, particularly towards morning, or in the

morning. Through the night the nose is very dry.

Pulsatilla. Coryza much worse every evening; better every morning.

Sambucus n. The nose seems perfectly dry and completely obstructed.

Sticta p. There is a constant irritation in the nose, to blow it,-- but no discharge.

Tartar e. Obstruction of the nose, and at the same time much rattling in the
bronchia.

NOTE:

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homśopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.

he choice of the remedy.

By C. M. F. von Bœnninghausen
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

The choice of the remedy in any concrete case of disease can not be made too
carefully or too cautiously.
No less in the healing art than in morals, the motto holds good: "Bonum ex omni
parte, malum ex quorumque defectu." Many failures occur, especially with unpracticed
beginners, because in examining the symptoms the one or the other was
overlooked. Even with older and more experienced homœopathic physicians,
especially such as are very busy, such an occurrence occasionally takes place.

This cannot, however, prove either the insufficiency of Homœopathy in general

nor the inadequacy of the small and rare doses, and the experienced practitioner,
who always looks with suspicion on such excuses, will in such cases first of all
subject the image of the disease which he has formed to a new revision, and look
for the lack of his success in his medication first in this direction.

It is not, indeed, my intention to offer anything new here to the practiced and
experienced physician. But it does seem to me as if an incidental warning to such
as are about to enter on this field might not be altogether superfluous, and I
consider it on that account allowable to introduce a case that happened lately,
and which will put what I desire to say into its proper light. I do not intend to
speak here of curing merely by the name of the disease, the so-called "Medicina
nominalis," which is altogether a different matter, and which is still doing untold
mischief, for such a treatment is the very acme of irrational and unconscionable
routine, and warning against such a practice would justly be considered an insult
even by the youngest of our colleagues.

Merchant Ph. M., thirty years of age, had caught a cold last winter while traveling;
he did not at first pay any attention to it, but the increasing ailments demanded
medical assistance. Treatment by an allopath had remained without effect; in fact,
during this treatment, lasting three months, nearly all the symptoms had grown
considerably worse, so that now, as is so frequently done, the homœopath was
called on for aid. The following symptoms formed the image of the disease.

For the last three to four weeks there has been a hollow, dry cough with
hoarseness and much toughness in the larynx, most violent during the night.
Constriction of the chest with stitches in the left side while lying on that side.
Internal heat, without thirst. Severe exhausting perspirations. Striking timidity.
Great drowsiness, but restless sleep, waking up frequently, while an internal
anxiety prevents his going to sleep again. The face pale and collapsed, with a
circumscribed redness of the cheeks. Pressure in the stomach after eating,
especially after milk, often with vomiting, first of the ingesta and then of gall.
Augmented, watery urine. Extraordinary emaciation. He prefers warmth, and it
agrees best with him. He feels better in moderate motion than in continuous rest.
He had never been unwell much, and had never been actually sick. He could take
a deep breath without any trouble, and frequently he felt impelled thereto. I
could not find out anything about the allopathic remedies which he had used.

After careful consideration and a protracted comparison of all the symptoms

present with our Materia Medica, every homœopath will agree with me that
Phosphorus seemed most indicated of all the remedies, and this so decidedly that
none of the other remedies could at all compete with it. I, therefore, felt no
hesitation at all to give to the patient my usual dose (a high potency) of this very
efficient remedy, and to direct its administration in the usual manner (disscolved
in water), recommending to him the usual diet, and directing him to report to me
in person in two weeks.

But I was cruelly and painfully disappointed when the patient after this period
appeared before me, for he was not improved in any respect; on the contrary, his
sickly appearance and the threatening redness of the cheeks had increased and
the feverish symptoms had been suspiciously augmented. In the meantime the
remedy had been used exactly according to my directions, and nothing had been
overlooked either in diet or in his mode of life. What then had been the reason
of my total failure? Under such circumstances the only reason could be the
defective or incorrect examination of the symptoms, so I went over them again
carefully, one by one. The mistake then appeared in the feverish symptoms,
which were only superficially indicated, and which in the patient had an unusual
and, therefore, unrecognized form, which was at the same time very
characteristic. For while sleeping he was suffering continually from a dry, burning heat, which
on his waking up immediately passed into a very profuse perspiration, which continued without
interruption while he was awake, until he fell asleep again, when at once the dry heat
reappeared. Thus the conundrum was solved. This symptom is found only in
Sambucus, while in Phosphorus just the opposite is found. Since all the other
symptoms coincided my patient received at once a dose of the high potency I
usually employ, and the result was then so complete that in two weeks he was
freed from all his ailments and felt as well as ever before.

Something concerning whooping cough.

By C. M. F. von Bœnninghausen
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

In the epidemy of whooping cough which has been raging this year and which is
not yet at an end, and which has again demanded numerous victims, the
superiority of homœopathy, as compared with allopathy, has again been
brilliantly proved. The sincere and honest adherents of the latter—and there are
many such—acknowledge themselves, openly, that this dangerous children’s
disease cannot be healed, nor even shortened by them, and I have learned of
several instances where an allopathic domestic physician directed the sorrowing
parents to me. It is, therefore, inexplicable how there may yet be physicians who,
with this self-confessed impotence of the old school, nevertheless still continue
to prescribe their mixtures in whooping cough, though they never help, but very
frequently are of mediate or immediate injury. For though the fatal nature of this
disease is not especially increased thereby, still a good deal of time is thereby
uselessly wasted, and what is worse for us, the natural indications on which the
selection of our remedies must be founded are, thereby, frequently so mixed up,
perverted and obscured, that an unnatural monster of a disease arises, which
does not correspond to any one homœopathic remedy, and, therefore, requires
several consecutively.

This last may, in part, be the chief reason why, as I have heard, homœopaths are
not so successful in their treatment of whooping cough as the present state of
our science might justly lead us to expect. We can not, indeed, deny that this
difficulty suggested presents quite a considerable obstruction, and that a disease
which has thus been muddled up is much more difficult to cure than a natural
one. But with a careful selection of the remedies the cure of such a disease,
though somewhat delayed, should, nevertheless, proceed safely and in a period
not too extended, and we must, therefore, especially take care not to be misled
by indications of no moment, but should always strenuously keep in view the
characteristics of every individual case.

To facilitate the selection I have established the following therapeutical diagnoses

in agreement with the experience gained in the present epidemy as well as in
some preceding ones. These contain in every case what is most essential for this
disease, can easily be looked over and, therefore, simplify as well as make sure
the selection of the remedy.

As a result from the latest experience, I would only add that the end is gained
most rapidly if the suitable remedy is given in a high potency and in a minimal
dose, dissolved in water, a teaspoonful being given morning and evening.

THERAPEUTIC DIAGNOSIS FOR WHOOPING COUGH

Carbo veg. Whooping cough in less frequent attacks (3 to 5 a day), most violent
in the evening and before midnight, with flowing catarrh, sneezing, lachrymation
of the eyes, and hoarseness, dyspnœa while walking in the open air, and sore
throat while swallowing. (Often indicated after Veratrum).

Cina. Attacks of whooping cough, preceded by rigid raising up in bed, as if

unconscious, and with paleness of the face. After the attacks, noise in the chest,
as if swallowing a liquid, moaning, gasping for breath, sneezing and vomiting.
(Often after Drosera).

Cuprum. Whooping cough in long uninterrupted attacks (without stooping), the

breath stops, succeeded by hoarseness, with vomiting of only solid food
(aggravated by taking solid food), relieved by drinking water, with chilliness all
day. (Often after Veratrum).
Drosera. Whooping cough, most violent after midnight, with ringing, quickly
succeeding shocks, not allowing one to take breath, face bluish-blackish; a
sensation of constriction in the chest and hypochondria, compelling one to press
on them with the hand; bleeding from nose or mouth, worse from drinking and
from the smoke of tobacco, at the end vomiting, first of food, then of mucus.
(Often after Sulphur).

Ferrum. Spasmodic whooping cough, dry in the evening, in the morning with
much purulent expectoration, streaked with blood, with sour vomiting of the
ingesta, stopped immediately by eating a little.

Hepar sulph. Whooping cough in dry, hoarse attacks increasing from evening
to midnight, with anxious, whistling respiration, as if about to suffocate,
compelling one to raise up quickly and bend back the head; swelling under the
larynx and strong beating of the carotids; aggravated by getting cold and by
drinking. (First noticed this summer).

Pulsatilla. Whooping cough (at first) in the evening and night dry, in the
morning with much expectoration, mostly bitter; aggravated in the warmth and
in a warm room, with dyspnœa in the lower part of the chest, relieved by raising
up, or by getting up out of bed.

Sulphur. Whooping cough (of scrofulous children) with short, successive

shocks, at night without, during the day with expectoration, paleness of the
face, asthma and retching aggravated during moist, cold weather, and during cold
weather.

Veratrum. Whooping cough with tightness of the chest, and vomiting of tough
watery mucus, with cold perspiration on the forehead, and with involuntary
urination, aggravated when coming from the cold into a warm room and from
drinking.

NOTE :

Any information given above is not intended to be taken as a replacement for

medical advice. Therefore, it is very important that the patients should avoid self-
treatment and rather consult the most abled and qualified classical homœopath
and take the treatment under his proper guidance and advice.
 Dr. Ruddock’s Clinical Directory.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Abscess :

--- Acute-Bell. or Acon. alt. Hep. S., Merc. Iod., Ars.

--- Chronic-Sil., Calc., Sulph., Phos. ; Chin. (excessive discharge).

--- Mammary- Phyto., Bry. (for the earliest symptoms) ; Bell. alt. Hep. S.;
Phos. (Chronic cases) ; Merc., China, and Spongiopiline ext.

Acid Dyspepsia (heartburn) : Carb-V., Bry., Nux-V. ; Lyc. (in elderly

persons) ; Puls. Verat. Alb.

After Pains : Sec., Coff., Puls., Arn., Cham., Croc.

Ague : Chin. or Quin. ; Ars. (chronic) ; Verat. Alb. (severe and obstinate) ;
Phos. Ac., Cedron ; Nux V. or Ipec. (much gastric disturbance) ; Sulph. Quin,
(obstinate, symptoms variable) ; Ign. (much chill with frequent paroxysms).

Alcohol : Effects or Excessive Use of Nux V., Opi., Ars., Caps., Ant. T. (gastric
irritation).

Alopecia (loss of hair) ; From Previous Illness, Grief, etc. Phos. Ac., Ign.,
Calc., Sil., Chin., Canth. (and ext. in pomade).

Thorough brushing with long-bristled hair-brushes.

--- From Mercury Carbo V., Hep.-S.

--- With Frequent Headache- Fluor. A., Nit-ac., Phos., Sep., Sulph., Calc.

Amaurosis (complete or partial loss of vision) : Bell., Euphr., Merc-Cor.,

Zinc., Hyos., Gels., Nux-V., Chin.

Amenorrhœa (absent or deficient monthly period) : Puls., Sep., Coni.

(chronic) ; Ferr. (with anæmia) ; Senecio, Sulph. See also Menstruation.

Anæmia (deficiency or poverty of blood) : Ferr., Chin., Phos-Ac., Ars., Sil.,

Helon.

Anger : Effects of Cham., Acon., Bry., Hyos., Coloc.

Angina Pectoris (breast-pang) : Ars., Dig., Samb., Verat-alb., Cact., Lach.,
Verat-Vir., Strych.

Ankles : Swelling of Ars., Chin., Bry., Phos., Ferr., Apis. Also rest in the prone
posture.

--- Weakness of Calc., Phos., Sulph., Sil.

Anus, Itching of Sulph., Nit-Ac. ; Cin., Ign. or Merc. (from worms) ; Ars.,
Acon., (burning itching with dryness) ; Sulphurous Acid ext.

--- Prolapsus of Ign., Nux-V., Podoph., Merc. Local bathing, injections, and
carefully returning the prolapsus.

Anxiety, Care, Grief, etc. ; Effects of : Ign., Aur., Nux-V., Phos. Ac., Puls.,
Gels., Chin.

Aphonia (loss of voice) : Acon., Caust. (catarrhal) : Bary-Carb., Phos., Merc.,

Ign. or Bell. (hysterical) ; Kali Hyd. (syphilitic) ; Arn. (from over use).

--- Chronic K. Bich., Hep. S., Phos., Carbo-V., Caust., Merc.

Aphthæ (Thrush) : Borax int. and ext. ; Merc., Ars., Sulph. ; Sulphurous Acid
Spray one part to ten of water.

Apoplexy : Acon., Opi., Bell., Glon., Nux-V.

Predisposition to Strict temperance in eating and drinking ; avoidance of

excitement, haste, heated rooms, etc.

Appetite : Loss of Chin., Nux-V., Puls., Rhus., Ars., Ferr.

--- Voracious or Depraved Calc., Cin., Nux-V., Sil., Verat.

Ascarides : see Thread-Worms.

Ascites (abdominal dropsy) : Apocy. C., Ars., Apis., Dig., Chin., Lyc.

Asthma : Ars., Acon., Ipec., Lob., Euphr., Cup., Sul.

--- Of Children Ant-T., Samb., Ipec., Ars., Cup.

Atrophy (wasting) : Iod., Calc., Sulph., Phos., Ars., Puls.

--- From Worms Cin., Merc., Ant. C.

Backache From Exertion Arn., Rhus., Bry., Gels.

--- From Painful Period Bell., Puls., Sec., Cocc., Plat.

--- From Spinal Irritation Chin., Ign., Nux-V., Gels. See also Lumbago,
Menstruation : Painful.

Baldness : see Alopecia.

Barbers' Itch : Ant-t., Cinnab., Ars.

Bed-Sores : Glycerine-cream or Calendula lotion ; also Calend. or Arn-plaster.

In bad chronic cases a water or air-bed.

Prevention of Washing the parts exposed to pressure morning and evening with
tepid water ; and, after drying with a soft towel, a little glycerine or glycerine-
cream should be rubbed evenly over the parts. When there is much redness, and
the skin is unbroken, a little brandy or other spirit of proof strength should be
applied.

Belching : see Eructations.

Bilious Attacks : Iris (sick-headache) ; Ipec ; Cham. (in children excitable

females) ; Bry., Acon., Nux-V., Puls., Ars.

Bites and Stings : Ledum, Apis., Rhus, Canth., all int. and ext.

Black-Eye : Arn. ext., immediately ; Ham. (broken skin or discolouration).

Bladder : Catarrh of Ant. C., Puls., Ferr., Canth., Cann.

--- Inflammation of Canth., Tereb., Apis, Acon.

--- Paralysis of Bary. Carb., Acon., Nux-V., Ars., Bell., Op. See also Urine.

Blear-Eyes : Euph., Sulph., Puls., Merc., Ars., Calc., Clemat.

Bleeding : see Hæmorrhage.

Blindness : see Amaurosis.

Bloody-flux : see Dysentery.

Bloody Urine : see Hæmorrhage : From the Bladder.

Blotches : Ars., Bell., Hep-S., Ant-C., Graph., Lyc., Clemat.

Boils : Bell., Sulph., Hep-S. ; Arn. (much pain) ; Apis (numerous and small) ;
Sulph., Hep-S. (to prevent recurrence).

Bones : Caries (decay) of Sil., Phos. Ac., Sulph., Calc.

--- Curvature of Calc., Sil., Sulph.

--- Exostosis (abnormal growth of) Aur., Merc-Iod.

--- Pains in Merc., Aur., Mez., Ars., Merc-Iod., Eup-pur.

Bowels : Inflammation of Acon., Bell., Coloc., Merc-c., Ars., Bry. : also hot
fomentations, poultices, or wet compresses.

--- Pain in see Colic. See also Constipation, Diarrhœa, Anus, etc.

Brain : Concussion of Arn., alt. Acon. or Bell.

--- Congestion of Glon., Bell., Acon.

--- Fever see Typhus-Fever.

--- Inflammation of Canth., Tereb., Apis, Acon.

--- Paralysis of Bary. Carb., Acon., Nux-V., Ars., Bell., Op.

Breast : see Abscess : Mammary.

Breast-Pang : see Angina Pectoris.

Breath : Fœtid Merc., Carbo-v., Spig., Aur., Acon., Puls.

Breathing : Difficult see Asthma, Bronchitis, Croup, etc.

Bright's Diseases : Ars., Phos., Merc-C., Tereb., Canth.

Bronchitis : Acute Acon., Ant.-T., Bry., Ipec., Phos., K-Bich.

--- In Children Phos., Ant-t., Lob.

--- In the Aged Carbo-v., Ant-t., Senega, Squill.

--- Chronic K. Bich., Hep-s., Phos., Carbo-v., Ars., K.-Hyd.

Bruises : Arn.(externally). See also Contusion and Ecchymosis.

Bunions : Verat-V., Arn., or Ruta, as a paint.

Burns and Scalds : Canth., Rhus, Kreos. or Urtica, ext. very dilute.

Cancer : Ars., Hydrast., Coni., Phyto.

Canker of the Mouth : K. Chlor., Merc., Ars., (Idiopathic) ; Carbo-V., Nit-Ac.

(mercurial) ; Sulphurous Acid Spray, locally.

Carbuncle : Bell., alt. Sulph. (early stage) ; Apis (much swelling) ; Ars. (bad
cases) ; Acon. (much inflammation) ; Sil. (indolent).

Caries (decay) of Bones ; Sil., Phos-ac., Aur., Nit-ac., Merc.

--- Of Teeth Kreos, Merc., Staph., Phos.

Cataract : Coni., Phos., Cann., Calc., Sil., Sulph., Sang., Bell.

Catarrh : see Cold-in-the Head.

Chancre (a syphilitic sore) : Merc., Nit-ac., K-Hyd., Phyto.

Change of Life : see Menstruation : Cessation of.

Chapped Hands : Arn., Calend., or Glycerine-Cerate.

