Generalities
The potencies are prepared from soluble black oxide of Mercury (prepared originally by Dr. Hahnemann), or from pure metallic Mercury. There is no difference between the symptoms of these preparations; but it seems that when Mercurius sol. fails, when indicated, merc vivus acts. Mercurius affects more or less every organ and tissue of the body; Blood decomposes producing profound anaemia; LYMPHATIC GLANDS are enlarged, glandular activity esp. of SALIVARY AND MUCOUS GLANDS increases. SECRETIONS ARE FREE; thin; slimy, acrid, burning, foul or thick greenish-yellow. Ulcerations; of the mucous membranes esp. of mouth and throat. Manifestations of hereditary syphilis; bullae; abscesses, marasmus; snuffles or destructive inflammations of bones, cellular tissues; joints come under its range. Patient suffers from great variety of symptoms; he is uncertain in his mental and physical behaviour; tremulous, weak and sweaty. Swellings oedematous; continued exudations. Redness. Livid congestions. Pains stick to one point. Suppurations; pus; bloody, thin, greenish. Offensiveness; of secretions; of breath; of body. Yellowness; of eyes, teeth, nasal discharges; biliousness; jaundice. Parts are much swollen, with raw sore feeling. Sensitive to heat and cold; human barometer. Everything seems too short. Weak, exhausted and ready to sink down, worse after stools. Rheumatism. Emaciation. Salty-lips, taste, expectoration etc. Oily perspiration. Syphilis, sycosis, scrofula. Convulsions. Cataleptic rigidity of the body. Paralysis agitans; paraplegia. Contraction of joints. Ill effects of fright; suppressed gonorrhoea; foot sweat. As if body were made of sweets. Burning, stinging pains. Tremblings, twitchings, disorderly motions; of paralyzed parts. Strictures, after inflammation. Indurations. Exostoses, painful. Softening of the bones.
Worse
NIGHT; air. SWEATING LYING ON RIGHT SIDE. HEATED WHEN; by bed or fire. DRAFTS, to head. Weather-changing, cloudy; damp cold. Taking cold. Heat and cold. Wet feet. Firelight. Before stool. During and after urination. Touching anything cold.
Better
Moderate temperature. Coition. Rest.
Mind
Hurried; in speech. Stammering, nervous, with tremors. Violent, horrid impulses; homicidal, suicidal. Restless and sweaty. Changes place constantly. Fear with desire to escape. Uncontrollable desire to travel far away. Indifference to everything, does not even care to eat. Inclination to catch passing strangers by the nose. Filthy in mind and body; does foolish, mischievous, disgusting actions. Slow in answering questions. Weary of life. Suicidal thoughts during menses better weeping. Thinks he is losing his reason. Memory weak; forgets everything. Loss of will power. Senses impending evil. Precocious. Groaning and moaning. Suspicious. Time passes slowly.
Head
Vertigo worse lying on back; as if on a swing. Band feeling about the head. Headache, with ear and toothache. Exostosis with feeling of soreness. Scalp tense, oily sweat on head. Meningitis. Hydrocephalus. Child turns head from side to side and moans. External head painful to touch. Cephalhematoma. Falling of hair from sides and temples.
Eyes
Lids; red, thick, swollen; tarsi, scurfy and swollen. Scanty or profuse, burning acrid discharge. Eyes draw together. Black spots, flames, sparks before the eyes. Photophobia worse heat and glare, of fire; of foundrymen. Arcus senilis. Iritis; with hypopion. Keratitis. Lachrymation profuse, burning, acrid. Conjunctivitis from taking cold. Lids spasmodically closed. Periodical loss of sight. Optic nerve and eye affection in those who work in foundries. Foggy vision.
Ears
Pains extend to ear; from teeth, throat etc. Otorrhoea_thick yellow discharge, foetid and bloody. Deafness on becoming heated; better on swallowing and blowing nose. Boils in external canal. As if cold water running from the ear. Sensation of coldness in ears; during pregnancy.
Nose
Much sneezing. Sneezing in sunshine. Nostrils; raw, ulcerated. Colds travel upwards or attack eyes. Coryza; acrid, purulent; too thick to run. Heavy nose. Red, raw, dirty nosed children. Nosebleed, when coughing; during sleep, blood hangs in dark coagulated strings. Frequent sneezing, without coryza. Sinusitis.
Face
Pale, yellow, dirty looking; puffy, under eyes. Cheeks; swollen, red, hot. Aching in jaws. Mumps. Lips; salty, dry, cracked; in angles (right); burn when touched. Masseter muscles contracted. Facial paralysis from cold.
