16. I once observed the following symptoms, which occurred in a woman to whom G. had been given to arrest daily hysterical convulsions. The tinct. was given in doses of 10 dr. every 4 hours. The spasms were much relieved, and their periodicity broken up; but on the 2nd day of its administration there appeared dryness and burning of fauces; red tongue inflamed in middle; severe burning in oesophagus, from mouth to stomach; spasmodic sensation and cramp-like pains there; hawking up of bloody matter. During the spasms, bloody brown foam would run out of the mouth. The burning sensations at times seemed intolerable; deglutition was painful; food and drink, taken warm, aggravated. This condition resisted arsenic, but yielded to phosphorus 2. (As the G was largely diluted with water, these symptoms were not more local effect. Patient had never experienced then before.)(HALE. op. cit.).
Experiments on animals
a. To a small spaniel I gave, at 9 a. m., 3s of Tilden’s fl. extr. No symptoms appearing after 30 morning, repeated dose. In about 15 minutes noticed slight twitching of eyelids; some dilatation of pupils; increased action of heart, 120 in morning. A few morning more, and muscles of head, face, and neck were affected with twitching; heart beat with irregular force, now hard and full, now very weak. Dog became giddy, and staggered; there was drowsiness on closure of lids, with occasional starting as if frightened. It remained in state of stupor about 30 morning. At 10:30 3iss was given. In less than 5 minutes spasmodic contraction of nearly all muscles of body took place; limbs were drawn against turn, head to one side. Left side seemed mos affected. There was also laboured breathing, as in asthma; trembling of whole body, especially limbs; great dilatation of pupils, obliteration iris; heart’s beats 140. Then came clonic opisthotonos. All this time eyes were closed and animal remained drowsy and stupid; tongue appeared of bright red, with purple tint. These symptoms gradually ceased till about 12, when 3ij more were administered. This was immediately followed by great tremor of whole body. He walked backward for some distance, staggering from side to side. In about 15 morning he sank into a stupid condition, with nodding and inability to open eyes. For next 15 morning this state continued, with occasional jactitation of muscles. At 12:30 3j was given, followed by renewal of spasms. Whole body and limbs became severely convulsed; complete blindness, with greatly dilated pupils; tongue a dark purple and hanging from mouth. At this time (about 30 morning after 4th dose) pupils contracted very much, sight still absent; then nausea and efforts to vomit, for first time. Heart’s action 120; resp. 90. After a while he became quiet, when 30 dr. were given. In about 5 morning muscles of thorax seemed entirely paralysed; respiration seemed carried on only by violent efforts of abdominal muscles. heart’s action weak and fluttering, took rapid to be counted. He tried to walk, but hind legs dragged as if paralysed. Involuntary urination. In a morning or two he fell down, and there was entire paralysis of whole voluntary muscular system. He lay completely motionless; a leg lifted fell and dead and heavy. Respiration very slow and laboured, long sighing inspirations. In this state he remained about 20 minutes, when, at 1:30, another dose of 30 dr. was given, followed by gasping; he seemed to be dying. For next 1/2 respiration was alternately gasping and stertorous; it then became natural. Blindness and paralysis continued about an hour; but by 4 animal was lively and well.
1 b. In a second experiment made on same animal 2 days later, 3j was given in all, 3j every hour. During first 7 hours symptoms were very similar to those obtained on first trial; but during last hour, from paralytic and partially insensible condition, dog for a brief space became furious, and seemed during that time to regain all its strength. It ran across the room; leapt upon the lounge, over a chair; ran howling under a table, and glared out at us with bloodshot and protruding eyes, and some rigidity of limbs. Beating of heart was very feeble and slow, hardly perceptible. Respiration became more and more stertorous, finally rapid and short, and the animal died without any struggle or convulsion.
1 c. P. M., I found brain in high state of hyperaemia; and 3 large drops of dark blood were effused under arachnoid. I did not notice any change in medullary stricter of brain, but substance and membranes of cord were congested. Lungs were hyperaemic, and much heavier than natural. Right side of heart was filled with dark coagulated blood; in left side some thin watery blood was found. Substance of heart showed slight unnatural redness. (HALE, Monograph, p. 12).
2. On dissection of animals killed by large doses of G., I observed a constant hyperaemia of lungs and brain; right side of heart and large vessels were distended with blood, and there was considerable congestion of capillaries in mucous coat of intestines. Muscular fiber of heart was dark-red and soft. Blood within ventricles was fluid. Substance and membranes of cord filled with blood. (MILLER, quoted in Ibid.).