Chicken Pox : Rhus, Sulph., Ant-t.

Chilblains : Petrol., Puls., Ham., or Rhus, int. and ext. Phos. Tamus Com.
Calend., or Kreas. ext.

Child-bed-Fever : see Puerperal Fever.

Chlorosis (green sickness) ; Ferr., Puls., Ferr-Iod., Sep., Calc.

Cholera : Malignant Camph., Verat., Cup., Ars.

Chordee : Acon. int. and ext. ; Gels., Bell., Canth., Chloral.

Chorea (St. Vitus's Dance) : Cupr., Agar., Verat-vir., Artem., Bell., Ign., Cimic.,
Ars.

Cirrhosis (a disease, contracted liver) : Phos., Merc-c., Dig., Ars.

Cold-in-the-Head : Acon., Ars., Merc., Nux-V. (stuffy cold) ; Euphr.
(lachrymation) ; K-Bich., K-Hyd., or Sulph. (chronic).

Cold-on-the-Chest : Bry. alt. Acon. or Phos. See also Bronchitis.

Cold Feet : see Feet.

Colic : Coloc. (with diarrhœa), Nux-v. or Plumb, constipation. Iris (flatulent

colic) ; Collin.

--- Lead Opi., Alum., Sulph-ac.

--- Menstrual Cocc., Platt., Nux-v., Sec., Ign.

Congestion of the Brain : Acon., Bell., Glon., Opi., Gels.

--- Of the Liver Merc., Bell., Aloes, Bry., Chin., Ars., Iod., Acon.

--- Of the Lungs Acon., Phos., Verat-vir., Ant-t., Bry.

Constipation : Nux-v., (frequent ineffectual efforts) ; Bry. or Opi. (torpor) ; Lyc.

(with flatulence) ; Sulph., Collin., or Æscul. (with piles) ; Plumb. (obstinate).

Consumption : Phos., Ars., Phos-ac., Ferr. Iod., Dros., Calc-Iod., Lyco. ; also
Acon. or Bry. (for occasionally symptoms).

--- Of the Bowels. Iod., Calc., Ferr., Sulph., Merc-Iod., Ars.

Contusion : Arn. ; Ham. (with discolouration) ; Conj ; (of the female breast) ;
Ruta (of the skin bone) ; all int. and ext.

Convulsions : Bell., Cham., Verat-vir., (with cramp) ; Gels. (rigidity) ; Opi. (from
fright). Also Enemata of warm water. See also Epilepsy.

--- Hysterical Camph., Moschus, Ign., Hyos.

Corns : Calc., Sulph., Also Arn. (simple), or Verat-vir. (inflamed), ext. use of.

Corpulency : see Obesity.

Cough : Catarrhal Acon., Bell., Bry., Caust.

--- Chronic K-Bich., Sulph., Phos., Bry.

--- Croupous Spong., Hep-s., Cupr.

--- Whooping Ipec., Dros., Coral., Nic-Ac., Verat-vir., Gels. or Bell. (head-
symptoms).

--- Hysterical Coral., Hyos., Ign.

In most cases cough may be modified by strong efforts of the will to resist it.

Courses : see Menstruation.

Cracks of the Lips, etc. : Graph., Merc Also Arn., Calend. or Glycerine. Cerate.
Aloes cures cracks in horses.

Cramps : In the Abdomen see Colic.

Cramps : In the Calves Verat., Nux-v., Arn., (from fatigue) ; Bell., Cupr., Gels.

--- In the stomach Nux-v., Dioscor., Cocc.

Crick-in-the-Neck : Acon. alt. Bell. (cold) ; Cimic., Bry.

Critical Age : see Menstruation : Cessation of.

Croup : Acon., alt. Spong., Iod., or Hep.

Cyanosis (the blue disease) : Dig., Ars., Cupr., Verat.

Cystitis (inflammation of the bladder) : Canth., Tereb., Apis.

Dandruff (scurf on the head) : Ars., Graph., Lyc., Sulph., Rhus.

Deafness : From cola Acon., Merc., Bell., Puls., Dulc.

--- From Enlargement of Tonsils Merc. Iod., Bell., Calc-Phos., Bary-carb.,

Iod., or K-Hyd. (chronic).

--- After Measles Puls., Sulph., Bell.

--- After Scarlatina Bell., Hep-s., Calc.

--- After small pox Merc., Sulph., Bell.

--- From Nervous Disease Phos., Phos. Ac., in ; Petrol. (noises).

Debility : Chin., Ferr., Phos., Phos-ac., (from l. of blood, etc.) ; Ign., Mosch.,
Phos-ac., Iod., Nux-V. (nervous).

Delirium Tremens : Stram., Opi., Bell., Hyos., Nux-v.

Dentition (difficult) : Calc., Cham., Acon., Kreos., Verat-Vir., Merc.

Depression of Spirits : Ign., Aur., Chin., Nux-V., Plat. ; Merc. or Podoph. (from
disordered liver) ; K-Brom.

Derbyshire Neck : Spong., Merc-Iod., Brom.

Determination of Blood : see Congestion.

Diabetes (excessive, sugary wine) : Phos-Ac., Ars., Nux-V., Helon.

Diarrhœa : From Indigestible Food Ant-C., Puls., Ipec.

--- From Cold Acon., Dulc., Merc., Camph. (sudden).

--- From Worm Cin., Ars., Merc.

--- With Colic Coloc., Verat.

--- Nocturnal Puls., Chin., Rhus, Nuphar (morning).

--- Summer Chin., Verat., Cham., Ars., Iris.

--- In Children Cham., Merc., Rheum. Ipec., Dulc., Ars., Iris.

--- In the Aged Phos., Ars., Chin., Ant-C.

Diathesis : a tendency to a particular disease.

Diphtheria : Merc. Cy., Bell., Phyto., K-Permang., Merc. Iod., Ars., Mur-Ac.,
Also Phyto. or Sulphurous Acid locally.

Dizziness : Acon., Bell., Nux-v., Cocc., Bry., Puls., Gels.

Dropsy : Ars., Apis., Dig., Bry., Chin., Apocy-C.

--- Of the Abdomen see Ascites.

--- Of the Brain see Water in the Head.

--- Of the Chest Dig., Ars., Bry., Hell.

--- Of the Extremities see Œdema.

--- Post Scarlatina Apis, Ars., Canth., Hell.

--- Of the Scrotum Iod., Rhod., Graph., Aur.

Drowsiness : Opi., Acon., Bell. ; Lyc. (after dinner).

Dysentery : Merc-C., Ipec., Ars., Aloes (chronic piles), Ham.

Dysmenorrhœa : see Menstruation : Painful.

Dyspepsia : see Indigestion.

Dyspnœa : (difficult breathing) : see Asthma, Bronchitis, etc.

Ear : Aching of Bell., Puls., Merc., Cham., Acon., Verat-Vir.

--- Discharge from Hep-s., Calc., Puls., Carbol-ac., Merc., Caust.

--- Soreness of Mur-ac., Puls., Caust, (eruption about the ear).

--- Inflammation of Acon., Bell., Puls., Merc. Sol.

--- Noises in Acon., Chin.-Sulph., Puls., Mosch., Nux-V., Sulph. Also

Sulphurous Acid Spray.

Ecchymosis (blankness under the skin) ; Ham., Arn., Rhus., Mur-Ac.

Eczema (a non-contagious itching eruption) : Ars., Calc., Merc., Rhus. ;

Crot. Tig., Sulph. (much itching).

Emaciation : see Atrophy : also Debility.

Emissions : see Spermatorrhœa.

Enuresis : see Urine : Incontinence.

Epilepsy : Bell., Cup., Hyos., Stram., Verat-Vir., Ign., Ars., Zinc., Calc.,
(chronic) : K-Brom. (as a palliative).

Epistaxis (bleeding from the nose) : Ham. (dark blood) ; Ipec. (bright
blood) : Puls. (absent or deficient period) : Bry., Acon.
Erections : Lyc., Phos-Ac., Nuphar (feeble, painful) ; Acon., Bels., Gels.
(spasmodic).

Eructations : Bry., Nux-V., Puls., Sulph. Ac., Lyc., Carbo-v,. Ars., Cham., Arg.,
Nat.

Eruptions : see Rash, Lepra, Eczema, etc.

Erysipelas : Acon., Bell., Rhus, Verat-vir., Apis., Canth., Ars.

Excoriations of Infants : Cham., Calc., Lyc., Sulph. Also Hydras. or Calend.

ext. ; or the parts dusted with powdered starch.

--- Preventive Tepid washing, followed by careful drying, morning and evening.

Eyelids : Agglutination (gumming) of Merc., Hep-s., Calc., Sulph., Puls.,

Smear the lids with Sulphur ointment at bed time.

Eyes : Inflammation of see Ophthalmia.

--- Sore Merc., Clematis, Nit-Ac., Euphr., Bell., Merc-C.

--- Squinting of (Strabismus) Bell., Hyos., Gels., Stram.

--- Weak Sulph., Phos., Iod., Bell.

--- Wounds of Arn. alt. Acon. ; Bell., Ham.

Faceache : Acon., Bell., Coloc., Spig. Cimic. (when the eyeballs are effected) ;
Cham., Sticta. See also Gum-boils.

Fainting : Mosch., Camph., Ign., Verat., Iod., Chin., Cocc.

Falling-Sickness : see Epilepsy.

Fatty-Degeneration : Phos., Ars., Ferr.

Feet : Blistered, etc., from walking Arnica bath.

--- Cold Sep., Puls., Ferr. The daily use of the skipping-rope.

--- Fœtid Sweat of Silic., Petro., Nit-Ac., Graph.

Fever : Simple Acon. or Verat-vir.

Fistula : Silic., Fluor-Ac., Calc. ; also Hydrast. ext.

Fits : see Convulsions and Epilepsy.

Flatulence : Nux-V., Carbo-V. (Stomach) ; Lyc. (bowels) : Chin.

Flooding : see Menstruation : Excessive.

Flushing : Acon. (from excitement) ; Nux-V. (after food) ; Bell. (with

headache) ; Cimic., Sep. (change of life).

Fright : Consequences of Opi., Acon., Ign., Cham.

Frog : see Aphthæ.

Frost-bite : see Chapped-hands : also Chilblains.

Gall-stones : Acon., Merc., Podoph., Nux-V., Chin. (preventive).

Ganglion : (an encysted tumour on a tendon of the foot or back of the hand) :
Ruta., Arn., Iod., Silic., Calc., Benzoic Ac.

Gastric Fever : see Typhoid Fever.

Gatherings : see Whitlow, Abscess, Boils, etc.

Giddiness : Bell., Nux-V., Bry., Acon., Puls., Gels.

Glands : Enlarged Merc. Iod., Baryt-Carb., Bell., Hep-S., Iod., Silic., Calc-Phos.,
Phyto.

Gleet : Cinnabar, Canth., Cann., Puls., Nux-V., Sulph., Matico.

Goitre : see Derbyshire Neck.

Gonorrhœa : Cann., Gels., Merc., Acon., Canth., Thuja, Cop.

Gout : Acon., alt. Bell., Colch. or Bry. (during an attack) ; Rhod., Cimic., Puls.,
Nux-V., Lyc., Arn. or Acon. ext.

Gravel : Lyc., Ant-C., Nux-V., Bry.

Green-sickness (Chlorosis) : Ferr., Puls., Sep., Coni.

Gum-boils : Acon. alt. Bell. (first symptoms) ; Merc., Silic., Hep-S., Phos. (to
prevent recurrence).

Gums : Scurvy of Merc., Nit-Ac., Carbo-V., Ars., Sulph.

Hæmoptysis (spitting of blood) : see Hæmorrhage.

Hæmorrhage : From the Bladder Canth., Tereb., Ham., Arn.

--- From the Anus see Piles.

--- From the Lungs Ipec., Phos., Ham., Arn., Mill., Acon.

--- From the Nose Acon., Ipec., Ham., Nux-V., Bry., Arn.

--- From the Stomach Ipec., Ham., Nit-Ac.

--- From the Womb Croc., Sab., Sec., Plat., Ipec., Cauloph.

--- In all cases of hæmorrhages, Iced-water should be sipped or small pieces of

ice swallowed.

Hands : Undue Moisture of Fluor-Ac.

--- Congested Bell. (red) ; Puls. alt. Sulph. (blue and cold).

Hair : Loss of see Alopecia.

Hay-fever : Sabad., int. and by olfaction : Euphr., Ipec., Ars.

Headache : Bilious Iris, Bry., Acon., Nux-V., Puls., Coloc., Ipec., Sep.

--- Catarrhal Acon., Bell., Merc., Nux-V., Bry.

--- Chronic Plat., Arg-Nit., Plumb., Zinc., Phos.

--- Congestive Bell., Glon., Acon., Verat-Vir., Nux-V.

--- Nervous (in one half of the head) Ign., Aur., Coff., Cham., Nux-V., Phos.,
Acon., Spig., Sulph-Quin.

--- Rheumatic Acon., Bry., Nit-Ac., Rhus., Spig., Phyto.

--- Sick see Bilious.

Heart : Disease of Cact. G., Dig., Naja., Acon., Spig., Ars., Phos., Ars. I., Bary-
C.

--- Feeble Action of Dig., Cupr., Mosch. (with fainting).

--- Inflammation of Membranes of Acon., alt. Spig., Bry., Ars.

--- Palpitation of Acon., Cact-G., Mosch., Nux-V., Phos., Puls.

--- Rheumatism of Spig., Bry., Cact-G., Cimic.

Heartburn : Puls., Bry., Carbo-v., Sulph-ac., Verat-alb. ; Calc-carb. (chronic).

Hectic Fever : Chin., Phos-ac., Ars., Sulph., Sang., Merc.

Hiccough : Nux-V., Acon., Ign., Sulph-Ac., Verat-vir.

Hip-joint Diseases : Silic., Phos., Calc-C., Ars., Sulph. : Acon. and Bell. (at first,
and when necessary). Also perfect rest.

Hoarseness : Bary-C., Caust., Phyto., Hep-S., Phos., Spong., Carbo-V., See also
Aphonia.

Hooping-cough : see Whooping-cough.

Hypochondriasis : Aur., Arg-m., Ig., Nux-V., Lyco., Anac.

Hysteria : Ign., Plat., Asaf., Valer., Cocc., Gels., Puls., Hyos.

Hysteric Convulsions : Camph., Mosch., Opi. (from fright). Also cold douche
to the face.

Impotence : Phos., Agnus-C., Nux-v., Ferr., Barry-C., Chin., Nuph., Phos-ac.

Incontinence of Urine : see Urine : Incontinence of.

Indigestion : Acute Acon., Ipec., Puls., Nux-v., Bry.

--- Chronic K. Bich., Hep-s., Carbo-v., Sulph., Chin., Lyc.

--- In Children Cham., Puls., Nux-V., Sulph., Ant-c.

--- In the Aged Ant-c., K-Bich., Carbo-v., Nux-v., Ars.

--- From cold Acon., Ars., Merc., Bry.

--- From Fat or Rich Food Puls., Ant-c.

--- From Anger Cham. (with bilious symptoms).

--- From Anxiety, Grief, etc. Ign., Chin., Nux-V. ; Puls.

Infants : Screams of Cham., Jal., Acon., K-Brom.

--- Soreness of see Excoriations.

--- Restlessness of Cham., Coff., Bell., Gels., K-Brom.

Influenza : Camph. (the chill stage) ; Acon. (chills and heats) ; Ars.
(prostration) ; K-Bich. (troublesome cough) ; Bapt.

Intermittent Fever : see Ague.

Itching of the Anus : see Anus.

--- Of the Skin Acon., Arg-nit., Mez., Sulph., Ars., Nux-v., Crot- tig. Also Mez.,
or Verat-vir. ext.

Jaundice : Acon., Bry., Merc., Chel-Maj., Ars., Phos. (malignant) : Chin., Nux.

Joints : Pain in Acon., Arg-m., Bell., Bry., Ruta, Swelling of Iod., Puls., Calc-c.,
Silic.

Kidneys : Inflammation of Canth., Tereb., Acon., Bell.

Knee : Inflammation of Acon. alt. Puls., Bry., Iod. (much swelling).

Labour pains : Cham., Puls., Coff., Gels.

--- False Puls., Cimic., Cocc., Nux-V., Bell.

Lead-colic : Opi., Alum., Plat., Bell., Sulph-ac.

Legs : Swelling of see Œdema.

Lepra (scaly patches on the skin) : Ars., Merc., Sulph., Iod.

Leucorrhœa : Sep., Cocc., Puls., Calc-c., Silic., Kreos. (corrosive) : Coni.
(chronic). Lotions of Hydrastis as injections. Also frequent ablusions, moderate
exercise in the open air, sufficient rest, and nutritious, digestible diet.

Liver : Enlargement of Merc-Iod., Also abdominal compress.

--- Inflammation of Acon., Bry., Merc-Cor.

--- Torpid Merc., Podoph.

Liver-complaint : Merc., Podoph. Nux-v., Sulph., Nit-ac., Phos., Lyco.,

Leptand.

Liver-Spots : Sulph., Borax, Lyc., Sep.

Lock-jaw : Acon., Bell., Arn., Nux-V., Gels.

Lowness of Spirits : see Hypochondriasis.

Lumbago : Ant-t. ; Arn. (from over-exertion) ; Rhus, (sudden, from

cold ; worse during rest) ; Cimic (muscular pains).

Lungs : Inflammation of Acon. alt. Phos., Bry., Chel. Maj., Ant-t.

--- Congestion of see Congestion.

Masturbation : Evils of see Spermatorrhœa.

Measles : Acon. alt. Puls., Gels., Bry., Bell., K-Bich (laryngeal cough) ; Sulph. (to
prevent sequelæ).

Megrim : see Headache : Nervous.

