7. H – took 3 or 4 gr. of S. When first seen about 15 m. after he was only partially conscious and unable to answer questions intelligibly. He soon became quite unconscious and quite stiff. During the hours and half that followed the spasms were severe; he would throw himself about, snap at a hand that touched his, strike and kick. Suddenly his body would curve backwards and rest on the head and heals, with the elbows on the bed at the sides. The muscles would continue to contract, drawing the head back, until the occiput nearly touched the spine and the face became buried in the pillow. Occasionally he would extend his arms at his side with the fingers straight and separated, and rising to the sitting posture would stare wildly about the room as if in fear. Breathing was only maintained by the aid of artificial respiration. (H. P. COLE, U. S. Medorrhinum Invest., ii, 432.)
8. Dr. HIPPEL says that he has found by personal experience that when given in doses of 2 to 4 milligr. S. produces the following effects, viz. 1, increased peripheric sensibility for blue; 2, temporary increase of visual power; 3, more distinct perception of peripheric points; 4, lasting enlargement of the field of vision. (Hom. Times, iv, 86.)
9. A man, aet, 59, applied for relief from an intense feeling of cold, attended with visible sluggishness of the capillary circulation, especially in the hands and feet (and remnants of an attack of hemiplegic paralysis from which he had suffered 12 mos. previously), and from an extraordinary enlargement of the abdomen, which he had been led to believe was dropsical. The abdominal distension turned out on examination to be mere tympanitic, from partial paralysis of the muscular coat of the bowels, and strychnia was ordered, gr. 1/16 three times a d. On the occasion of the man’s next visit I thought at first that he was drunk, as he had the uncertain gait, meaningless smile, and flushed perspiring cheeks characteristic of intoxication. To my surprise, however, I found that this effect had been produced by a dose of the S. taken 1/2 hours previously, and he had come to me to complain of the medicine because it “made him drunk “; this I ascertained subsequently by personal observation was really the fact. He also complained that all sounds caused a “deafening noise” in his ears. The dose was decreased to gr. 1/32, and the disagreeable effects upon consciousness and co – ordination of movements were no longer observed; but a very remarkable increase of temperature of the surface was still produced by each dose, and by degrees became constant. (ANSTIE, Stimulants and Narcotics, p. 151.)
10. M. T -, a man of 40, a great drinker, had become a teetotaller lately, because he had had one or two attacks of delirium tremens; but this had not saved him from sinking into a state of chronic “horrors,” so that he feared he should be driven to suicide. He was ordered to take S., gr. 1/24 ter die. He came on the 3rd day, complaining of decided stiffness in lower jaw muscles, copious flow of saliva, and “flashes of fire before his eyes.” His eyesight was much weakened; he could only read the very largest type at any distance, and said that even this looked dim and misty. The flashes complained of always occurred if he looked towards a bright light, and even in comparative darkness, soon after each dose of the medicine. The sensibility of the skin did not seem notably raised. (Ibid., p. 211.)
11. A woman, aet. 33, was suffering from a peculiar numbness, attended with partial paralysis and some wasting of the muscles of the muscles of the forearm. S. was administered in gr. 1/32 doses, with the most manifest god effects. On dose, however, being raised to gr. 1/16, skin of both arms and forearms, of palms and of soles, became exquisitely tender to the touch, so that she could not bear to walk, and a considerable tendency to reflex muscular contraction developed itself. But the most distressing symptom was the painful effect which any sound made upon the ear; it was not that sounds were heard at all more distinctly, but that the slightest sound occupied the woman’s whole hearing faculty, so to speak, and anything like a multiplicity of impression on the auditory nerve became positively painful. (Ibid., p. 212.)
12. A young man, aet. 19, suffering from enuresis, took S. in doses gradually increased up to gr. 1/12. The first dose of the immediately produced impairment of the sight and distressing sensibility of the eyes to the dazzling influence of light, and even “flashes” after the eyes had been shut, or sometimes in a dark room. (Ibid, p. 213.)