3. a. BERGER experimented on frogs by injecting subcutaneously 0.1 – 0.3 grm. of watery extract. After a short stage of general restlessness, though often without this, gradually increasing heaviness of movement sets in. On drawing away feet but slight resistance is offered, and they are drawn up again, at first slowly, and finally only on being irritated; the animals when laid upon the back only succeed in turning over after many and fruitless attempts, and after 10-30 morning even these were ineffectual. They now appeared incapable of any voluntary motion, and remained in any given position except under very strong stimulus, when they made clumsy attempts to move. The cornea retained its sensitiveness, and sensibility to pain also seemed unimpaired: nerves and muscles were also capable of being irritated by a weak induction current. As a constant symptom of the poisoning a rapidly increasing retardation of breathing showed itself; this in one case ceased entirely even before mobility was quite gone, and detached respiratory movements were then only obtained by reflex irritation. The heart-beats seemed at first unaltered; in later stages there was slight decrease of frequency; but heart continued to beat regularly for some hour after cessation of respiration. reflex irritability was almost always very much heightened within 15-20 morning after injection, in many cases almost to same extent as from strychnia. The slightest touch, shaking the table, or any loud noise, caused strong tetanic convulsions.
These reflex spasms remained even after escapitation. If sciatic was divided before experiment leg on that side was free from spasm, whilst ligature of external iliac showed no protective influence. This increased reflex excitability gradually diminished till it fell below the normal point, and lastly ceased altogether. The electrical excitability of the motor nerves and muscles appeared to be lessened, and disappeared several hour earlier than in unpoisoned frogs.
3 b. Rabbits received 0.08 – 0.3 grm. of extr. in same manner. After 10-15 morning they became restless; blinked at times; pricked up their ears; and after slight tremors of these and of one or other of the anterior extremities had commenced, in most cases there set in, n a very characteristic manner, movements of progression of the anterior extremities following one another in rapid succession, whilst the animal remained stationary. These symptoms reached occasionally such a pitch that the animal raised itself upon its haunches into a more or less vertical sitting posture. The movements soon ceased, and the animal slid down with its forepaws on the table, and left the head sink till the muzzle reached the table. On strong stimulation they succeeded at first in raising the forepart of the body, during which occasional striking out with the forepaws took place; this soon ceased, however, till finally they were unable to do even this much, and they allowed the hinder part of the body also to stitch out, generally with previous symptoms of irritation, and the animal lay completely paralyse, with convulsion (varying in intensity) of the extremity, especially anterior. The frequency of respiration was always diminished within a short time after the commencement of the experiment; soon after the motor paralysis became complete, rapidly increasing dyspnoea set in, and after a short convulsive stage the animal died with all the symptoms of asphyxia. The action of the heart was on affected by large doses, after which a slight diminution of frequency of pulse was noted, and this after previous section of the vagi equally with cases where the nervous had been left intact. On p. m. examination heart was always found pulsating vigorously and regularly. Sensitiveness of the cornea, and to pain, remained intact until death. Reflex irritability was at first increased, but not by any means so sensibly as in the cold-blooded animals; finally diminished. In the stage of asphyxia only did anaesthesia of the cornea with dilatation of pupils and protrusion of eyeball set in. It was possible, by means of artificial respiration, to obviate the effects of asphyxia, even where after stoppage of respiration these symptoms, and finally unmistakable slowness and intermittence of the beats of the heart, had set in; the heart vary soon resumed its normal functions. After section of both vagi death from suffocation occurred; there was only wanting the slowing succeeding the dyspnoea. Artificial respiration always succeeded in keeping the animal alive even after enormous doses of the drug. If it had been previously commenced, even direct injection into veins of larger quantities of poison caused no appreciable change in heart’s action. Manometric experiments, however, showed, in the case of large doses, a moderate sinking of blood pressure. P. M. examination showed all signs of death from asphyxia, especially the venous character of the partial blood. The electric irritability of the peripheral nerves and muscles was preserved. (Centralblatt f. d. med. Wiss., 1875, p. 803.)
Hughes was a great writer and a scholar. He actively cooperated with Dr. T.F. Allen to compile his 'Encyclopedia' and rendered immeasurable aid to Dr. Dudgeon in translating Hahnemann's 'Materia Medica Pura' into English. In 1889 he was appointed an Editor of the 'British Homoeopathic Journal' and continued in that capacity until his demise. In 1876, Dr. Hughes was appointed as the Permanent Secretary of the Organization of the International Congress of Homoeopathy Physicians in Philadelphia. He also presided over the International Congress in London.