Melancholia : Aur., Ign., Plat., Phos., Zinc., Sulph. See also Hypochondriasis.

Memory : Weakness of Phos. Ac., Anac., Zinc., Opi., Ars.

Menstruation (the monthly period) : Delay of the First Puls., Ferr., Sep., Phos.,
Sulph. Sec., Cycla.

--- Irregular Sep., Puls., Sulph., Senecio.

--- Painful Cimic., Cocc., Croc., Bell., Cham., Puls., Plat., Ham., Ign., Gels., Sec.,
Verat.
--- Excessive Sec., Croc. (dark and clotted) ; Sab. (bright red) ; Acon., Calc-C.,
Ipec. ; Chin., (after excessive discharge).

--- Scanty Sep., Ferr., Puls., Coni., Sulph., Helon. (anæmia).

--- Suppressed Acon., Puls., Bell., Coni. (chronic) ; Sep., Plat. (Rhus, Sudden)
suppression further requires a hot hip-bath, after which the patient should retire
to a warmed bed.

--- Recurring too Early (in less than a mouth from commencement of previous
period) Calc-c., Sab., Ign. ; Kreos (offensive discharge) : Sec., Nux-v.

--- Recurring too Late Puls., Sulph., Ferr., Sep.

--- Vicarious Ham-v., Bry., Puls., Phos., Senecio.

--- Too Short Duration see Scanty.

--- Too Long Duration see Excessive.

--- Cessation of (change of life) Chin. or Ferr. (profuse discharge) ; Sulph.,

Glon., Lach., or Sang. (flushes) ; Cimic., Gels. (sinking at stomach. etc.).

Mesenteric Disease : see Consumption of the Bowels.

Mercury : For Effects of Large Doses of Nit-ac., Hep-s., Carbo-Veg.

Milk : Suppressed or Scanty Puls., Agnus. C. ; Acon. (with fever) ; Bell. (with
brain symptom).

--- Too Abundant Calc-c., Phos., Iod., Chin. (with debility).

Milk-Fever : Bry., Acon., Cham., Verat-vir., Bell.

Milk-Leg : Acon. alt. Ham. or Puls. ; Phos.

Milk Scab (vesicular eruption on the face of infants) ; Rhus Tox., Iris.,
Sulph., Viola Tri.

Miscarriage : Sec., Caul., Croc., Ipec., Cedron, Arn., Bell.

--- Threatened Puls., Cham., Bell., Sab., Arn., Sec. At the same time, the patient
should lie on a mattress, in a cool, well ventilated room, till all danger is past, and
avoid hot drinks.

--- Prevention of Sec., Calc-carb., Cimic., Chin., Cedron. Cold-sitz bath daily at
bed time, with the shoulders and legs wrapped warm.
Moles : Carbo-v., Sulph., Calend. ext.

Monthly Period : see Menstruations.

Morning Sickness : Ipec., Kreos, Nux-v., Puls., Iris.

Mosquitoes : Stings of Ledum ext. If a sting of mosquito or wasp remain in the

skin, the open end of the tube of a small key should be pressed firmly over the
part.

Mouth : Sore see Aphthæ ; also Canker.

Mumps : Merc-Iod., Merc-Sol., Merc-Cor., Bell., Puls.

Nævus (a natural mark or blemish) : Thuja, Kreos., ext.

Nausea : Ipec., Kreos., Ant-C., Lob., Tabac., Puls., Nux-V.

Neck : Crick in the Bry., Cimic., Dulc., Acon., Bell.

--- Stiffness of Bell., Bry., Lyc., Nux-v.

Nervous Debility : see Debility.

Nervousness : Cham., Coff., Ign., Hyos., Cimic., Gels., Chin., Occupation and
open-air recreation, See also Hysteria, Hypochondriasis, etc.

Nettle-rash : Apis., Rhus, Puls., Chloral, gr. j., thrice daily for an adult.

Neuralgia : In the Face Acon., Ars., Bell., Coloc., Cham., Spig., Gels., Sticta.

--- In the Head Glon., Bell., Nux-V., Sticta, Cimic.

--- In the Back Nux-v., Oxal. ac., Cimic., Verat.

--- In the Thigh (Sciatica) Coloc., Ars., Nux-v., Cann.

--- In the Side (intercostal) Rhod., Ars., Cimic.

Night-mare : Nux-v., Puls. A light diet, out-of-door exercise, and a sponge-bath

daily, are recommended ; also avoidance of suppers, stimulants, fatigue, and
heavy, close bed-clothes.

Night sweats : Chin., Ars., Phos-Ac., Merc. See also Hectic Fever.
Nipples : Sore Sulph., Sil. Also Calend., Hydras, or Arn. ext.

Nose bleed : Acon., Bry., Ipec., Ham-v., Puls. (in women) ; Chin. (in weak
persons) ; Arn. (from a blow).

Nose : Sore Ars., Sulph., Graph., Aur., Caust. ; Iod. (with fœtor).

Numbness and Tingling : Acon., Rhus., Nux-v., Arg-nit.

Obesity (excessive accumulation of fat) : Ars., Ferr., Calc-c., Sulph. Also and
chiefly, avoidance of starch and sugar.

Œdema (watery fluid under the skin) : Chin., Ferr., Apis., Ars.

Onanism : Evils of see Spermatorrhœa.

Ophthalmia : Catarrhal Acon., Merc., Euphr., Bell., Puls.

--- Chronic Clem., Calc-c., Sulph., Merc., Hep-s., Ars.

--- After Measles Puls., Sulph.

--- After Scarlatina Bell., Hep-S., Merc.

--- After Small-pox Merc., Sulph.

--- Scrofulous Calc., Iod., Graph., Hep., Sulph., Merc-C., Ars.

--- Syphilitic Merc-Cor., Nit-ac., Thuja, Aur.

--- In infants Arg-nit., Calc-c., Sulph., Merc.

Pains : see Neuralgia, Rheumatism, etc.

Painters' Colic : see Colic.

Palpitation : Mosch. (nervous) ; Acon., Spig., Bell., Cact-G., Phos., Puls., Ars.

Period : see Menstruation.

Paralysis : Baryt-c., Nux-v., Arg-nit., Plumb., Rhus, Phos., Gels., Acon.

Perspire : Tendency to Chin., Merc., Verat., Carbo-v.

Photophobia (intolerance of light) : Bell., Ant-t., Merc-cor., Euphr., Calc., Ign.

Phthisis (to waste away) : see Consumption.

Piles : Sulph., Ham., Collin., Aloes, Nux-v., Æscul. ; Ham. ext.

Pimples : Bell., (in the full-blooded) ; Puls. (in girls) : Sulph. K-Bich., Ant-C.,
Hep-s.

Pleurisy : Acon. alt. Bry. ; Phos., Iod., Ars.

Polypus : Merc-Iod., K-Bich., Teuc., Calc.

Prolapsus : Of the Anus Ign., Nux-v., Podoph., Merc.

--- Of the Womb- Stann., Sec., Bell., Sepia., Nux-v., Helon.

Prostatitis (Inflammation of the prostate) : Bell., Puls., K-Hyd.

Prostration : see Debility.

Proud-Flash : Silic., Fluor-ac., Nit-ac., Phos.

Puerperal (child-bed) Fever : Acon., Bell., Bry., Stram.

Purple-rash : Bell., Cham., Calc-c.

Prurigo (a popular eruption, with intolerable itching) : of the Anus Nit-ac.,

Sulph. Also Glyc. of Hydrast., or freshy made chloroform ointment (1/2 dr. ad.
adipis 1/2 oz.) ext.).

--- Of the Pudendi Acon., Sulph., Sep., Lyc., Collin. ; Glyc. of Hydrast., or a
solution of Borax (pulv. Boracis grs. xx. aq. ij. ext.).

--- Of the scrotum Petro., Merc-Cor., Nit-ac., Rhus, Acon. Also frequent
ablutions with tepid or cold water.

Quinsy : Bell., Bary-c., Merc-iod., K. Permang (as a gargle, gr. xii. ad. aq. des. 4
oz.).

Rash : During Teething Cham. ; Ant-c. (with Diarrhœa) ; Ars. (with

prostration).
Red-Gum (Infant rash) ; Ant-c., Bry., Cham., Puls. see Rash.

Relaxed Bowels : see Diarrhœa.

Relaxed Throat : K-Bich., Hep-S., Bary-C., Phyto., Phos.

Remittent Fever : Gels. (specially in children) ; Ars., Verat., Chin., Ipec., Rhus.

Retention of Urine : Canth., Nux-v., Opi., Acon., Camph., Cann.

Restlessness of Children : Coff., Cham., Acon., Bell., Gels.

Rheumatic Fever : Acon., Bry., Bell., Cimic.

Rheumatism : Of the Back see Lumbago.

--- Of the Chest (intercostal muscles) Rhod. Chrys., Bry., Arn.

--- Of the Heart Spig., Cimic., Cact-G., Bry., Dig.

--- Of the Joints Ruta, Bry., Rhus, Cimic., Caust., K-Hyd.

--- Of the Neck Bry., Rhod-Chrys.

--- Chronic Rhus., Arn., Sulph., Rhod.-Chrys., Cimic., K-Hyd.

Rickets : Silic., Calc-c., Sulph. Also out door air, cold or tepid salt-water baths,
and a teaspoonful of cod-liver oil twice a day.

Ring-worm : Of the Scalp Sep. ; also Sulphurous Ac. ext.

--- Of the Skin Tellur., Rhus, Sep., Sulph.

Rush of Blood : see Congestion.

Salivation : From Mercury Nit-Ac. ; Iod., Hep-S. Non-Mercurial Merc.

Scabies (the itch) ; Sulphur ointment.

Scald-Head : Calc-Phos., Ars., Sulph., Ant-c., Lyc. ; Rhus int. and ext.

Scalds see Burns.

Scarlatina : Simple Acon. alt. Bell. ; Sulph. (convalescence).

--- With Throat Affection (anginosa) Merc-Apis.

--- Malignant Ailanthus Gland., Ars., Merc.-Ac., Carbo Veg., Condy's Fluid
topically.

--- Preventive Bell.

Sciatica : Coloc., Rhus, Ars., Nux-V., Cann.

Scorbutus (Scurvy) : Merc., Nit-Ac., Carbo veg., Ars.

Screams of Infants : Cham., Acon., Jal., Bell.

Scrofulous Affections : Iod., Calc-c., Sulph., Phos.

Scurvy of the Gums : see Gums.

Sea-sickness : Petrol., Cocc., Tabac., Nux-v.

Self-abuse : Evils of see Spermatorrhœa.

Shingles : Rhus Tox., Sulph.

Sick-headache : Iris, Ipec., Puls., Nux-v., Sep.

Sickness : Ipec., (simple) ; Puls. (from rich food) ; Nux-v. (from alcohol) ; Iris,
Ant-t. See also Vomiting.

--- Morning Ipec., Kreos., Nux-V., Puls., Ars.

Skin : Itching of Arg-nit., Sulph., Ars., Mez. ; Verat-vir. (painful sensitiveness).

See also. Excoriations, Prurigo, Scabies, etc.

Sleepiness : Opi., Bell., Acon. ; Lyc., (after dinner).

Sleeplessness : Coff., Bell., Hyos., Gels., Verat-V., Glon., Ign., Avena.

Small-pox : Ant-Tart., Merc., Bell., Bry., Sulph.

Smell : Loss of Puls., Merc., Gels., Acon., Sang., Calc-c., Plumb.

Sneezing : From a Cold Merc., Ipec., Acon., Ars.

Sore Eyes : Merc., Clematis, Sulph., Calc-c., Euphr., Nit-Ac.

Sore Throat : Acon., Bell., Merc. ; K-Permang. or Phyto. as a gargle.

Soreness of Infants : see Excoriations.

Spasms and Cramps : Camph., Nux-v., Coloc., Verat., Cocc., Gels.

Spermatorrhœa : Phos., Chin., Ferr., Phos-Ac., Arg-m., Gels.

Spine : Concussion of Arn., Hypericum.

--- Irritation of Chin., Ign., Nux-v., Gels.

Spitting of Blood ; See Hæmorrhage ; From the Lungs.

Sprains : Rhus tox., Arn. or Ruta, int. and ext.

Squinting : Bell., Hyos., Gels., or Stram. (cerebral causes) ; Cina. (from

worms) : Spig., Phos.

Stammering : Bell., Hyos.

Sterility : Phos., Plat., Coni., Bary-c., Cann., Sep., Borax.

Stiff-neck : Bry., Cimic., Bell.

Stings : Lep., Apis, or Rhus, int. and ext. See also Mosquitoes.

Stitches in the Chest : Bry., Acon., Cimic., Phos.

Stomach : Acidity of Puls., Nux-v., Bry., Lyc., Carbo-V., Calc.

--- Inflammation of Acon., Ars., Bell., Phos.

Stomach : Ulceration of Ars., Hydrast. K-Bich.

Stone and Gravel : Lyc., Nux-V., Calc., Cann.

Stricture of the Urethra : Acon., Nux-V., Canth., Cann.

St. Vitus's Dance : Agaricus., Bell., Cap-M., Artem., Stram., Zinc., Ars., Cimic.,
Ign., Verat-Vir.

Stye : Puls., Sulph., Merc., Staph. (to prevent return).

Summer complaint (diarrhœa) : Chin., Iris., Bry., Ant. Crud.

Sunstroke : Camph., Bell., Glon., Gels., Verat-Vir.

Suppuration : Silic., Hep-S. ; Chin (when very profuse).

Sweat : Undue Phos-ac., Calc-c., Sulph., Phos., Samb., Verat.

--- Fœtid, Under the Arms Petrol, Carbo Veg.

--- Tendency to Chin., Merc., Verat., Carbo Veg.

Sweaty Feet and Hands : Sil., Nit-Ac., Petro., Graph.

Swellings : Dropsical Ars., Apis, Dig., Apocy-C.

--- Glandular Merc., Bell., Hep-S., Calc-C.

--- Of the Face Merc. (from Gum-boil) ; Bell. or Cham. (from Toothache) ;
Apis (from Erysipelas); Chin. or Ars. (dropsical).

--- Of the Feet (Œdema) Ars., Ferr., Apis, Dig., Chin.

--- Of the Joints Iod., Bry., Puls., Bell.

--- White Bry., Iod., Silic., Calc-C., Sulph.

Syphilis : Merc., Nit-Ac., Thuja, Arg-nit., Aur.

Tape Worm : Fil-Mas., Kous., Sabad., Cin., Sulph., Ign.

Taste Impaired : Puls., Merc., Plumb.

Teeth : see Toothache, and Dentition.

Testicles : Enlargement of Puls., Clematis, Spong., Arn., Aur., Acon., Also the
use of a suspender.

--- Wasting of Iod., Coni.

Tetters : Dry Merc., Iod., Ars., Petro.

--- Moist Acon., Rhus, Ars., Phyto., Graph., Calc., Sulph.

Thread worms : Cina., Teucrium, Ign., Chin.

Throat : Sore Acon., Bell., Merc., Hep-s., Puls., Phyto., as a gargle.

Thrush : Borax, Merc., Ars., Sulph. Also Sulphurous Ac., Spray.

Tic doloureux : see Neuralgia.

Tongue : Coated Ant-c. (milky-white) ; K-Bich. (yellowish); Puls. (roughish-
white) ; Rhus., Bapt. (brownish).

--- Swollen Bell., Merc., Acon., Mur-ac.

--- Ulcerated Merc., Nit-ac., Hydras, as a wash.

Tonsils : Enlarged Bell., Merc. Bin., Calc., Phos., K-Hyd., Bary-C.

--- Inflamed see Quinsy.

Toothache : Acon., alt. Bell. (redness of face. with throbbing) ; Puls.

--- From Decay Kreos., Merc., Stamp., Phyto ; see Gum-boil.

--- Nervous Coff., Cham., Ign., Gels.

--- Of Children Cham., Kreas.

--- Of Pregnancy Bell., Nux-V., Cham., Coff.

Tumors : Nervous Acon., Ign., Chin., Coff., Bell., Nux-vom. (from stimulants).

Tuberculosis (the condition of the body in which tubercles are deposited) : Iod.,
Phos., Calc-C., Ferr. Iod.

Tumors : see Swellings.

Typhoid : (Enteric) Fever : Bapt., Ars., Mur-ac., Rhus.

Typhus Fever : Acon., Bry., or Verat-Vir., Ars., Hyos., Bell., Phos.

Ulcers : Hydras., Silic. or Kali-Bich. int. and ext. ; Bell., Lyc.

--- In the Leg Bell., Ars., Merc. (syphilitic) ; Caust., Hydras., int. and ext.

Urine : Bloody Canth., Tereb., Ham.

--- Burning or Scalding Canth., Cann., Gels., Acon.

--- Fœtid Ac., Bary., Tereb., Nit-ac.

--- Painful Passage of Apis, Canth., Lyc., Nux-V., Cann.

--- Incontinence of Lyc., Eup-per., Bell., Caust., Cin. (from worms) ; Caust.,
Phos.-Ac., Gels.(in the aged) ; Canth., Ferr.

--- Retention of Canth., Nux-V., Opi., Camph.

Varicose Veins : Ham., Puls., Fluor-Ac.

Voice : Loss of see Aphonia and Hoarseness.

Vomiting : From Indigestible Food Puls., Ant-C., Ipec., Iris.

--- Chronic Kreas., Ars., Hydras.

--- Of Blood Ipec., Ham., Nit-Ac., Chin.

Walking : Delay of the Power of Calc-C., Phos., Sulph.

Wakefulness : Coff., Bell., Gels., Glon.

Warts : Thuja, Rhus Tox., or Nit-Ac. int. and ext. Sulph.

Wasting : see Atrophy.

Water brash : Lyc., Nux-V., Carbo Veg., Bry., Ars.

