CAUSTICUM


Homeopathic remedy Causticum drug symptoms and indications from Condensed Materia Medica by Constantine Hering, published in 1877….


      HAHNEMANN.

Mind

      Weakness of memory; absent-minded.

Inattentive and distracted.

Taciturn, distant; disinclined to work.

Full of timorous fancies, evenings, child fears to go to bed alone.

Great anxiety.

Melancholy mood. Hopelessness.

Peevish, irritable mood.

Thinking of complaints aggravates them, especially hemorrhoids.

Sensorium

      Vertigo : tending forwards and sideways: at night in bed, on rising and on lying down again, or at 11 A.M.; on looking fixedly at an object; better in open air; with weakness in the head and anxiety. Anaemia.

Dulness of the head.

Inner Head

      Painless commotion in the whole head.

Pressive pain in right frontal eminence; dull, pressive headache.

Stitches in the temples, worse from sitting or reading.

Throbbing and stitches in the vertex.

Sensation as of an empty space between the forehead and brain.

Outer Head

      Pain at a small spot on the vertex, as if bruised, only on touch.

Tension or itching on the scalp.

Eyes

      Photophobia whole day, constantly obliged to wink.

Flickering or sparks before the eyes.

Sight obscured : as from a gauze before the eyes; as from a mist; momentarily, on blowing the nose.

Perpendicular half sight in cataract; has arrested cataract.

Pain in the eyes, as if sand were in them.

Pressive pain in the eyes, worse from touch.

Constant inclination to touch and rub the eye, which seems to relieve a pressure in it.

Eyes : inflamed; burning, red, dry, stinging. Smarting and pressure in eyes, which seem heavy; lids red.

Itching of the eyes, especially of the lids.

Inclination to close the eyes, lids seem heavy; even paralysis of upper lids. Weakness of the recti muscles. Double vision.

Blepharitis, especially if better in fresh air.

Agglutination of the lids.

Lachrymation even in room, though worse in open air.

Corrosive lachrymation, pains shooting, extend up into the head; scrofulous ophthalmia.

Old warts on eyebrows, lids or nose.

Ears

      Roaring, or buzzing in the ears.

Words and steps re-echo in the ears; hears with difficulty.

Stitches in right ear, paroxysmal, and in rapid succession.

Feeling of obstruction in ears, with offensive purulent discharge.

Herpes on the ear-lobe.

Meatus dry, with a little brown wax.

Nose

      Frequent sneezing.

Fluent coryza, with pain in chest and limbs.

Dry coryza, with stoppage of nose.

Blowing blood from nose, mornings. Profuse nosebleed.

Pimples on the tip of the nose.

Itching of tip and alae.

Old warts on the nose.

Face

      Face : yellow : sickly-looking.

Neuralgia :right side; worse at night, chilly, no thirst; drawing pains extending into cheeks and ear; spasm of muscles and numbness; menses scanty : Pimples on left cheek, with severe itching. Acne burning after scratching, better washing.

Paralysis of one side of face.

Lower Face

      Sensation of tension and pain in the jaws could only with difficulty open the mouth, and could not eat well, because a tooth seemed too long.

Arthritic pains in lower jaw.

Teeth

      Painful looseness and elongation of the teeth.

Tooth as if being crowded out of the alveoli.

Teeth painful when chewing.

Pain in sound teeth, or drawing in cold air.

Stitching and tearing toothache.

Swelling of the gums.

Tedious suppuration of the gums. Fistula dentalis.

Tongue etc.

      Taste : greasy; of rancid fat; putrid; bitter : as from disordered stomach.

Speechlessness, from paralysis of the organs of speech.

Distortion of the tongue and mouth when talking.

Stuttering, difficult, indistinct speech.

Painful vesicle on the tip of the tongue.

Tongue coated white on both sides, red in the middle.

Mouth

      Dryness of the mouth and tongue.

Much phlegm in the mouth and throat.

Sore, painful spot on the hard palate.

Swelling inside the cheek: bites it when chewing.

Throat

      Dryness in throat, posteriorly.

Mucus collects in the throat, cannot be raised by hawking; obliged to swallow it.

Hawking of mucus, with pain in pit of throat.

Rawness in throat, with sensation like heart-burn.

Rawness and tickling in the throat, with dry cough and some expectoration only after long coughing.

Must swallow continually, feels as if the throat were too narrow.

Swelling like goitre, on the throat.

Desires Aversions

      Desire for beer.

Thirst for cold drinks; thirst, with aversion to drink.

Aversion to sweet things.

Sits down to the table with some appetite, but can scarcely eat a morsel.

Eating and Drinking

      Fresh meat causes nausea; smoked meat agrees: bread causes pressure in stomach.

Coffee seems to aggravate every symptom.

Nausea and Vomiting

      Eructations: frequent, empty; tasting of the food; of food; burning.