13. a. S., even in permissible doses, may produce a chain of threatening symptoms differing only in degree from true S. poisoning. After gr. 1/12 – 1/6 there may appear nausea, redness of eyes, formication, exalted sensibility to external impressions, feeling of weight in feet, and stiffness in limbs. With these symptom are occasionally associated disagreeably tension of certain groups of muscles, and painful erections. Girl several times observed, after the repeated internal administrations of S., the occurrence of periodic spasmodic attacks, reappearing during the course of several weeks, m of a tertian type, resembling an intermittent fever, and ending with sweating. After they had ceased, they could be reproduced by S.
13b. In the case of a woman who took gr. 1/160 of the drug, Skinner was a scarlatious exanthema, which disappeared after it was discontinued. (LEWIN, op, cit.)
14. In a case of amaurosis, a small powder = about 3 milligrams was applied to the lachrymal orifice of one eye. Scarcely 3 or 4 m. had elapsed before patient’s face assumed a livid colour, and he yawned spasmodically; then followed vertigo, which made him fall into an armchair. Windows were opened, the powder removed, cold affusion, &c., practiced; but in spite of this toxic symptoms of graver kind came rapidly on, – complete loss of speech, absence of pulse, respiration laboured and interrupted, then tetanic shocks of extreme violence. From 10 to 12 of these occurred, their force increasing up to the 5th, when they became feebler. As patient improved, he felt painful pressure on bladder and rectum, and a copious evacuation ensued. In less than 1/2 hours he had completely recovered. (Gaz. Medorrhinum de Paris, 1861, p. 98.)
15. In addition to the violent spasmodic contractions produced by S., BALLY has observed an appearance of stupor, vertigo, tinnitus aurium, sleeplessness, and turgescence of the capillaries of the face. (Bull. de. Theridion, Feb., 1838.).
Experiments of animals
1. a. Dr. Brown – Sequard has proved that the action of S. consists in an increased nutrition of the spinal marrow, by which excess of nutrition of the reflex faculty becomes intensified; and also in a special power of stimulating this nervous centre independently of the quantity of blood it contains. Kolliker’ experiments demonstrate that in whatever manner the drug acts, it does so upon the nervous centres alone, and not upon the nerves themselves or on the muscles. His experiments also prove that during the action of S. spasms may be excited by a stimulus proceeding directly from without, or transmitted through the brain. Dr. Marshal Hall states that if a dog under the milder form of strychnism be allowed to remain quiet, it will recover; while, if continually excited, it will as certainly die.
1b. The experiments of Dr. Spence (Ed. Medorrhinum Journ., xii, 44) confirm these conclusions. He showed that S. applied directly to the nerves of frogs produces no effects whatever, but that its application to the medulla oblongata and spinalis immediately develops specific phenomena. He also proved that even when injected into the abdominal veins it remained ineffectual if the ventricle of the heart was cut away so as to prevent the poison from being thrown through the arteries into the nervous centres. On the other hand, his experiments demonstrated that the poison, if taken into the stomach, acts only when its access to those centres is not prevented. Its mode of action, he concludes, consists in stimulating the nerve cells to excessive action, and keeping them in that condition until they perish from exhaustion. But before this process is completed, death may take place from asphyxia brought on by spasm of the respiratory muscles. (STILLE, op. cit.)
2a. Dr. Brown – Sequard found that when the spinal cord was cut just below the origin of the nerves supplying the forelegs of a frog, and all the blood – vessels going to the lower section of the cord were also served so as to isolate the latter, on the exhibition of S. convulsions occurred in the anterior part of the body, while in the posterior segment quiet and a normal reflex activity were maintained, although the blood was carrying the poison to every part of it save the spinal cord. This experiment has been repeated a great number of times by MM. Martin – Magron and Buisson with similar results.
2b. Richter and Mayer have ascertained that S – causes a very decided rise in the arterial pressure, and the former has seen contraction of the vessels of the frog’s web under its action. (H. C. WOOD, op. cit.)
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.