Water : In the Chest Bry., Ars., Dig., Apis.

--- In the Head Hell., Bell., Apis, Verat-Vir. or Gels. (with convulsions).

Watery Blood : Ferr., Chin., Phos. Sep. See also Anæmia.

Weakness see Debility.

 Cassia Sophera.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Taken from "Hompath"

MIND.

Absent minded.

Anxiety, Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving, future about ;
thinks that bad days are approaching ; without any reason ; with restlessness ;
fear of losing way to home ; afraid to go to sleep lest his heart would stop
(beating).

Desires to be alone (seeks solitude) ; Signs symptoms confirmed during the

second proving. to weep ; to walk in open in air ; to lie down quietly ; Signs
symptoms confirmed during the second proving. to go home.

Aversion to talk to others, Signs symptoms confirmed during the second

proving. without any apparent reason.

Impulse (wants) to commit suicide.

Changeable mood, sudden change in likes and dislikes (fickle minded).

Concentration difficult while studying ; confusion.

Contradictions intolerable, lead to anger.

Forgetful ; forgets as to where he has kept a particular article ; of his duties, of

facts ; goes away without locking his room (forgets to lock his room).

Laziness, lethargy.

Sad, depressed ; dullness of mind.

See (imagines) ghosts on closing the eyes.

VERTIGO.

Vertigo. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- with nausea, agg. standing, rising from a lying position, amel. lying down.
Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Vertigo with dim vision.

Vertigo during fever ; feels as if intoxicated, agg. movement.

Vertigo, feels as if he will fall forward.

Giddiness followed by nausea.

HEAD.

Heaviness of head, agg. by talking, amel. by keeping quiet.

Shooting pain in the head, agg. exertion, walking, amel. lying down, pressure.

Forehead.

Heaviness in the forehead, agg. evening, exertion, stooping forward, amel.

morning, lying down, pressure.

Bursting pain in the forehead. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving., agg.

---movement, exertion, bending the head forward, amel. pressure, tight bandage
around the head, open air, lying down. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

Dull aching pain in the right supra-orbital region. Signs symptoms confirmed
during the second proving.

--- extending to the left side and spreading to whole of the frontal region, amel.
night, pressure, lying down. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.

Hammering pain in the forehead, agg. by heat, amel. gentle pressure.

Stitching pain in the forehead, agg. lying down, movement, noise, talking,
walking, amel. pressure, rest, after sleep, walking, warmth, cold (in general ?),
lying down.

Sensation of heat in the forehead, agg. sun. amel. cold bath.

Stitching pain in supra-orbital region, agg night, movement, walking, amel. lying
down, pressure ; pain spreading over whole head.

Throbbing pain in the forehead, amel. bandage.

Temporal.

Dull aching pain in temporal and frontal regions. agg. 11 a. m., amel. hard
pressure.

Stitching pain in the right temporal region, agg. movement, talking, amel. lying
down, pressure, when quiet, rest ; pain spreading over whole head.

Parietal.

Shooting pain on right side, with nausea and cold perspiration on the body ;
accompanied by pressing pain in and above the right eye, agg. on opening eyes,
amel. Keeping the eyes closed.

Occiput.

Heaviness in the occipital region, agg. exertion, warmth, amel. washing head with
cold water, lying down, pressure.

Pain in the occipital region, bursting pain, amel. pressure, while lying (rest).

Constrictive, drawing pain in the occipital region, agg. warmth (in general ?),
mental exertion, movement, amel. closing the eyes, washing head with cold
water, lying down ; pain extending to the forehead.

Smarting, mild pain in the occiput, agg. movement, amel. while lying down. (A
prover who used to have periodical headache following corneoplasty got relieved
of headache during the course of proving).

EYES.

Burning of the eyes, agg. movement, pressure, warmth, amel. lying down, after
sleep, cold application.
Heaviness of the eyelids, amel. cold open air.

Itching of the upper eyelids, agg. sunlight, amel. cold application.

Pain in both the eyes, agg. bending head forward.

Dull aching in both the eye balls, amel. closing the eyes.

Stitching pain in upper eyelids, agg. sunlight, amel. warm application

(fomentation) ; left eyelid, amel. cold application.

Throbbing pain in right upper eyelid, agg. night, movement of eye lids, amel.
daytime, closing the eyes, lying down.

Redness of eyes. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- during fever ; redness of left eye, redness of the right eye, agg. open air ;
redness of upper eyelids (left eyelid in one prover and right eyelid in another
under the influence of mother tincture).

Watery discharge (lachrymation) from the right eye.

Sensation of sand like foreign body in the eyes.

Sensation as if eyes are full of tears which were actually not there ? amel. cool
open air.

Stye on the right upper eyelid ; stye on the left upper eyelid (in different provers).

Swelling of right eyelids. (Trachoma disappeared in one of the provers during the
course of proving).

Vision.

Blurred vision during the menstruation.

Dim vision during vertigo ; with depression, amel. cold application, after sleep.

Foggy vision during menstruation.

EARS.

Flushes of heat in the ears during vertigo.

Itching in the right ear.

Pain in the left ear, radiating from throat, on swallowing.

Throbbing pain in the right ear extending to left ear and teeth with feverish
feeling and headache ; pain appearing and disappearing suddenly, agg. night, lying
down, movement. (local examination revealed otitis externa).

Aching in the ears, agg. eating.

NOSE.

Blockage of both the nostrils at night. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

---, agg. cold, amel. daytime, warmth ; followed by watery nasal discharge.

Blockage. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- of the left nostril.

Coryza. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, fluent. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, thin, watery, bland profuse discharge with sneezing, after getting wet, agg.
night, walking.

Coryza, acrid. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Watery discharge. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, agg. night, walking.

Dryness in the nose in the morning followed by watery nasal discharge as the day
advances.

Sneezing with irritation in both the nostrils after exposure to cold and after
bathing.

Macular eruptions on the bridge of the nose turning into painful vesicles, with
pricking pain, amel. cold application. (Physical examination of a prover
conducted after the conclusion of proving revealed a deviated nasal septum
which was not there earlier. On the other hand another prover who had a
deviated nasal septum before the commencement of the proving manifested its
correction at the end of the proving ?).

FACE.

Shooting pain in the upper jaw at night preventing sleep.

Ulcer on the lower lip.

Eruption around the right corner of the mouth with tenderness.

Perspiration on the face during fever.

MOUTH.

Dryness of mouth with marked thirst.

Excessive salivation with impaired taste.

Small boils on the gums near left upper premolar tooth, very painful to touch.

Small pustular eruptions in the middle of upper lip.

Tongue coated white, yellow ; yellow coating on the tongue during fever.

Bitter taste.

Teeth.

Pain in the teeth and gums with earache, agg. eating, throbbing pain in left upper
first molar. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, agg. pressing teeth together.

THROAT.

Burning sensation in the throat, agg. cold air, cold application, swallowing, amel.
hot tea (throat examination revealed congestion of post pharyngeal wall).
Dryness of the throat. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, amel. sipping cold water. (throat examination revealed inflamed pharyngeal
and laryngeal mucosa).

Sensation of heat in the throat, Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving. spreading over to whole body, amel. cold drinks.

Irritation in the throat at night.

Dull pain in the throat, agg. swallowing, hot drinks, amel. cold beer (drinks ?).

Pain in the throat with sensation as if a lump of mucus is lodged in the throat
which is difficult to raise. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, expectoration scanty, white, mucoid, stringy, salty.

Pricking pain in the throat on right side, with weakness agg. swallowing, talking
(throat examination revealed bilateral follicular tonsillitis and congestion of post
pharyngeal wall) ; with soreness and hoarseness of voice, agg. morning, talking,
amel. warmth, hot drinks.

Stabbing pain in the throat on right side, amel. swallowing, cold things (throat
examination revealed bilateral follicular tonsillitis and pharyngitis).

Stitching pain in the throat, agg. morning, evening cold, swallowing, drinking,
amel. noon, gargling with warm water.

Tearing pain in the throat with rawness, hoarseness of voice, agg. night, cold
drinks, amel. lying down, tea, warmth.

Ulcerative pain in the throat (feels as if an ulcer is formed in the throat), agg.
warm drinks, talking, amel. lying down quietly.

Tickling sensation in the throat followed by dry, irritating cough, watery nasal
discharge, heaviness of head, thirstlessness.

Sensation as if something is lodged in the throat, agg. eating, cold drinks, empty
swallowing, amel. hot drinks.

STOMACH.

Appetite diminished (lack of ?) ; from 7 p. m. to 9 p. m. (his usual time for

evening meals), but appetite returns afterward ; feels as if abdomen is full.
Excessive hunger with gnawing sensation in the epigastrium, amel. eating, milk
from.

Aversion to bread.

Desires salty things.

Thirst, excessive. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- for large quantities of water at frequent and long intervals. Signs symptoms
confirmed during the second proving.

--- occasionally at short intervals. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.

Thirst for small quantities of water at frequent intervals. Signs symptoms

confirmed during the second proving.

Thirstlessness. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Nausea and retching ; with bitter taste ; preceded by giddiness.

Vomiting, dark clotted blood, with feverish feeling.

Boring pain in the epigastrium with nausea after eating fried rice.

ABDOMEN.

Flatulence. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- with distension of abdomen, agg. morning, evening, amel. eating after,
drinking water, eructations, passing flatus. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

Heaviness of the abdomen with gurgling sound, agg. movement, walking, amel.
after passing stool, while lying, rest.

Burning pain in the umbilical region and hypogastrium ; excessive flatulence with
a desire to take cold things ; pain amel. lying on abdomen, after passing stool,
after passing flatus.

Cutting pain in the epigastrium, agg. evening, eating after, amel. on empty
stomach.

Dull pain in the lumbar region, agg. evening, amel. after passing stool.
Intermittent cutting pain in the hypogastrium followed by diarrhœa ; stool mixed
with mucus and blood, agg. after passing stool, amel. night.

Griping pain in abdomen followed by nausea and retching, agg. movement, amel.
pressure ; griping pain in the epigastrium, appearing and disappearing suddenly,
with distension of abdomen and nausea, amel. after passing stool, after passing
flatus.

Piercing pain in the left lower abdomen followed by nausea, pain radiating
upwards, with restlessness, anxiety and thirst for small quantities of water at
frequent intervals, agg. cold, movement, amel. fomentation.

Squeezing. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, crampy. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, colicky. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Pain in the right hypochondrium. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving. extending to chest with anxiety and loss of sleep, agg. eating after, fatty
food, changing position, lying on right side, bending forward. Signs symptoms
confirmed during the second proving.

---, walking. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, amel. on empty stomach, gentle pressure, rest, bending forward. Signs
symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, lying on left side, walking. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.

Dull aching, stitching, piercing pain in iliac region, agg. movement, walking, amel.
pressure.

Pain in the epigastrium, extending to right hypochondrium, agg. sitting, walking,

amel. lying down, pressure.

Pain in left hypochondrium, agg. on empty stomach, 5-8 p. m., amel. eating after.

RECTUM AND STOOL.

Constipation with no desire to pass stool for 3-4 days.

Ineffectual urge to pass stool. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.
--- ; stool passed after great straining. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

Heaviness in upper part of the abdomen before passing stool.

Stool semisolid, preceded by pain in epigastrium ; whole of the abdomen.

Stool mixed with mucus ; with tenesmus, pain in the rectum continuing for
sometime after passing stool ; with pain in the epigastrium, agg. during the day,
amel. night.

Stool yellow, thin, watery.

URINARY ORGANS.

Urine scanty, yellow ; burning pain in the urethra during and after micturition.

GENITALIA.

Male.

Drawing pain in the right testicle and spermatic cord with swelling and
tenderness, agg. least touch, movement, warmth, amel. cold (in general ?).

Female.

Menstruation delayed by 3 days, with excessive perspiration on the palms ; with

scanty leucorrhœal discharge before the onset of menstruation (for three days).

Menstruation early by 7-8 days, blackish-red, offensive, fish like odour ; colicky
pain in lower abdomen on first day ; with burning of palms and soles ; with
burning and drawing pain in the eyeballs and blurred vision, as if looking through
mist.

COUGH.

Dry cough with irritation. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.
(tickling sensation in the throat), with stitching pain in the lower chest,
diminished (or lack of) appetite ; increased thirst for cold water, must drink every
hour, agg. walking, coughing, amel. lying down, hot drinks.

Cough with pain on left side of the chest ; thick, yellow expectoration ; redness,
pain, itching and watery discharge from the eyes, agg. early morning, evening.

RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.

Difficult breathing (dyspnœa) (preceded by cough ?).

CHEST.

Burning sensation and tightness in the middle of the chest with cough.

Dull, pressing pain on left side of the chest with difficulty in breathing after an
exposure to damp weather (during damp weather ?), agg. movement, cold, amel.
lying on right side, drinking hot milk (hot drinks ?).

Pain, as if bruised on the right side of the chest, agg. morning, touch, pressure.

Pain on the left side of the chest during cough. Signs symptoms confirmed
during the second proving.

---, thick yellow expectoration, agg. early morning, evening.

Pain in the chest with feverish feeling.

Stitching pain on right side of the chest during cough with irritation in the throat,
agg. bending backward, inspiration, amel. bending forward.

Trembling (muscular twitching ?) like feeling in cardiac region with great fear,
agg. lying on left side, amel. lying flat on back.

BACK AND NECK.

Backache during fever.

Pain in the scapular region. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.
---, agg. cold air, amel. heat of sun, pressure.

Pain in lumbar region, agg. bending forward, amel. pressure.

Pinching pain in a spot about left shoulder, agg. lying down, amel. pressure.

Lightning like pain in the cervical and thoracic regions, especially on moving the
head to left side, followed by throbbing pain in frontal and temporal regions, and
sore, bruished feeling in the calf muscles, amel. rest, pressure.

Pressing pain in the right scapular region, agg. cold air, amel. heat of sun,
pressure.

Pressing pain in middle of spine (back-lumbo-thoracic region ?), agg. bending

forward, inspiration, walking, amel. sitting.

Boil like eruptions accompanied by itching, agg. in bed (heat of ?), heat of sun,
perspiration, amel. open air, bathing.

Sensation of heaviness in the neck, agg. bending forward, amel. pressure.

Perspiration on the neck during fever.

EXTREMITIES.

Eruptions, boils like, pustular, on forearms, fingers, right hip, knees ; vesicular
eruption on dorsum of the feet, agg. night, scratching, warmth, amel. noon, cold.

Itching of extremities, agg. noon, night, heat of sun, warmth, in bed (heat of),
uncovering, scratching, perspiration, amel. cold, open air, bathing.

Profuse perspiration of palms and soles, lasting for a few minutes.

Upper Extremities.

Bruished feeling and soreness in left arm, agg. raising arm, pressure, walking ;
extending upward, from elbow to corresponding shoulder.

Pain. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- (mild) in left arm, agg. raising the arm, amel. pressure.
Pain in the right upper arm, fingers (first phalangeal joints) and thumb, agg.
movement, cold application amel. massage, rest, warmth.

Pressing pain in right upper arm, agg. movement, amel. pressure.

Tearing pain in the left shoulder, agg. pressure, movement, lying on left side,
amel. lying on right side, sitting quietly.

Numbness of the right shoulder.

Painful swelling of the right upper arm, right middle finger with stiffness (first
phalangeal joint), agg. movement, cold application, amel. rest, warmth.

Eruptions, painful, itchy, small boil like, pustular, on forearms, in the webs of
fingers of left hand ; itching agg. night, noon, cold.

Itching of the forearms, agg. noon, night, warmth, amel. cold.

Urticarial rash, agg. warmth.

Lower Extremities.

Heaviness and dull aching in the thighs, agg. cold air, getting up (rising from a
sitting position ?), amel. pressure, continuous movement.

Pain in the lower limbs. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, amel. walking fast ; with aching in right arm, agg. lying down, sitting, amel.
pressure.

Pain in the right knee extending to corresponding ankle.

Pain in calves, amel. pressure.

Pain, bruished feeling and soreness of lower limbs.

Shooting pain in the left knee (anterior surface), agg. pressure, walking, amel.
sitting.

Tearing pain in both the hip joints and calf muscles of left leg, agg. pressure,
movement, lying on left side, amel. lying on right side, sitting quietly.

Tearing pain in the left leg, agg. warmth, amel. pressure.

Tearing pain starting in both the knee joints and then spreading all over, agg.
movement, amel. lying down.

Tearing and dull aching with trembling in the knees, agg. standing, amel,
movement.

Tiredness, feeling of, in the lower limbs, agg. sitting, daytime, amel. walking,
movement, night.

SKIN.

Itching all over the body. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, agg. night. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, amel. scratching. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- ; more on lower extremities with small vesicles and pustules. Signs symptoms
confirmed during the second proving.

---, agg. uncovering, scratching, heat.

Intense itching with eruptions in hypogastric region, burning pain after

scratching, sticky discharge, agg. after scratching, night, warmth, uncovering,
amel. open air, while scratching.

Ringworm like eruptions on thighs.

Macular eruptions on the bridge of the nose, turning into painful vesicles, with
pricking pain, amel. cold application.

Macular eruptions about the left corner of mouth, appearing in a crop, with
itching.

Rash. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- over thighs with intense itching, agg. washing with cold water, amel. rubbing
gently.

Painful pimple like eruption in the middle of the upper lip.

Small boil like painful eruptions with itching. Signs symptoms confirmed during
the second proving.
---, discharging yellowish pus. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second
proving.

---, agg. scratching after. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Urticarial eruptions over forearms.

SLEEP AND DREAMS.

Drowsiness.

Disturbed sleep. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, restlessness before midnight.

Sleeplessness before midnight.

Awakes at about 3 a. m. with fright, with heaviness of head and dark spots
before the eyes in the morning.