Nausea during and after meals.

Sour vomiting, followed by sour eructations.

Vomiting of blood, at night.

Stomach

      Pain in the stomach in the morning, increased by every quick movement; must lie down.

Cramp in the stomach; pressure in the pit of stomach.

Pinching, clawing in pit of stomach on deep breathing.

Hypochondria

      Stitches in the region of the liver.

Abdomen

      Pains in the abdomen, must bend double; worse after the least nourishment or from tightening the clothes.

Colic : in the morning; pain radiates to back and chest.

Stitches in the right side of the abdomen.

Painful distention of the abdomen.

Flatulency, loud rumbling and rolling in the bowels.

Tumid abdomen, in children.

Stool etc.

      Pressure in the rectum.

Itching and sticking in the rectum.

Frequent, sudden, penetrating, pressive pain in rectum.

Frequent passage of offensive flatus.

Stools : tough and shining; first hard and in pieces, the last soft: knotty, like sheep’s dung.

Frequent ineffectual efforts to stool with much pain, anxiety and redness in face.

The stool passes better standing.

Pulsations in the perineum.

Fissure of the anus, pains worse when walking.

Itching in the anus.

Large, painful pustule near the anus, discharging pus, blood and serum.

Hemorrhoids : impeding the stool; swollen; itching, stitching, moist; stinging, burning; painful when touched, when walking, or when thinking of them.

Urine

      Paralysis of bladder from long retention of urine.

Involuntary passage of urine : when coughing, walking or blowing the nose; at night when asleep.

Diabetes insipidus.

Retention of urine, with frequent and urgent desire, occasionally a few drops or small quantity may dribble away.

Burning in the urethra when urinating.

Itching of the orifice of the urethra.

Urine : dark brown; turbid and cloudy on standing.

Male Sexual Organs

      Increase of smegma about the glans.

Continuous loss of prostatic fluid; memory weak.

Pressive pains in testicles.

Itching of the scrotum and skin of the penis.

Female Sexual Organs

      Aversion to coitus.

Menses : too early and too profuse, and after ceasing, a little is passed from time to time for days; smell badly and excite itching of vulva; only during the day; with violent pains in abdomen and discharge of large clots; scanty, with prosopalgia.

Leucorrhoea : profuse, flows like the menses and has the same odor; only at night and worse then; with scanty menses.

Soreness in the vulva and between the legs.

Smarting, as from salt, in the pudendum, after urinating.

Pregnancy

      Spasmodic labor-pains. Labor-pains insufficient, irregular; os dilated, but patient has become tired and fretful.

Milk almost disappeared in consequence of overfatigue, night watching and anxiety.

Nipples sore, cracked, surrounded with herpes.

Larynx

      Hoarseness : worse morning and evening, with scraping in the throat; for several days could not speak loud.

Croup, especially when there is a raw sensation in the larynx.

Catarrhal croup.

The laryngeal muscles refuse their service; cannot speak a loud word. When he tries to raise his voice, it fails or becomes a squeak.

Breathing

      Arrest of breathing when talking or walking rapidly; must suddenly catch after (for) breath.

Shortness of breath.

Cough

      Violent, hollow, at times dry, with pain in right chest; hollow, especially night and morning, with tightly adhering mucus in the chest, and with sensation of soreness on the chest; hacking, from creeping and rawness in the throat : with pain above left hip, and involuntary passage of drops of urine : dry, remaining after pertussis.

Cough worse evening till midnight; from exhaling; drinking coffee; cold air; draught of air: when awaking.

Cough relieved by a swallow of cold water.

Lungs

      Soreness in the chest. Burning soreness in a stripe down under the sternum, with cough, etc.

Tightness of chest, must frequently take a deep breath.

Stitches in the chest below the arms, extending to the pit of the stomach, with anxiety.

Rattling in the chest.

Heart Pulse

      Stitches about the heart.

Palpitation of the heart.

Oppression at the heart, with lowness of spirits.

Pulse excited towards evening, with orgasm of blood.

Outer Chest

      Sensation as if the clothing were too tight.

Painful compression of chest from both sides toward the sternum, with oppression of breath and weakness of voice.

Stitches in the sternum from deep breathing or lifting.

Neck Back

      Stiffness of the neck, could not move head.

Stiffness and pain in neck and throat, with pain in occiput, muscles felt as if bound, could scarcely move the head.

C. Hering
Hering got the degree of M. D. from the University of Wuezburg with highest honours. The theme of his thesis was "De'Medicina Futura" (The medicine of future). Hering left Germany for West Indies and finally arrived at Philadelphia in Jan, 1833. He established a homeopathic school at Allentown, Pennsylvania, commonly known as "Allentown Academy". Soon he became very popular as a physician. He is known as the 'Father of Homeopathy' in America.