Berberis Vulgaris


Dr. S.R. Phatak describes the clinically confirmed symptoms of the homeopathic remedy Berberis Vulgaris in his Concise Materia Medica, published in 1977….


Generalities

      It acts upon urinary organs, when there is tendency to the formation of calculi and lithaemia. It affects the liver markedly-promotes the flow of bile, therefore it is a useful remedy for fleshy persons with good livers, but with little endurance. Often useful in arthritic and hepatic affections with urinary, haemorrhoidal, or menstrual complaints. Venous stasis occurs in pelvic region, causing haemorrhoids. Patient is mentally and physically tired-not inclined to do anything. Prematurely old and worn out men and women. Pains rapidly change their locality and character. Symptoms rapidly alternate, thirst alternates with thirstlessness; hunger alternating with loss of appetite etc. Pains; are RADIATING, from one point, shooting outward or all over; sticking; burning-smarting, soreness. Numbness; insensible to extreme heat and cold. GURGLING or bubbling sensations. Mucous membranes become dry- mouth, vagina etc. Discharges or skin is dirty gray. Cold feeling in the bones, eyes, ears etc. Chest affected after operations-piles, fistula, 1 etc. Sees things in twilight.

Worse

      Motion; jarring, stepping hard. Rising from sitting. Standing. Fatigue. Urinating. Twilight.

Mind

      Mental labour, requiring close thinking very difficult; the least interruption, breaks the chain of thought. Apathetic. Indifferent. Objects seem twice as large as natural. Sees terrifying apparitions in twilight; esp. children.

Head

      Sensation as if the head were becoming larger. Cold temples. Vertigo, with attacks of fainting. Sensation as of a tight cap on head.

Eyes

      Dry. As of a sand between the lids, and eyes. Eyes feel cold as from a cool wind, with lachrymation on closing the eyes. Quivering of the eyelids when reading. Eyes sunken; with dark- bluish circles around.

Ears

      Stopped up feeling with pressure. Nodes on auricle. Tumour behind the ear. Sensation of coldness or bubbling in.

Nose

      Dry. Crawling, itching in nostrils.

Face

      Dirty grey, sickly. Bilious. Suppurating acne. Sensation as if cold drops were spurted into the face when going into the open air.

Mouth

      Sticky. Viscid, foamy, cottony saliva. Tongue; feels scalded; painful pimple on tip. Gums dirty grey. Small white nodes in the gums. Teeth feel as if too long or too large. Taste bitter.

Throat

      Sensation of plug in the side of the throat with dryness.

Stomach

      Nausea; before breakfast; after dinner. Pains from stomach to back; or the reverse. Nausea before breakfast better after.

Abdomen

      Torn loose feeling in the epigastrium. Colic, pain from gall bladder to stomach worse pressure. Biliary calculi. Stools; dirty grey, smarting tough; watery, with jaundice. Fistula in ano; with itching; with chest complaints. Colic, biliary or urinary arresting breathing.

Urinary Organs

      Pain from kidney, extending along ureter, or to liver, stomach, spleen; arresting breathing. Renal colic. Burning, soreness, or bubbling in kidney region. Clear discharge from meatus before urinating. Urine; thick, turbid, yellow; red, mealy, sandy or slimy sediment. Sensation as if some urine remained after urination. Urethra burns when not urinating. Pains in thighs and hips, on urinating. Prostate gland enlarged, with pressure in perineum. Dysuria.

Male

      Neuralgia of testes and spermatic cord. Testicles drawn up. Pain changes sides. Genitals cold and sweaty. Prepuce and glans cold and numb. Penis hard and contracted, bends upwards.

Female

      Menses; too slight; of watery blood or brown or grey mucus, replaces menses. Vagina sensitive; cutting pain during coition; vaginismus. Enjoyment absent during coition. Neuralgia of ovaries and vagina. Pain changes sides. Prostration after coition. Dysmenorrhoea, with blood looking like grey serum. Urinary symptoms, with menses and leucorrhoea.

Respiratory organs

      Hoarseness; polypus of larynx. Obstruction of breath when raising arms. Short dry cough, with stitches in chest.

Head

      Stitches about the heart. Pulse becomes very slow.

Neck and Back:

      Stitches in neck and back worse respiration. Backache, with severe prostration worse sitting or Lying. Sore spot under (right) scapula. Crushing, stitching, paralysing pain, in lumbar region. Pain from iliac crests down front of thighs; when urinating. Post-operative pain in lumbar region.

Extremities

      Neuralgia, under finger nails, with swelling of finger joints. Outer side of the thighs cold, ulcerative pain in heels. Pain in balls of feet on stepping. Intense weariness and lameness of legs after walking a short distance. Stitches between metatarsal bones as from a nail worse standing.

Fever

      Chilly. Sensation of coldness in various parts as if spattered with cold water. Lower parts of the back, hips, thighs, warm. Everything excites sweat.

Skin

      Flat warts. Itching, burning and smarting worse scratching better cold application. Eczema of anus and hands. Eruptions leave a brown stain.

Related

      Benz-ac; Coc-c; Kali-b; Lyc; Pulsatilla

Complementary

      Mag-m.

S.R. Phatak
A pioneer of Homoeopathy in Maharashtra, Dr Shankar Raghunath Phatak was born on 6th September, 1896. He did his MBBS from Grant Medical College, in 1924. Started his practice but somehow not satisfied with Allopathic Treatment.

He was convinced about Homoeopathy while going through Sir William Osler's writings on 'History of Medicine' so switched over to an entirely Homoeopathic Practice in 1932. He also started working on Homoeopathic literature along with his Practice.

He has contributed immensely to homoeopathic literature. He was an ardent follower of Dr Boger. His Repertory is based on Boger's ''A Synoptic key to Materia Medica'.

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