CHILL AND FEVER.

Chill followed by fever. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- (temp. 100°F) with thirst for large quantities of water at long intervals ; with
bruished feeling all over the body and throbbing pain in the head from 1.00 a. m.
to 6.00 a. m.).

Chill followed by fever and perspiration. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

--- with bodyache as if beaten, with dryness of the mouth and throat, thirst for
large quantities of water at short intervals. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

--- (but afraid to drink water lest chill may aggravate) ; tongue dry, coated yellow ;
lack of appetite ; desire salty things ; stool semisolid, scanty ; agg. walking, amel.
lying down quietly.

Chill with fever followed by perspiration. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.
--- ; with bruished sensation all over ; dryness of mouth and throat with
diminished thirst ; with burning during micturition.

Remittent fever.

Fever with bodyache, restlessness and weakness, agg. lying, amel. open air.

Fever in the evening preceded by chill. Signs symptoms confirmed during the
second proving.

---, begins in the lower limbs ; lame, bruished feeling all over the body ; redness
of eyes ; with perspiration on face and neck. Signs symptoms confirmed during
the second proving

--- ; tongue coated brown.

Fever with pain in the forehead, backache, tongue coated yellow.

Fever preceded by chill. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- with bodyache, dryness of mouth and lips, intense thirst, bitter taste. Signs
symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, coated tongue, constipation, nausea and weakness.

Feverish feeling with pain in the throat and chest, agg. evening, amel. covering ;
vomiting of dark clotted blood.

Feverish feeling in the evening ; with bodyache and shivering ; soreness, bursting
headache and prostration.

PERSPIRATION.

Perspiration of the face. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

--- ; on forehead.

Profuse perspiration of palms and soles ; lasting for a few minutes.

GENERALITIES.
Generalities characteristic to the drug have been deduced from the pathogenesis'
obtained during the course of two different drug provings. Some of these appear
to be contradictory when compared to the symptoms pertaining to a particular
part, region of organ (these are discussed under observation and discussion in a
later chapter).

Morning. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Evening.

Night. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Cold in general ameliorates.

Cold application ameliorates. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second

proving.

Cold drinks ameliorates.

Lying quietly ameliorates. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Movement aggravates. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Pains aggravated by movement. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second

proving.

Pains ameliorated by rest. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, pressure. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

---, lying on right side. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Pressure ameliorates. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Warmth, heat aggravates. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

Weakness, prostration. Signs symptoms confirmed during the second proving.

 Some acts of the materia medica.
By H. C. Morrow, M. D. and Quackenbush, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Sulphur, Hepar Calc. Sulph. and Sepia are the exceptions ; few antipsorics bear
repetition.

Sulphur, Calcarea, Syphilinum, Tuberculinum, Carbo Vegetabilis are sure to cause

reaction when well chosen remedies fail to act. This is especially true
of Sulphur in acute cases.

Moschus acts beneficially when the disorder does not follow its normal course but
remains uncured or develops serious symptoms indicating nervous exhaustion.

Aurum, Asafœtida, Castoreum, at times may be given in cases of women who are
nervous and do not react after illness.

Bovista, in urticaria or other eruptive diseases when Rhus Toxicodendron fails to act
though apparently indicated.

Mercurius : With this remedy water treatment should be carefully avoided in acute
or chronic cases.

Lachesis is especially useful when paroxysms of fever return after taking acids.

Colchicum hastens relapse of gout if abused.

Phosphorus, Iodine, Mercurius generally act better in warm dry rather than cold wet
weather.

Arum Triphyllum should not be given low or repeated often as deleterious effects
frequently follow.

Kali Carbonicum will bring on menses when Natrum Muriaticum, although indicated,
fails.

Atropa Belladonna suits persons with well developed, acute brains and well trained
nervous systems.

Pulsatilla : The principal time for symptoms to appear is in the evening and until
midnight.

Ailanthus Odorata affects women and children more than men, and old people
least of all.
Agaricus Phalloides : Poison symptoms of this drug do not develop until eight or
ten hours after taking. No similarity to Colchicum.

Causticum has a primary action apparently later than any other antipsoric.

Lachesis : Care in administration is required in acute diseases because

administration is almost always followed by an aggravation.

Salamander : When Crotalus, Lachesis and other remedies do not act, frequently
brings the desired effect.

Ambra Grisea often takes the place of Carbo Vegetabilis and Petroleum, especially
when one or the other of these seems indicated but does not act.

Syphilinum, when Lycopodium seems indicated by 4 p. m. aggravation but does not

act, will often clear up a case.

Ptelea may cause all symptoms to disappear suddenly after eating sour things.

Calcarea Fluorica or Fluoric Acid follows when Silica fails to keep up improvement
in ulceration or disintegration of bone.

Bryonia Alba : If it be the right remedy in fever it will act in 12 hours, in which
case it will produce a free perspiration. Care must be exercised as it may be
injurious during pregnancy.

Nux Vomica : Care in administration ; abortion is apt to follow.

Carbo Vegetabilis, Lycopodium, Natrum Muriaticum and Silica in low potencies are
inactive and perhaps inert.

Belladonna may be indicated in hydrocephaloid children until they get something

to eat, then indications change.

Iodium should not be given in the lying-in period except in high potencies.

Phosphoric Acid is useful in pneumonia when the disease does not take the normal
course owing to the prostration of the patient from loss of vital fluids, distressing
emotions or other major factors.

Acidum Aceticum is one of the most dangerous remedies for a pulmonary

tuberculosis patient ; it predisposes hæmoptysis. (Ferr. Nit.).

Hydrastis Canadensis may be used to fatten a patient who has been cured with
Tuberculinum.

Lachesis repeats its primary action every fourteen days.

Physostigma, Tabacum and Conium Maculatum may be used to intensify action
of Gelsemium.

Bryonia Alba acts well in jaundice if the case has been spoiled by calomel (HgCl).

Nux Vomica intensifies the action of Sepia.

Arsenicum Album in typhoid fever does irreparable injury if not unmistakably

indicated.

Mercurius is so rarely indicated in typhoid fever that some careful prescribers say
"never".

Phosphorus, Silica and Sulphur are unsafe to give in any stage of phthisis without
meticulous investigation.

Aconitum Napellus : The action here may be suspended by vegetable acid or wine.

Cinchona and Pulsatilla will not act satisfactorily if the patient be permitted to
drink tea.

Kali Bichromicum, according to Farrington, acts better in low than high potencies.

Arum Triphyllum : As soon as the child gets in scarlatina, there is a frequent

discharge of pale urine. Now stop this remedy or any other.

Calcarea in persons of advanced age can scarcely be repeated. In children several

successive doses may be given with impunity.

Calcarea : Nausea consequent on its use is counteracted by smelling sweet spirits

of nitre. This acts even better than camphor.

Conium Maculatum : This remedy, in order to act beneficially, has frequently to be

preceded by some other drug and it must be used in the smallest of material
doses.

Capsicum : When medicines fail to act though well indicated in flabby, lazy
individuals use capsicum.

Calcarea : Think of it for frequent use following Sulphur, especially when the
pupils of the eyes are prone to dilate easily.

Calcarea generally acts well after Nitric Acid, when the action of this drug,
although apparently homœopathically indicated, has been rather unfavourable.
On the other hand, Nitric Acid relieves the unpleasant symptoms of the
homœopathically chosen Calcarea and imparts to its action a beneficient
character.
Nitric Acid acts powerfully on mucous membranes and has particular affinity for
outlets of mucous surfaces where the skin and mucous membranes join.

Lycopodium acts with especial benefit after the action of Calcarea shall have passed
over.

Graphites is especially useful after Lycopodium.

Iodium is especially useful after Mercurius.

Graphites can seldom be repeated with advantage even after the use of
intermediate remedies.

Cinchona increases the anguish of Digitalis even to a death struggle.

Nitri Spiritus Dulcis increases the action of Digitalis.

Laurocerasus is indicated when deficient nervous reaction is present and a well

chosen remedy does not act.

Lycopodium : The action of Lycopodium is facilitated by Carbo Vegetabilis on the sixth

or eighth day.

Zincum Metallicum acts better if given at night. Nux Vomica may have this same
characteristic. It is not constant.

Magnesia Phosphorica at times acts better if given in hot water.

Teucreum Marum Verum is suitable when too much medicine has produced an
oversensitive condition and remedies fail to act.

Mercurius Proto Iodatus has its action retarded by care and anxiety.

Acidum Muriaticum is of great assistance in muscular weakness following the

excessive use of opium and soothing syrups. (Compare Gelsemium).

Nux Vomica is especially useful when the patient has been drugged.

Carbo Vegetabilis, Laurocerasus, Aloes Socotrina, Opium, show a want of susceptibility

to drugs and a deficiency of vital reaction.

Phosphorus is useful after onion syrup has been abused.

Psorinum has lack of reaction after severe diseases.

Mezereum may be frequently indicated during the months of January and February
(in Canada).
Glonoin : It is stated that if administered just previous to the period the menses
will fail to appear.

Zincum Valerianicum is to be thought of in nervous affections when apparently

well chosen remedies fail to act.

Sulphur : Cases spoiled by the use of Aconitum Napellus can often be adjusted by
giving it.

Kali Carbonicum : Acidum Nitricum is especially active when it follows this drug.

Hydrastis Canadensis is frequently indicated when the patient has taken potassium
chlorate for sore throat.

Bovista : Smoke from Bovista acts more decidedly on bees than any other
substance of which we know.

Coffea Cruda, Nux Vomica, Pulsatilla, Asarum, Chamomilla, China, Ignatia, Teucreum
Marum Verum, Valeriana, Zincum Valeriana may be used at times to correct
oversensitivity of life force, hyperæsthesia and/or irritability.

Mercury : Hepar Sulph alternately with Acidum Nitricum may be given for over-
excitement from abuse of this drug.

Colchicum, if given in massive doses for rheumatism, is said to frequently produce

Bright’s disease.

Chamomilla (low) to quiet the storm which is set up by being deprived of

morphia.

Ferrum Met. : Its action in syphilis is to intensify it.

Phosphorus : Curative effects most marked on the third day after its
administration. Look for thirty-six hour aggravation after giving it in chronic
diseases.

Rhus will not cure sciatica when the bowels are constipated.

Belladonna is said not to affect idiots to any appreciable extent.

Lac Caninum : When Belladonna and Lachesis fail in croup or diphtheria then turn
to this polychrest.

Phosphorus antidotes the nausea and vomiting following the administration of

chloroform.
Borax : The symptoms that disappeared after taking it returned after taking
vinegar.

Ambra Grisea given in the evening is apt to cause aggravation.

Opium : The narcotic effect is much diminished by great pain or grief.

Lachesis : If sudden fright interrupts the good effect of other medicines.

Tarentula : All the symptoms aggravated by seeing others in trouble.

Arnica acts injuriously after the bite of a dog or other rabid or angry animals.

Kreosote in burning pains stands next to Arsenicum and frequently cures after
failure of the latter.

Tuberculinum : In tuberculous patients after well chosen remedies fail to act.

Lycopodium an occasional dose sometimes aids Berberis in curing.

Lachesis : In malignant pustules its adminstration should be accompanied by that

of brandy.

Apis is characterized by slowness of action ; sometimes have to wait three or four

days before any effects from its administration is noticed. The favourable effect
of the remedy is first shown by increased flow of urine.

Calcarea : When the remedy does not act put it in the child’s bottle.

Squilla, Colchicum and Sanguinaria act better when prepared with acetic acid than
alcohol.

Phosphorus acts better when the patient has been previously mesmerized.

Lycopodium acts better when preceded by some other antipsoric.

Belladonna : The unpleasant effects are much intensified if vinegar is taken after it.

Camphor acts palliatively by producing the symptoms. Better while thinking of

pain.

Chelidonium : Acids, wine and coffee restrict its action.

Aconite must be given preceding Dolichos Pruriens in cases of dentition to prevent

convulsions.
Fluoric Acid acts beneficially when ulcers become worse from too large or too
frequently repeated doses of Silica.

Ignatia acts better if given in the morning.

Apis acts unfavourably if given in low potencies to women who are disposed to
miscarry.

Lac Caninum acts best in single doses ; if repeated it should be given in exact
intervals.

Kali Carbonicum is a very dangerous remedy in old gouty cases but Kali Iod. is
often beneficial.

Arsenic is a dangerous remedy in dysentery if not the exact similimum.

Syphilinum : Do not forget it in old syphilitics and their children.

Iodine must not be exposed to the direct rays of the sun as it is decomposed by its
chemical effects and becomes inactive, especially in low potencies.

Bromium (low) : If preparation is not fresh it will not act satisfactorily.

Camphor should never be kept in the same case with other remedies as it
antidotes their active properties.

Lachesis, if left alone, will very often be followed by Sulphur symptoms.

Apis is antidoted by Plantago and Lachesis and is complementary to Natrum Mur.

Courtesy : The Homœopathic Herald, Vol. VI., October 1945. No. 2.

Time of aggravation of remedies.

Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Ars ----- 1-2 a. m. and 1-2 p. m.

Kali Carb ----- 2-4 a. m.

Calc. ----- 3 a. m.
Sulphur ----- 3-5 a. m.

Nux Vom. ----- 4-5 a. m.

Arn., Hep., Nux Vom. ----- 6 a. m.

Bov., Bry., Eupat., Pod. ----- 7 a. m.

Eupat., Pod. ----- 7-9 a. m. (Fever)

Nat. Mur., Stann. ----- 9-10-11 a. m.

Chin. S., Nat. Mur. ----- 10-11 a. m.

Cactus, Bapt., Nat. Mur., Nux, Sulph. ----- 11 a. m.

Sulph. : Weak Faint ----- 11 a. m.

Lach. ----- 12 Noon regularly.

Angust., Ant-t., Apis.

Ced. ----- 3 p. m.

Bell. ----- 3-4 p. m.

Ced. : Migraine every other day 11 a. m. ; epilepsy starts with slow Convulsions
with menses ; abortion occurs at same period each time..

Aranea : Toothache, neuralgia, fever and chill ----- at same hour.

Apis, Lyc., Puls. ----- 4 p. m.

Kali Carb., Puls., Rhus, Thuja. ----- 5 p. m.

Hep., Rhus., Sil. ----- 6 p. m.

Lyc., Rhus. ----- 7 p. m.

Am-m., Lac-vac-defl., Sulph. ----- Every 7 days.

Ars., Carb-v., Lach., Psor., Rhus Rad., Sulph., Tub. ----- Return same day, week,
month, year.

Rhus Rad. ----- Yearly recurrence at same hour of day.

Courtesy : The Homśopathic Herald, Vo. VI., October 1945. No. 2.

Homśopathic tonic therapy.

By Dr. Charles Boericke, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

The thoughtfully selected homśopathic remedy is definitely the best tonic to

stimulate the return to normalcy. Armed with this therapeutic weapon, the
physician need not resort to iron, vitamins and minerals, let alone quinine,
strychnia, and potassium iodide. Nor need he specify the use of unsaturated fats,
yeast, wheat germ, sunflower seed, and black strap molasses. In this brief paper I
have purposely failed to mention the standby foolproof tonics with which every
homśopath is so well conversant such as NUX VOMICA for the irritable,
overworked, costive dyspeptic male ; PULSATILLA for the contradictory,
changeable, lachrymose female ; CHAMOMILLA for the whining, restless,
irritable child ; CHINA and CHININUM ARSENICOSUM for postgrippal
asthenia.

In chronic coronary artery disease, and in the recuperative stage following acute
myocardial infraction, a valuable and often neglected heart tonic is IODIDE OF
ARSENIC. This remedy covers the weakness, prostration, restlessness, nightly
aggravation, substernal soreness and burning pains relieved by heat, paresthesias,
and chronicity of complaints.

In arteriosclerotic heart disease, where the pathology is angina pectoris and right
heart disease, with cold and blue extremities, intermittent claudication and
endarteritis, the remedy that pops into one’s thoughts is SECALE, particularly if
the patient is intolerant of heat and feels better in the cold and from cold
applications. SECALE may well turn out to be the homśopathic nitroglycerine.

In neuro-circulatory asthenia and hyperventilation syndrome I have

found SCUTELLARIA has tonic virtue. It seems to quiet the marked
apprehension due to cardiac irregularities. (MOCHUS).

An excellent rheumatic tonic is NATRUM SULPHURICUM, particularly in

the hydrogenoid constitution where the patient feels change of temperature from
dry to wet, always weak ankles and knees, and a tearing rending pain from hips to
knees, aggravated at night.

CARBO VEGETABILIS is to be thought of as a post-influenzal tonic, where

the patient has complete asthenia, easy perspiration, a stubborn persistent
tracheo-bronchial cough and evening huskiness of the voice.
STAPHYSAGRIA is an excellent tonic for the residual pain and nervousness
after teeth extraction. Also one of the best constitutional tonics for the early
paranoid psychosis characterized by hypersensitivity, easy offence over trifles,
indignation about things done by others, inward sufferings from pride, envy, or
chagrin. The patient harbors imagined slights as an obsession.

PICRIC ACID is the tonic par excellence for extreme mental and physical
prostration. The patient is always tired, so much so that he must lie down and
sleep most of the time. There is a heaviness and numbness of the limbs and a
persistent weakness of the back.

ECHINACEA is the great and well-authenticated eclectic blood tonic.

Staphylococcic infections, viral herpes of the lips, canker sores, and so-called
blood poisoning.

ZINCUM is the ideal tonic for the older individual who is oversensitive and
prostrated. This remedy typifies slow cerebration. The mind seems weak and
sluggish. He repeats questions before answering, waits a moment, looks blank,
then his face lights up and he answers.

Dr. Margaret Tyler said, "When the reflexes are abolished Zincum comes
in." ZINCUM might well be considered for the paralysis following cerebral
thrombosis.