Mouth
Offensive, putrid odour from mouth. Painful ragged, swollen, bleeding gums. Gumboil Teeth; hollow, black; pain worse heat and cold, night; feel tender and elongated. Aphthae. SALIVA; INCREASED; flows during sleep; yellow; bloody, bad tasting, offensive. Tongue; broad, flabby, yellow, INDENTED; needle pricks at tip. Furrow across upper portion of the tongue; with pricking. Sweetish, METALLIC TASTE. Speech difficult from trembling of tongue. Loss of speech, replies by signs and grimaces Stammering. Ranula, with salivation and sore gums. Itching palate. Ulcers behind the tongue. Tonsils enlarged. As if something rising in the throat, with desire to swallow it down. Taste sweetish: bread tastes sweet. Stomatitis from chewing-gum.
Throat
SORE; raw, smarting, burning, as of hot vapour ascending. As of an apple core, choke pear, or something hanging in. Ulcers on tonsils, on pharynx. Quinsy, with difficult swallowing, after pus has formed. Stitches into ears, on swallowing. Hawks large lumps from throat. Constant inclination to swallow. Drinks return through nose.
Stomach
Intense thirst for cold drink and beer. Weak digestion, with continuous hunger. Feels replete and constricted. Aversion to meat, coffee, butter and oily things. Sweet things and milk disagree, though he craves them. Rancid eructations. Frequent hiccough. Heartburn.
Abdomen
Liver; enlarged, sore; indurated. Jaundice. Bowels feel weak, holds them. Intestines feel bruised when lying on right side, or as if they fall to side on which one is lying. Inguinal glands swollen or suppurating. STOOLS; painful, scanty; bloody; greenish slimy; ashen white, acrid; then tenesmus or chill; never get done feeling. Rectal tenesmus, with tenesmus of bladder. Appendicitis, better lying on back. Prolapsus ani after stool. Swelling of inguinal glands on taking cold. Dysentery. External abdomen cold to touch.
Urinary
Frequent urging to urinate day and night, with copious or scanty urine. Urine causes itching. Urinates more than drinks. Albuminuria; urine black, bloody. Burning after urination. Stream of urine very small. Dysuria. Haematuria, painless.
Male
Glans and prepuce inflamed and swollen; phimosis. Testicles; swollen, hard, with shiny, red scrotum. Children or adults pull and scratch at the genitals; from a kind of itching which makes them do so. Bloody emissions. Gonorrhoea. Red meatus. Vesicles, ulcers, soft chancres. Herpes preputialis. Swelling of lymphatic vessels along penis.
Female
Collapse and fainting at start of menses. Menses; profuse with abdominal pains. Genitals feel raw. Leucorrhoea; thick, white, when urinating; better coition, Itching worse urinating better washing with cold water. Prolapse of uterus with vagina better coition. Mammae painful and full of milk at menses. Sterility, with too profuse menses. Easy coitus and certain conception. Stinging pain in ovary. Pain below (right) mammae through to scapula. Tendency to abortion from sheer weakness. Abscesses appear anywhere on body during menses and disappear after menses. Leucorrhoea in small girls causing prostration. Mammae swollen, become hard, with ulcerative pain during menses. Cancer of mammae and uterus. Itching of vulva. Milk spoiled. Milk in breast of boys; and in girls, instead of menses.
Respiratory
Hoarse rough voice. Cough; in double bouts; dry at night; yellow green sputum by day. Respiration difficult worse lying on left side but cough worse lying on right side. Stitches from lower right chest to back worse sneezing or coughing. Sensation of bubbles or as of a hot steam in chest. Epistaxis during whooping cough. Cough worse by smoking. Jaundice; in pneumonia. Shortness of breath on going upstairs or walking quickly Asthma better tobacco smoke and cold air.
Heart
Palpitation on slight exertion. Awakes with cardiac tremor. Pulse irregular, quick strong and intermittent or soft and trembling.
Neck and Back
Neck stiff; cervical glands enlarged. Burning pain in back worse emission. Tearing pain in coccyx worse pressing on abdomen. Pain forward from right scapula.
Extremities
Weakness and trembling of the limbs; esp. of hands. Fingers numb. Cold sweat on feet in a.m.; in bed. Phlegmasia alba dolens. Dropsical swelling of feet and legs. Icy cold hands after emission. Bone-pains_deep or near the surface worse at night; must get up and walk about. Cold heels. Sensation as if knees were larger.
Skin
General tendency to free perspiration but patient is not relieved thereby; skin always moist. Skin; yellow; tender, excoriated, like raw meat. Moist crusty eruptions. Ulcers; irregular, spreading; shallow; bleeding; with cutting and proud flesh. Pimples around the main eruption. Boils and abscesses form at the time of menses. Yellow. Jaundice with itching on abdomen. Itching at night in bed. Moist eczema. Insensible.
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'.