AMBRA GRISEA is a valuable geriatric tonic. Indicated for the prematurely old
with feebleness and trembling. The patient exhibits confusion with vanishing of
ideas. He jumps from one subject to another. He asks question after question,
never waiting for an answer. The presence of another person seems to aggravate
all symptoms. The mind runs on unpleasant fancies, diabolical faces and sights.
Physically the patient has asthmatic breathing and a nervous spasmodic cough.
General nervous hypersensitiveness is a keynote symptom.

PHOSPHORUS is the great tonic for the delicate and sensitive adolescent. The
patient is apathetic, responds slowly and move sluggishly. He seems weary of life
and has gloomy forebodings. He has weak and "all gone" sensations in all parts
of the body. He craves salt and iced drinks. He elicits fears of being alone, of the
dark, of thunder, that something will happen. He is indifferent to friends and
loved ones. He has vivid imaginations.

PHOSPHORIC ACID is similar to PHOSPHORUS in some respects, but

these patients complain of crushing weight on vertex, occiput, and nape of neck.
A painless diarrhśa is common. The nervous system is in a state of debility
without erethism. There are profuse night sweats. This remedy is a great tonic to
young people who are over-grown. To be considered for the chronic and long
lasting effects of grief.
CALCAREA PHOSPHORICA is the great tonic of pregnancy and
prophylactic to toxemias and anćmias. This remedy seems to regulate calcium-
phosphorus metabolism and is a catalyst for the assimilation of iron.

Pointers.
(Some Selected Hints.)
By T. K. Moore, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

1. A single symptom causing suffering is completely recorded only when its

history, origin, progress and conditions attached, circumstances of
aggravation, of amelioration, time of occurrence and of greatest intensity,
how affected by position, rest, motion, eating, drinking, or the
performance of any body function, by mental emotions or by any other
cause – all this is included in the totality.
2. It is expecting too much of homœopathy to cure symptoms expressing
protest against a continuing and removable cause. Find the cause—
mental, moral, physical or hygienic. Remove the cause or causes. Then if
aught else remains, homœopathy will take care of that.
3. When the moon is decreasing, Phos., Sil., etc. may be used in patients
having damaged organs safely and with good effect.
4. In advanced disease, malignant or tubercular, the most terrible thing you
can do is to give the indicated remedy in high potency. Give anything but
that.
5. In chronics, the latest symptoms, even though they may appear
insignificant, are always the most important in the selection of remedy.
The oldest are the least important. All symptoms in between must be
arranged in order of their appearance. Only such patients remain well and
are really cured who have been rid of their symptoms in the reverse order
of their development.
6. In epilepsy you will never cure unless you find a remedy that covers and
corresponds in every respect to the acute attack. Then follow with the
complementary or chronic remedy as the curative. The chronic remedy
given during the attack would aggravate too strongly.
7. Usually disease leaves by an eruption or by discharge from mucous
membrane.
8. A remedy which can bring a symptom or symptoms to the surface, usually
will cure those symptoms without further medication. Therefore watch
and wait.
9. A remedy given well-indicated, then a diarrhœa, rash or excessive sweat,
medicinal aggravation or any old symptom returned or even symptoms
worse and patient better, give a remedy now and disaster is sure.
10. If after giving a remedy there is itching of the soles, it is a good indication.
11. In organic disease where there is much pathology, use the lower
potencies.
12. High potencies are two-edged swords and must be handled with care.
13. When patients appear to get up a tolerance for remedies, a complementary
remedy will sometimes keep the patient from going stale.
14. Unable to get symptoms from children, size up the parents and see what
they need, or needed before the birth of the child.
15. Forget the symptoms peculiar to the disease and those of the ultimates,
prescribe on the symptoms of the patient.
16. A nosode in line with the patient’s constitution or family history has
sometimes given striking results, allowing the previous well-indicated but
inactive remedy to take hold.
17. Never send an Iodium patient to a warm climate.
18. Do not overwork keynotes. They are sign-posts to shorten our research,
not to suppress it.
19. Coloc. cures colic again and again. Then Kali-c. steps in to end the
trouble.
20. Elderly case, blustery weather, vomiting much frothy blood-tinged mucus,
high temperature, mucous rales, dyspnœa ; all set for pneumonia -- Verat-
v. He will be better next day.
21. A jewel in surgical shock : Strontium Carb.
22. After salvarsan the similimum is often the antidote.
23. Thuja is the antidote to massive doses of Arsenic.
24. Nocturnal epilepsy or chorea : Calc. is valuable, especially after Sulph.
25. Gels. is rarely found of benefit in superficial affections of the eye, but is
especially adapted to disease of the fundus and paralysis of the nerves.
26. In croup without fever, think of Kali-bi. or Brom., the latter if there is
cyanosis.
27. Think of Merc-c. in toxic conditions of pregnancy and Phos. In
albuminuria of pregnancy.
28. If I could have but one remedy for the prostate, it would be Caust.
29. Acon. will seldom or never cure a quiet, calm, equable patient. Nux-v. will
not cure where the disposition is mild and phlegmatic. Puls. will not cure
if happy, gay and obstinate. If imperturbable and not easily frightened, do
not use Ign.
30. A Kali-c. characteristic : Any bang, shock, bad news or fear is felt in the
stomach.
31. Ferr-p. in earache and mastoiditis leads everything else. More cases of
mastoiditis call for Ferr-p. than any other remedy. It equals Cham. In
earache of children. it may be repeated often. Use the DM.
32. In earache do not use Ferr-p. below 12th. The low will often work when
the high fails.
 33. Puls. above all other remedies, has the power to unlock suppressions of
modern serum therapy.
34. When the well-selected remedy acts only a short time and the symptoms
agree, consider Sulph., Calc-s., and Psor., Tub., Med. or other nosodes.

(Courtesy : "The Homœopathic Recorder" December, 1936. pp. 531-536)

Case of puerperal insanity

cured by "Agnus Castus".
By L. Shafer, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

The insanity of Mrs. – commenced with conception. The following were her
symptoms :

She was melancholy and of a Hypochondriacal mood the entire day, dissatisfied
with herself constantly, incapable of attending to anything, and entirely
indifferent to things around her. She felt at times as if she were nobody, and
would rather be dead than have that feeling ; while in that mental state she had
no courage to undertake anything, and when free from it she was elated and
desired to do something to excite the admiration of her friends. Her absence of
mind was extreme, hence she found reading difficult, being unable to fix her
attention. She was profoundly impressed with the idea that she would live only a
short time longer, but did no fix the date of her decease. Occasionally,
particularly if crossed, she threw out hints of her purpose to commit suicide.
When a remedy was proposed, and at other times, her earnest exclamation would
be, "There is no use in doing anything, as I shall die soon".

Intolerable itching, which was relieved for a short time only by scratching,
affected the face, arms, perineum, and the entire body. There was the absence of
affection for her husband, and after the birth of her child, that received a share
of her animosity. There was an entire absence of sexual desire.
During her insanity, and particularly during the six months after the birth of her
child, various remedies were prescribed which were only partially indicated, and
with but slight, temporary, palliative results.

When the child was six months old, I made a careful search for the remedy
homśopathic to the case. This resulted in the selection of Agnus Castus, which
presented the similimum to all except her sexual symptoms. (Those are not
developed, as the remedy has not been proved on women).

In obedience to a law deduced from Hahnemann’s Organon, sec. 276, that "the
more homśopathic the remedy, the higher should be the potency and the smaller
the dose," a few pellets medicated with the M potency (Jenichen), the highest in
my possession, were placed dry on the patient’s tongue on the evening of Friday,
the 10th August, 1877. Subsequently the patient took no other remedy for
twenty-one days. The result : On the following Saturday, Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday and Wednesday, there was a progressive and very rapid improvement of
her symptoms in every particular.

On Thursday the entire cloud was lifted from the patient, and she was restored
to her right mind. Love of life, contentment, affection for her husband and child
and sexual appetite were normal again.

She now stated that during the past few months she went frequently to the
cistern for the purpose of drowning herself ; but, knowing that she was watched
by her family and neighbours, the thought that she might be drawn out before
life was extinct prevented her from executing her project. She intended to
commit suicide in the near future. Possessed by this controlling idea, she secured
a vial of chloroform and also a vial of laudanum, believing these would enable
her to accomplish her design ; but the apprehension of not succeeding, through
the interference of others, led her to procrastinate.

(Courtesy : The Organon Vol. I, p. 296).

Bleeding from internal parts.

By Dr. H. N. Guernsey, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Those remedies which are most highly characterized by BLEEDING FROM

INTERNAL PARTS are : Acon., Arn., Bell., Calc-c., Carb. Veg., Canth.,
Cham., Chin., Croc., Ferrum, Hyos., Ipec., Kali-c., Lach., Merc., Nitr-ac., Nux-v.,
Phos., Plat., Puls., Sabina, Secale, Sepia, Sulphur.

As we may at any time be suddenly called upon to prescribe almost instantly for
a dangerous hćmorrhage, I will give the strongest points of each drug first that
would facilitate our choice.

ACONITE.

When we find with the hćmorrhage an apparent mental excitement, accompanied

by a fear of death (perhaps the fear of bleeding to death), we may find on
investigation that the hćmorrhage was brought on by a fright, by a fit of anger, or
by anxiety ; the patient may still be suffering from the exciting cause. The
sufferer is usually lying on the back, owing to an aggravation from lying on either
side ; worse on rising (becomes dizzy) ; blood coagulates easily ; afraid to move
about much, though feeling restless and anxious ; thirsty, skin dry. Most generally
found in dark-haired subjects, plethoric and active.

ARNICA.

Here the bleeding has been excited from an injury ; from concussion ; bodily
fatigue ; physical exertion. We often find a bruised or sore sensation in the parts
from which the blood exudes. Pulmonic or uterine hćmorrhages and epistaxis,
etc. are often attended with this sensation.

Hot head and a cool body are very characteristic of this remedy.

Sometimes a fright and an injury may be nearly coincident, and here great care
must be observed to decide which was really the exciting cause ; should fright
have caused the bleeding, Arnica will not be the remedy.

The difference between Aconite and Arnica may be seen at a glance.

BELLADONNA.

The blood coagulates almost as soon as discharged and feels hot to the parts
from which it escapes. If it be from the genital organs, they are usually forcing or
bearing down pains ; if from the chest or head, there is congestion, throbbing of
the carotids, injected eyes, flushed face. The patient wishes to be covered ; cool
air is unpleasant ; cold shiverings frequently run through the body ;
photophobia ; drinks little often ; hot skin, plethoric habit.

Patient generally feels worse in the afternoon and evening ; from draft of air ;
from rising ; from suppressed perspiration.

Here, too, we see that Belladonna differs every essentially from either of the
preceding drugs.

CALC. CARB.

Here the most striking feature is the constitution of the patient. This is
leucophlegmatic ; light hair. A little investigation may show that the menses are
apt to be too profuse and too often ; much perspiration about the head and
shoulders ; limbs are usually drawn up, and are cold and damp ; desire for
loosened garments ; amelioration from being rubbed ; desire for warmth and
covering ; a slight draft of cool air is chilling ; if the bleeding be from the chest, it
is usually from the left side. Calc. Carb. cannot be mistaken for or confounded
with either of the above remedies.

CANTH.

A most striking symptom calling for the use of this remedy is found in the
urinary organs, and consists of a cutting and burning pain during micturition ; the
urine flows in drops, or in a very scanty stream. Hćmaturia ; uterine hćmorrhage,
blood usually being very dark hćmorrhage from the lungs or nose.

CARB. VEG.

We are chiefly led to the use of this remedy in very desperate cases, where there
is almost an entire state of collapse weak pulse ; anguish of heart ; skin cold and
bluish ; patient wants to be fanned very hard ; and often whispers at the
attendants, "Fan harder, fan me harder".

This desire to be "fanned hard" is found in many different complaints, and may
always be considered as indicative of this drug. We may sometimes be called in
very late to such cases, or we may get them from the old practice.

CHAM.
The striking peculiarity here is mental irritability of a spiteful nature ; the patient
speaks quickly and sharply. Blood dark and coagulated ; desire for air ; restless ;
distressed.

Patient generally feels worse at night ; from warmth from anger during
eructations lying on painless side ; during perspiration during sleep ; from coffee.
Better while fasting ; while lying on painful side.

CHINA.

The first note of alarm here is faintness, with ringing in the ears ; ringing in the
ears is one of the most characteristic symptoms in the pathogenesis of China and
if we do not give it soon, the pulse will become irregular, flickering, and
imperceptible ; skin cold and clammy ; fainting and unconsciousness. Even at
this stage China 2c in water, every two or three minutes, will soon work a
favourable change.

Generally feels worse periodically ; in the night ; after drinking ; while talking ;
cannot talk, wished others to explain ; after perspiration ; on touching the parts
softly.

China cannot be confounded with Carb. Veg. as firstly, in Carb. Veg. the patient
wishes to be fanned hard, and if at all in China, very softly. Secondly, in Carb.
Veg., the skin is dry and blue, while in China it is moist and clammy. Thirdly, in
Carb. Veg. we find no ringing in the ears, as we do in China.

CROC.

The striking feature of this hćmorrhage is its black and stringy character, the
blood forming long dark strings as it flows ; often resembling long, black
earthworms. We find this feature, whether the hćmorrhage be from the uterus,
lungs, or the nose. When examined in a mass the strings may be somewhat
matted together, but the characteristic tendency is plainly observable. Sensation
of a bounding or rolling in the abdomen, as of something alive.

Feels worse in the morning, when fasting ; during pregnancy ; in a warm or

closed room.

Better in the open air ; after eating.

FERRUM.
We usually notice a very red face, with a full pulse ; the hćmorrhage is partly of a
fluid, and partly of a black and clotted character ; The flow may be from the
lungs, stomach, nose, bowels or uterus. If from the uterus, there are very often
violent, labour-like pains in the back and abdomen ; great erethism of the
circulation ; flushes of heat.

Feels worse at night, particularly after midnight ; from change of position ; from
fat food.

The trouble may have been superinduced from poisoning by Peruvian bark ; the
patient is generally very weak though having so red a face and so full a pulse.

HYOS.

The alarming points that appear are delirium ; semi-consciousness ; a constant

flow of blood ; jerking and twitching of the muscles ; face bluish ; eyes
congested. The hćmorrhage may have been brought on by a fit of jealousy ; by
taking cold ; by unhappy love, or some other mental affection.

Worse usually in the evening. Better from stooping or leaning forward.

Hyos. differs from all of its companion remedies by the prompt appearance of
delirium, by the semi-consciousness, by the twitching and jerking of the muscles,
and by the bluish face. The alarming kind of hćmorrhage is usually uterine.

IPEC.

When we have an uninterrupted discharge of bright red blood from the vagina,
nose or lungs. The first symptom here is usually a complaint of faintness and
nausea ; also, there may be a sharp cutting pain from the navel towards the
uterus ; later we may find cold skin, cold sweat, and species of suffocating spells.

Hćmorrhages sometimes follow suppression of eruptions ; abuses of Peruvian

bark ; eating ; coughing ; while vomiting ; occur periodically.

It will be perceived that Ipec. has not the ringing in the ears, nor has China the
nausea. Ipec. would also be indicated in a constant flow of bright red blood from
the nose or lungs, with the above gastric symptoms and faintness. Ipec. is more
frequently indicated than any other remedy.

KALI CARB.
We are most frequently led to think of this remedy for hćmorrhages occurring
some days or weeks after parturition ; also for epistaxis and hćmoptysis after
being overheated, and after a vexation. The sometimes accompanying symptoms
are agonizing pain in the back, extending to the gluteal muscles, and down over
the sacrum ; stitching pains in the abdomen ; abdomen often tympanitic.

Feels better from being covered up warmly ; after eructations which occur quite
frequently.

One of the best remedies to prevent abortion occurring about the second month,
when characterized by stitching pains ; pains in the back hindering walking,
causing the patient to feel like stopping to lie down anywhere, in the street, on
the floor, etc. ; later, these pains may extend over the sacrum to the gluteal
muscles.

LACHESIS.

For flooding occurring at the critical age, particularly when characterized by chills
at night and hot flushes by day, or floodings at any time when thus
characterized ; after parturition, with pains in the right ovarian region always
relieved by flow of blood from the vagina ; in all typhus or typhoid conditions,
where there is a flow of dark blood from the nose, from the lungs, or from the
bowels with a sediment like charred straw. This sediment may either have a
crushed appearance, or may look like distinct spears of charred straw – it really
being decomposed blood.

Diarrhśa following milk-leg are sometimes accompanied with a hćmorrhage of

this sort, and here Lach. will be the curative agent.

LYCOPODIUM.

Hćmorrhages from the nose, lungs, or uterus when there is a great deal of
flatulence, borborygmus, and a sensation of fullness upto the throat, after taking
a small quantity of water or nourishment ; frequent flushes of heat ; palpitation
of the heart ; cutting pains from right to left in the abdomen ; all symptoms
worse from four to eight in the evening. Desire for air ; to have the windows
open ; to be fanned. This remedy may often be used in the worst cases of
pulmonic hćmorrhage.

MERC.
This remedy is particularly applicable in hćmorrhages occurring in elderly females
some time after the critical period has passed ; light hair ; scorbutic condition of
the system. Cold, damp thighs and legs at night ; perspiration sour and mouldy,
excepting of the feet which is scentless ; skin and muscles lax ; thirst, even
though the mouth be full of saliva ; mood serious, sometimes amorous.

Feels worse at night ; when blowing the nose. With the above conditions
epistaxis, hćmoptysis, hćmatemesis, hćmorrhage from the bowels or uterus.

NITRIC. AC.

This remedy is in many respects similar to Merc. and sometimes a very close
comparison is requisite to discriminate between the two.

Contrary to Merc., Nitric. Ac. has dark hair ; perspiration sour and urinous ; skin
and muscle rigid ; no thirst ; blood dark ; foot sweat fetid ; distrust. The urine is
stronger smelling, like horse urine.

Bleeding from the arteries and capillaries ; bleeding from the uterus with pain in
the back, running down through the hips into the legs with a sensation of
pressure, as if the uterus itself would escape from the vulva. In so comparing
Merc. and Nitric Ac., we find them different from each other, and from all the
preceding remedies.

NUX VOM.

It is a curious fact that in almost hćmorrhages requiring Nux Vom., we find an

irritable condition of the rectum, which is a frequent and ineffectual desire for
stool, with the sensation as if portion of fćces were in the rectum, this latter
sensation remaining even after defecation ; usually in dark-haired subjects.

Hćmorrhage may be excited by indulgence in rich food ; from much coffee,

intoxicating drinks ; constipation.

Worse in cold air, between three and four a. m. Better in a warm place ; lying on
the side ; in loose garments ; passing wind per anus.

PHOSPHORUS.

Particularly for tall, slim, dark-haired subjects ; also in females who menstruate
too often, too much, too long.
Sensation of emptiness in the abdomen ; slim, dry stools, expelled with
difficulty ; flushes of heat.

Feels worse lying on the left side ; on the back ; from warm food or drinks.

Better lying on the right side ; from cold food and drinks ; from being rubbed ;
after sleep.

Small wounds bleed persistently and profusely ; bleeding erectile tumors.

PLAT.

Hćmorrhages, blood being partially fluid and partially hard, black clots ; also
coming out in quantities, and having a dark, tarry appearance ; with sensation as
if the body was growing larger in every direction ; in dark-haired, spasmodic and
nervous subjects.

PULSATILLA.

Intermittent hćmorrhage, blood generally dark ; in subjects of mild and tearful

temperaments ; can lie best on right side ; feels worse in a close, warm room ;
desire for open doors and windows ; no thirst ; scanty urine ; blood flows and
stops, again flows and stops.

SABINA.

Blood flows freely in fluid and in clots. When from the uterus, there is very often
a pain from the sacrum to the pubis or vice versa ; for violent after-pains of the
above nature, with the above characteristic bleeding ; especially applicable to
miscarriages coming on about the third month ; blood pale from the nose ; blood
from the vagina pale, or red, dark, or missed with light red ; much soreness in the
hypogastric region.

Feels worse in a close, warm room. Better in the open air.

We see that Puls. and Sabina agree in the aggravation from warmth, but Sabina
has that peculiar pain. Puls. has a different disposition, and the character of
hćmorrhage differs.
SECALE CORN.

The flow is passive and may be dark or red, mostly red ; in subjects who are
naturally feeble and cachetic ; tingling in the limbs and prostration ; desire for
air ; aversion to being covered ; cool skin with no desire for covering.

Better when lying with limbs extended. (In Calc. Carb., the patient feels better
with the limbs drawn up).

SEPIA.

With abdominal plethora or congestion ; pain in the right groin ; sensation of

weight in the anus ; painful sensation of emptiness in the pit of the stomach.

Feels better from drawing up the limbs.

Disposition to abort from the fifth to the seventh month, especially when there
is uterine congestion ; cold hands and feet ; hot flashes ; particularly where she
complains of little, fine, darting pains up the neck of the uterus. The difference
must be remembered among Kali. Carb. which has abortion about the second
month of pregnancy, Sabina, with abortion about the third month and Sepia,
with abortion after the fifth month.

SULPHUR.

Sensation of heat in any part previous to as well as during the hćmorrhage,

particularly when from the lungs. This sensation of heat may be in the inner part
of the nose, uterus, rectum, etc.

Worse when warm in bed ; when exposed to any heat, as of fire, etc.

In giving these remedies for bleeding from internal parts, I think it proper to
remark upon the so-called adjuvants which some physicians resort to for the
arrest of hćmorrhages.

As we passed over a variety of hćmorrhages, and have observed how each has its
own peculiar character, each one differing from all the others, it will be useful to
inquire "why does the patient bleed in this manner or that. Why these bleedings
occur each of its own peculiar type, from the nose, from the lungs, or from the
dried up uterus of the aged female ?" We know that in all these hćmorrhagic
conditions there were no open blood vessels from which blood could flow.
What other cause then can be assigned but that a peculiar morbific condition
exists in each case, which, having induced a flux of blood to the parts concerned,
caused the bleeding ? In apoplexia, in the various congestions, in the erethism of
blood which causes flashes of heat, there is a morbific agent at work which is not
unlike in principle, other morbid conditions causing other forms of disease
which are perfectly amenable to the remedies of our materia medica.

And why then might we not as well employ the so-called adjuvants in almost any
other form of disease, as in bleeding from inner parts ?

As in the pathogenesis of a peculiar morbific influence which we see manifested

in the various forms of hćmorrhages, so the pathogenesis of some peculiar drug
must indicate its use in arresting the forms of bleeding to which it is adapted.

As we know our remedies, we can succeed with their use a destined by the
Creator without the aid of any cumbersome, and often injurious, so-called
adjuvants.

(Courtesy : The California Homśopathy. Nov. 1884).

Interview with Dr. Jost Kunzli.

St. Gallen, Switzerland, August, 1979.
By Robert M. Schore, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Dr. Kunzli received his primary schooling in St. Gallen, Switzerland. He then
attended the Universities of Zurich, Berlin, Kiel, and Paris. At the beginning of
World War II, he returned to Zurich (1941) where he took his final examinations
as M. D. Dr. Kunzli interned in a Bern, Switzerland hospital in surgery and
internal medicine. He then interned for one year in Geneva, Switzerland, with
Dr. Pierre Schmidt, who indeed is one of the finest homœopathic physicians. In
1949 Dr. Kunzli began his practice in St. Gallen, Switzerland in "pure, classical
Homœopathy".

Since it is rare to find hospitals where classical Homœopathy is currently

practiced, Dr. Kunzli feels that the best training for aspiring homœopathic
physicians is to study with an experienced homœopath who subscribes to
classical homœopathic ideals.

This interview answers question often asked by patients and physicians.

Q. How would you answer a patient who asks, "How long will it take for me to get well ?"

Answer :

My answer would be, I cannot say until you take the prescribed homœopathic
remedy. Take the prescription now. If progress is rapid, then it will not take a
long time to get well. I can judge only after evaluating how well the prescription
acts. Neither patient nor physician should lose patience. Some cases are very
complex and I must follow the case at least one year to give an accurate
prognosis. The average length of time for chronic cases is three to five years. We
must remember that patients are life-long patients – refer to Hahnemann’s
Chronic Diseases.

Q. If the correct prescription is chosen, how much does disharmony in home-life and employment
interfere with healing ?"

Answer :

Disharmony definitely interferes with the healing process. One must remember,
however, that the prescription can affect changes in the patients which will allow
them to see the situations in life from a different perspective.

Q. Do you tell the names of the remedies to the patient ?

Answer :

Hardly ever. If you tell the name, then they may study that particular medicine in
the Materia Medica and endless discussions occur. The patient may know the
name after the medicine has acted well.

Q. Do you recommend special diets ?

Answer :

I have some recommendations : For patients with gout – no meat, coffee, tea, or
fish. A lacto-vegetarian diet is best in these cases.

For patients with acne – no lard or pork in excess. No salt or spicy food.
For patients in general – no excesses of meat or eggs. More than one egg per
week is in excess ! Regular and berbal tea is allowable, except chamomile tea,
which is too medicinal. Some recommended herbal teas are : linden, rose hips,
and cherry stem.

For patients for whom Lycopodium is prescribed – no coffee. Otherwise, up to

three cups of coffee per day with milk or cream may be allowed.

For patients for whom Belladonna, Colocynthis, or other vegetable remedies are
prescribed – no vegetable acids. I consider vegetable acids to be lemon, sour
apples, vinegar, and tomato.

For pregnant ladies – a diet of vegetables, milk, and not too much meat. I do not
recommend vitamin supplements.

For stones (gallbladder, kidney) there are also special diets.

Q. Do you take a nursing mother as a new patient ?

Answer :

There is a problem, since treating the mother will affect the baby. If both need
treatment, I would prescribe for the mother only. If only the baby needed
treatment, and the mother was taking vitamins and herbs, she would have to stop
nursing before I could prescribe for the baby.

Q. Have you treated twins ? Did their cases lead to the same medicines ?

Answer :

I have had twins as patients, but they required different constitutional medicines.

Q. What first-aid medicines, if any, should be available for childhood ailments and accident ?

Answer :

Arnica 200 for injuries, Aconite 30 for fever and colds. One dose every three
hours until fever is lowered.
Q. At what age would you begin to treat a child ? Often there are no subjective symptoms, yet a
blood test may indicate anemia.

Answer :

I would gather symptoms by the looks of the child, observing him and gathering
symptoms from what the mother could tell me about him. I refer you to
Imhauser, "Homœop. In d. Kinderheilkunde". Also I would ask about the
pregnancy and delivery. I would use guiding symptoms and refer to Kent’s
Repertory or Barthel Klunker’s Synthetic Repertory.

Q. What is the average recovery time from teenage acne when it is the primary complaint ?

Answer :

Recovery is slow : one year. No topical care is recommended. Swimming in

natural water and bathing in sun and fresh air can be beneficial.

Q. How difficult is it to treat women who have taken birth-control pills ?

Answer :

It is variable. Often cases respond very well, but in cases of amenorrhœa, it can
take years before menses return. Also amenorrhœa after prolonged fasting is very
difficult and tedious to treat.

Q. What types of patients have you found extremely difficult to treat, and how is this difficulty
related to post-operative and post-drug conditions ?

Answer :

The most difficult are patients who have had organs removed. They cannot be
healed completely, but symptoms can be ameliorated. Also patients who have
had much allopathic medicine are very difficult to treat ; but it depends on the
symptoms. If they can give you good symptoms, there is a good chance for cure.
Patients with implants are difficult, but you can certainly try ; you have a chance
at least to help a bit.

Q. Under what conditions will you NOT accept a patient ?

Answer :

I will not accept a chronic, heavy smoker, or patients who continue taking
sleeping pills. I explain that if they plan to continue with these habits, I can no
hope to have results with my method.

Q. Under what conditions will you cease treating a patient ?

Answer :

If a patient goes to another doctor without discussing it with me, I will tell him
please to remain with the new doctor, or if the patient turns to allopathic
medicine for trifles, or repeatedly seeks a new doctor if I am away from my
practice for a few days. Also, if I have seen no results in the case and I feel the
patient is losing patience, I will suggest that he see another doctor, but often then
he will say "no, no I do feel better !"

Q. Under what conditions is a patient incurable ?

Answer :

Very advanced malignancies are, in general, incurable by Homœopathy. Age is

not a factor in determining incurability. After surgical organ removal, the patient
will not be one-hundred percent curable, but he can have many symptoms
ameliorated.

Q. Under what conditions is surgery necessary ?

Answer :

During my years of practice often patients have been helped without surgery. I
think there is difficulty in repairing hernias in older patients. For gallstones, I
suppose, if your treatment has not been successful, surgery may be indicated.
However, I have never had a gallstone case which required surgery. Also I have
never had a case of appendicitis which required surgery. These cases have
responded very well to homœopathic treatment.

Q. Are you currently involved in teaching Homœopathy ?

Answer :

Yes. Every Thursday evening during the semester I teach at the University of
Zurich. My course covers philosophy of Homœopathy and case-taking. De
Buschauer teaches materia medica for two hours on Tuesday evenings. This
course in Homœopathy is now in its third semester. We have as our students
young doctors, in this post-graduate course which is taught in German.

Q. Thank you very much for granting this interview Dr. Kunzli. Do you have a closing
thought for us ?

Answer :

A homœopathic physician must learn what are the "good symptoms", the
"guiding symptoms". This takes study and practice. I think you get better with
age !

Potency problem in homoeopathy.

From Editorial The Homoeopathic Heritage, May, 1994
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

The selection of potency has all along been a burning problem in homoeopathy.
To fulfil the highest ideal of cure, not only the selection of the medicine must be
correct, its potency and dose must also be accurate. It has been observed that a
medicine may fail to produce any beneficial effect in a patient in low potencies
but shows unexpected good result in high potencies. It does not mean that the
lower potencies do not act at all in such cases. They do act, but their beneficial
effects are not perceptible to us. Of course, if the medicine is repeated several
times in lower potencies, its effect may be perceptible but even then very slowly
and less distinctly than if applied in high potencies. Similarly, the reverse is also
true when high potencies may fail to produce any appreciable change but low
potencies act curatively. This is only because of the variation of susceptibility in
different patients. We all know that selection of potency depends on the
susceptibility of the patient. The higher the susceptibility, the higher should be
the potency and vice versa. But the great difficulty is that there is no instrument
to measure the susceptibility of an individual. Various factors contribute to
assume the susceptibility of a patient. His age, sex, mode of living, nature and
depth of the disease, structural changes, various suppressions, vitality, mental and
physical reactions to environmental stimuli etc., all contribute to understand the
susceptibility. But very often we find difficulty when some factors indicate high
susceptibility but some others the reverse, e. g. a tumour being an organic change
indicates low susceptibility but the susceptibility of the patient as a whole may be
high requring high potency. On the other hand "idiosyncrasy", though indicates
high susceptibility, requires low potency and so on. No doubt our knowledge of
pathology helps us to a great extent in this respect but final conclusion depends
on careful observation of the effect of medicine. For this reason it is better to
start with medium potencies in all doubtful cases and then to go high or low
observing the effect of the first dose. Routine use of exclusively high or low
potencies is not desirable in homoeopathy. This is why we see Hahnemann
changing his views about potency from time to time till before his death. He was
fully aware of the problem and tried to solve the same all through his life the
ultimate outcome of which is the "fifty millesimal potency". I believe the
problem of potency may no longer bother us if we all start using 50-millesimal
potency in all cases or at least in doubtful, incurable and acute cases. The
problem of long gap in the centesimal potency from 30 to 200, 200 to 1M or 1M
to 10M etc. may very well be solved by the use of successive higher potencies of
50-millesimal scale. I request my colleagues, especially the beginners in
homoeopathy, to try fifty millesimal potency to see if this may be of any help to
solve their potency problem. In India it is our usual practice to prescribe low
potencies in acute and high potencies in chronic diseases. This practice is just the
reverse of what it should be. In acute disease there is seldom any structural
change to start with. Naturally the susceptibility of the patient remains high in
such cases. Moreover, the violence of the case, rapidity of progress and acute
inflammatory condition suggest high susceptibility of the patient requiring high
potency. This is true in case of influenza, dipththeria, measles, pox, whooping
cough, typhoid (1st and 2nd week), meningitis, encephalitis etc. Here repeated
doses of high potencies are necessary to arrest the progress of the disease and
ensure early cure. But we generally prescribe low potencies in such cases resulting
in failure or too late recovery which is contrary to the highest ideal of cure. But
in acute diseases with lowered vitality, e. g., in severe dehydration, shock,
collapse, extreme prostration, severe haemorrhage, typhoid state etc. the patient
requires low potencies in repeated doses to gradually overcome the inhibitory
state of the vital dynamis. Indiscriminate use of high potencies in such cases may
lead to sudden death. Acute manifestations of chronic diseases with gross
organic changes require low or medium potencies but require high potencies if
the disease still remains in the functional plane or at the beginning of organic
changes.

In chronic disease on the other hand susceptibility becomes gradually low

because of long continued suffering and organic changes – hence they require
low or medium potencies. Carelessness in selecting correct potency in such cases
may lead to Dr. Kent’s 1st or 2nd observation which is undoubtedly not at all
desirable to any homoeopathic physician. But in chronic diseases without gross
organic changes, e. g. migraine, neuralgias, most of the paralysis, neurosis etc.,
high potencies act curatively if given in single or repeated doses as the case may
be. Too low potencies in repeated doses even in organic chronic disease may lead
to observation No. 10 while too high potencies in comparison to patient’s
susceptibility leads to observation No.3 and the patient may have to pass through
grievous suffering before amelioration or cure takes place. Difficult and incurable
cases require medium and low potencies to start with. In my opinion 50-
millesimal potency is best for this purpose. Even an incurable case may turn to
curable stage after the use of few successive potencies in this scale.

In children and young adults there is generally no wear and tear of organs and
tissues. As such they require high potencies for an early cure. But in old age the
susceptibility becomes generally low because of wear and tear and senile
degeneration, hence they generally require low or medium potencies.

Females in villages of our country are generally less exposed to worries, anxieties
and complications of life. Hence their nervouse system generally is of quiet
nature having a moderate degree of susceptibility requiring medium potencies.
But irritable, highly strung males possess a high degree of susceptibility requiring
generally high potencies. Persons engged in highly intellectual and mental work,
e. g. doctors, lawyers, ministers etc. generally require high potencies because of
their high profile and high susceptibility. On the other hand, persons engaged in
physical labour without much of mental exertion generally require low or
medium potencies because of their low susceptibility.

Disease begins in the dynamic plane and ultimately settles in organs or tissues. As
such in all diseases we get functional symptoms to start with followed by
secondary organic or pathological symptoms. Hence the more the disease is in
the dynamic plane, the higher should be the potency and the more it is in the
organic plane the lower should be the potency. This is why we may be able to
abort many violent acute diseases in their beginning stage with repeated doses of
high potencies. But the problem arises when we come across to types of
susceptibility in a patient at the same time – the susceptibility of the patient as a
whole being high while the susceptibility of his affected tissue is low, e. g. in
tumour or chronic eczema etc. In such cases it is better to start with medium or
low potencies and the moment reaction sets in, the potency should be changed
to higher one. The growths or organic changes may not be reversible with the
help of these high potencies but the disease processs will be cured. The end
product of the disease may require surgical interference for their removal so as to
avoid mechanical effects of the same.

Primary manifestation of psora, sycosis and syphilis require high potencies in

repeated and large doses for an early and permanent cure but the secondary
effects of these conditions require medium or low potencies to start with.

In mental diseases the susceptibility is generally very high, but high potencies are
contra-indicated in such cases to start with because of the possibility of too
violent an aggravation. I have seen a single dose of 30th potency to act curatively
in such cases for months together. In diseases like bronchial asthma, organic
heart diseases, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cirrhosis of the liver, pre-
tubercular and pre-cancerous states, piles, brain tumour, peptic ulcer etc. 50-
millesimal potency give wonderful result.

From what has been stated so far, it is probably clear that no hard and fast rule is
possible for the selection of potency. Susceptibility is the only guide in this
respect. But to gauge the susceptibility of a patient, it requires thorough
knowledge of the allied subjects of medicine including hygience, unbiased
expeprience, attention in observing, freedom from prejudice and clear
conception of the basic principles of homoeopathy including remedy response
and second prescription.

Before I conclude I would like to cite few cured cases to substantiate my view
that it is not only the selection of medicine but the accuracy of potency and
doses that are the prerequisites in arriving at the highest ideal of cure.

1. A case of acute headache with all the symptoms of Belladonna did not
respond at all to 30th or 200th potency, but magically cured with a single
dose of Belladonna 10M.
2. A case of abdominal colic in a girl of 13/14 years of age, persisting for
about 2 weeks with all symptoms of Colocynth did not respond to
Colocynth 6 and 30 but cured completely with Colocynth 50M – four
doses given at an interval of about half an hour.
3. Case of whooping cough with all symptoms of Drosera did not respond
well to Drosera 30 but cured within 3 or 4 days by repeated doses of
Drosera 1M and 10M.
4. Several obstinate skin diseases were cured within few weeks or months
with repeated doses of 6th or 12th potency or with 50-millesimal potency
when 200th or 1M potency produced only prolonged aggravation without
being followed by amelioration or there was no remedy response at all.
5. Cases of Bell’s Palsy or hemiplegia with all symptoms of Causticum did
not respond at all to Causticum 30 but cured within a very short time with
repeated (deviated) doses of 1M or 10M potency.
6. Cases of piles with all symptoms of Acid Nitric or Thuja did not respond
satisfactorily to the 200th or 1M but responded nicely to 50-millesimal
potency of these drugs.
7. A case of ascites due to cirrhosis of the liver responded unexpectedly to
China in 50-millesimal potency when no satisfactory result had been
obtained by prescribing centesimal potency.
8. A case of neuralgic headache with symptoms of Chelidonium did not
respond to 30th or 200th potency, but cured within 24 hours with 3 or 4
doses of Chelidonium CM given at intervals of 3/4 hours.
 Mania cured by a Key-Note of Calc-c.
By Dr. Bruns.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Dr. G. H. E. Jahr, in his Forty Years’ Practice, p.41, says : "Nothing, probably, is
still involved in greater obscurity than the external causes to which mental and
psychical derangements owe their existence." When a few months ago, I was
reading this deep and important sentence of our learned and now deceased
friend, Jahr, my thoughts were directed to the powers and elements causing
sickness and death. A case of mania, cured by me some twenty years ago, when I
was a student with Dr. A. Lutze, in Coethen, came into my mind, and I thought
then, and think so now that it might be profitable to some one to relate the story.
(2736) One day the Dr. said, "Bruns, you must take under your special care a
patient to whom I have given Bell., Stram., and Hyosc. without the least benefit
though these remedies are strongly indicated." I found the patient resting on the
lounge, and I seated myself and observed him, a young man, with sandy
complexion, and sound constitution as it seemed to me. It happened that his
mother had left him for a while alone. He kept calm resting for about twenty-five
minutes, when at once his eyes were fixed on something coming sideways near to
thim. The nearer it came the more restless he grew. He raised his body with the
left arm, and took with his right a handkerchief, and struck rapidly and violently
at the imaginary objects. After a few moment’s fight, he fell back exhausted on
the lounge. Not a motion, not a sound was made by me until he was perfectly
calm again. My first question was "Have you seen them before ? "Yes !" was his
answer. "Could you tell me when you saw them the first time ?" "What day is
it ?" was his counter-question. I told him it was Saturday. "Saturday !" he
repeated in a doubtful tone. "Well," he continued, "You know I am a potter, and
Monday morning it was very cold, so cold that day I was treading, (the clay) with
my bare feet, they were covered with a frozen crust. I had been in the mixture
about half-an-hour, when I was them come around me in large numbers, and
have seen them ever since from time to time." I was curious to know what he
had seen, and I asked him how they looked ? "Well, they look like common
curs." I gave him Calc-c.30, and his head was clear in one day. I told the jovial
Dr. Lutz that he must go and see the patient himself, for he was getting better.
He shook his head and went, but came back in a very short time. He was so
agitated, and spread his arms out for me, that, I, for a moment, feared he also
had turned crazy. His large, blue, and beautiful eye, glared at me, and he gasped
for some time, until his clear and powerful voice roared out in a somewhat
commanding manner – "What did you give him ?" I gave him what you taught
me to give in ailments caused by taking cold in the water." "Ha ! Ha !" he cried,
"you gave him Calc-c".
 The patient was permanently cured from his mania, caused by congestion, by a
single dose of Calcarea Carbonia 30.

(Courtesy : The Organon Book I. Vol. II, p.78).

Flooding Menorrhagia.
By Dr. S. Swan.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

Mrs. F. commenced menstruating July 11, after the usual (with her) interval of
three weeks. The flow began normal, but instead of decreasing on the fifth day
(2nd Quarter of the moon) showed evidence of increase, and I was called on the
18th, and found a profuse bright red flow with some clots. I learned that six years
since she was thrown from her horse, had a severe concussion and broke her left
arm, followed by a miscarriage (4th month), accompanied by such a profuse
haemorrhage that her life was despaired of. She had no further trouble at her
periods which had then settled to a 3 week’s interval, until two years since, when
without any warning, or any known cause, there was another profuse flooding.
After some surgical attention and two months confinement to her room she had
no further trouble until the present time ; and there was no apparent cause for
this attack, having taken no violent exercise, and only short walks and riding in a
carriage. I have her Arnica CM, one dose, which materially lessened the flow, and
as the clots had ceased, and no further improvement, and the flow still bright red
and fluid, I gave Millefolium, same potency. This changed the flow to dark
blood, still profuse, and she got Ustilago, same potency. The flow now becoming
bright red, coming in jets as if from an artery, very hot and offensive, it became
alarming, and Belladonna was given, CM., in water every hour a teaspoonful,
after six hours, no improvement, and the odour now horribly offensive, like
rotten fish. I gave Sanicula CM., with rapid diminution of the flow and decrease
of the odour, which, however, continued till the flow ceased.

The flow did not cease under Sanicula ; as there would be a full moon the next
day I considered that had something to do with retarding recovery. I learned that
when the moon in the latter part of the night shown in the windows, the flow
materially increased. As the patient had become interested in this question of the
influence of the moon, the advent of the eclipse was looked for with great
interest. There was no perceptible change till the disc of the moon was two-
thirds covered, when from that time there was increased flow, and towards the
latter part when the moon was opposite her window, there was great restlessness,
nervousness and tossing about the bed. During the attack there was not the
slightest pain or discomfort, but during the eclipse, there was headache and pain
the hypogastric region, passing back and forth across. The flow ceased next day,
but returned slight towards morning as the moon got opposite her window as
there was the same odour – gave Sanicula ; a slight continuous dribbling
suggested Trillium, and a dose of Kreosote ended the case on the 24th. The
weakness from the great loss of blood (for she was nearly exsanguinated),
rendered her unable to stand or walk in her room till the 29th, and it was not till
the 31st, she was able to go to her meals.

I am entirely satisfied with the action of the remedies, which was rapid and
effective. Sanicula showed its value in controlling the case. What the lesion in the
uterus is, I do not know, though it seemed as if an artery had been ruptured –
possibly this may have been the result of the fall from her horse. The next
pepriod of the patient was regular and in every way perfectly normal.

(Courtesy : Medical Advance – 1888, p. 561).

Three interesting cases.

By Dr. Villers, of Dresden.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

ENURESIS.

A boy of seven years was suddenly seized with nocturnal incontinence of urine.
This incontinence was repeated five or six times a night. The mother expressed
her astonishment at this, as her child had never before shown this feebleness of
the bladder. One dose or Psorinum 30 produced a cure of this incontinence by
the next day.

EPILEPSY.

An able architect, aged thirty-one years, is the first assistant of the celebrated
architect Wallot, who has built our Reichstagsgebaeude, an edifice which would
have been splendid, but for too frequent a change of directors.

In his infancy he had been epileptic. In the twenty-sixth year of his life he had to
undergo severe mental work in competing for the Architects’ Travelling Prize,
and during this time he suffered from opisthotonic convulsions which were very
painful. During his two years of traveling, he had no attacks, though he worked
every day eight hours.

Having returned to Dresden and resumed his work, he was again attacked this
disease and I was then called in. He was in bed and complained that he had been
frightened by furious dreams. Every time he fell asleep, he would wake up with a
start and with palpitations. In sitting up, he had a severe pain in the back part of
the head. The skin in front was wrinkled, which gave him a fierce and fantastic
appearance. Muscular contractions in the nape of the neck, alternating with the
muscles of the back, caused a very painful headache. His face was always very red
without fever.

Calcarea Carb.30 brought a complete cure. I saw him again a few days ago, and
he told me that he had not any more attacks, though he had to work very
strenuously, because his chief was then having his vacation. He congratulated me
on my success and thanked me for the cure I had effected.

COUGH.

Mr. X, in a rainy bivouac during the manoeuvres in the year 1885, had been
taken with a nervous cough, which seemed to start from a clearly localized spot,
but this could not be determined even by a very careful examination. The cough
had a peculiar sound, as if he wished to call some one, so that passers-by would
turn back to him.

According to the advice of one of the best homoeopaths in Germany, Dr. Ide in
Stettin, Pomerania, with whom I had an opportunity of speaking during a
consultation to which I was called in Stettin, I gave him Medorrhinum 1000, a
single dose, and bade him watch its effect. Next day he did not cough any more
and the remnant of an old gonorrhoea, a constant heat in the urethra and pain
during micturition, which had already lasted for twelve years, all vanished as if by
magic.

All this effect was produced in twenty-four hours and there was no need of
repeating the dose. At present the emission of urine takes place with the greatest
ease.

(Courtesy : Homoeopathic Recorder – Feb. 1903, p.74).

 Verification of Nux vomica with cases.
By C. B. Stauffer, M. D.
Presented by Dr. Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)

When we come to discuss such a kingly drug as Nux Vomica, every physician of
every kind, whatever he may be, must acknowledge its majesty. It has a long train
of symptoms, and too many physicians who do not know what to give turn with
gracious hearts and give Nux Vomica, thinking there might be a ray of hope of
cure in this drug. A homoeopathic physician would no more think of equipping
his medicine case and leave out Nux Vomica in some potency than a surgeon
would leave out his needles from his case were he called to suture a wound.
Every physician here could give verifications of it without number. It is so useful
and efficacious that it is prescribed in all potencies, from the mother tincture to
the many mths. We all know, when indicated, it acts, it matters not what its
potency might be. There is scarcely a tissue in the body but that is responsive to
its action. Of all drugs, probably this one is used oftener by the beginner in the
practice of medicine than any other. The efficiency of Nux is debased when put
in combination with others and dispensed as "combination tablets." It is then
neither master nor slave.

Nux Vomica has been known since 1540 A. D. A remarkably accurate

description was given of it in that year by one V. Cordus. Farrington says : "The
fruit of the tree is about the size of an orange and contains a bitter, gelatinous
pulp. This pulp, it is said, is eaten by some birds of India, although it is well
known to contain Strychnine. The Nux itself is the seed deprived of the pulp and
shell. This seed is disc-shaped and about one inch in diameter and one-fourth
inch in thickness. Its surface is satiny by reason of a thick covering of a
depressed radiating hairs."

Strychnia has a well described symptomatology, being poison, not uncommonly

used for suicidal and homicidal purposes, and also for the extermination of the
lower animals, cats, rats, etc.

The smallest fatal dose of Nux Vomica is said to be 3 grains ; that of Strychnia,
1/2 grain.

Nux Vomica, while not having so wide a range of action as Mercurius and
possibly some other remedies, is nevertheless more often prescribed than any
other, because the ailments are such as are very commonly met within practice.
This is very largely due to the fact that Nux Vomica is more often indicated for
indigestion and various consequences arising from errors in diet and digestive
habits, and if often required by certain persons who are so engrossed in business
that they pay little attention to their physical requirements.
Nux Vomica is best suited to rather thin, spare patients. It does not seem to act
so well on the fleshy. Generally you will find it indicated in patients who suffer
from strain on the mind, particularly if this over taxing of the mental powers is
intensified by sedentary habits. It is good for those who deprive themselves of
sleep and exercise in pursuance of their studies ; in individuals who have
headaches and are tired in the mornings when they awake. These patients will
have a bitter taste in the mouth, tongue coated and symptoms that point to a
wearing out of the system from overwork.

With individuals, who become too enthusiastic over the outcome of some great
victory and imbibe too frequently in spirituous liquors, always have a clouded
mind and a big head the next morning. Frequently these individuals will have
Nux Vomica prescribed for them when the celebration is over, and the next
morning they will be able to pursue their usual work with little or no discomfort.
They are put right on their feet.

Now the stomach is in great distress. The trouble begins with a headache either
in the occiput or over one eye, usually the left one ; begins in the morning and
increases until night, accompanied with a sour taste in the mouth, flatus and
retching. Bowels are constipated, with an ineffectual urging to stool. This is not
atony of the rectum but due to irregular fitful action.

Gastralgia : worse from eating, sometimes relieved when the stomach is empty.
Pain in epigastrium, radiating in all directions. Hot drinks will often relieve.

Think of Nux Vomica in children who are very excitable and men who have
eaten or drunk too much.

In cases of debauch, when Nux Vomica fails, Carbo Veg. is a good remedy,
although Sulphur may be required.

In stomach troubles when there are marked aggravations an hour after eating,
think of Nux Vomica. Great hunger 24 hours before the attack comes on.
Patients crave gravies, pies, fat foods, have great thirst, but water causes distress.
There are sour, bitter eructations.

Students frequently eat to excess rich foods, pies, gravies, fat foods and
particularly if of inactive habits, their stomach gives them trouble. These things
are interdicted together with coffee and the patient soon rallies. When Nux
Vomica is prescribed, it is given in one-half glass of hot water before meals. Here
one gets the benefit of the heat as well as the drug. When there is eructation of a
sour, bitter fluid in the throat, known as waterbrash, Nux is the remedy ; when
there is a burning pain about the heart, "heart burn," Pulsatilla is the remedy.
Nux Vomica in haemorrhoids is called for in cases not bleeding, with a feeling of
dryness in the rectum, like little sticks or splinters were pricking the folds of the
mucous membrane.

CASE : A student, son of a regular, came into college at its opening session a
year ago, and presented symptoms of urticaria together with hemorrhoids. The
student’s father said no relief could be obtained by the son unless he was
operated upon. Apis 30x was prescribed and the skin conditions abated
markedly. It also relieved the hemorrhoids. The student was a user of cathartics,
thinking his bowels were not acting as they should. The cathartics aggravated the
hemorrhoids and Nux 30x was then given. His condition immediately improved,
and today feels good.

Nux in the eyes : The lid-edges itch and burn without discharge ; in ecchymoses
of the sub-conjunctival membrane, where blood is effused beneath the
conjunctiva ; These often follow debauches or sitting up late at night to study, in
persons subject to dyspepsia.

Nux Vomica intensifies the action of Sepia.

Nux Vomica is well suited for thin, "dried up," nervous patients. There is a
stiffness and a numbness of the fingers. Hands go to sleep. Holding a pencil
makes little impression upon the nerve endings of the fingers.

CASE : A student was putting himself through college by doing short-hand and
stenographic work. On account of the sedentary life he was leading, lack of
exercise and indiscretions in diet, he began having a numbess of the fingers of
the right hand. The condition became so marked, he could not feel the presence
of a pencil in fingers. Nux 30x was prescribed and regulating diet and exercise,
the student improved rapidly.

CASE : A lady school teacher, 33 years of age, lifted a box and strained her
back ; with this back condition she had a numbness of the left arm. Always
worse at night, she would be awakened by this "sleeping" arm. She was fearful
that she would be paralysed, since her father died from results of paralysis. Rhus
30x was prescribed and relieved the back, but the arm still slept. Nux 30x was
then given and regulations in diet and prohibiting the use of coffee, of which she
was very fond, the case cleared up. Very seldom does she complain, and when
she does, she responds readily to the Nux treatment.
In headaches, Nux Vomica is a valuable remedy. These often occur in
conjunction with the gastric disorders. The modalities more than the character of
exertion decide the choice of the drug.

CASE : A young dancing teacher, a man, aged 40, taught his classes until late at
night, then drank beer and ate a lunch. He was a sufferer from sick and nervous
headaches, frontal region, over the eyes. Great user of coffee and cathartics. A
few doses of Nux 30x cleared up the case after eliminating the coffee, cathartics
and night eating.

The aggravations are : Mental exertion, anger, open air, on awakening in the
morning, after eating, abuse of spirits, sour stomach, in the sunshine, on opening
the eyes, from coughing, high living or highly seasoned foods, after drugging,
from constipation, in stormy weather. Pains are not definitely localized, and he
says, "It feels badly and aches all over."

Courtesy : "The University Homoeopathic Observer", January 1915, Vol. XV,

pp. 14-17.