Nitro-glycerine. C3H5(NO3)O3. Dilutions with alcohol.
Clinical
*Angina pectoris. Aphasia. Apoplexy. *Brain, *Congestion of. Bright’s disease. Convulsions. Epilepsy. Epistaxis. Fright, effects of. *Goitre. *Headache. Heart, affections of, palpitation of. Jarring, effects of. Location, sense of, lost. Mania. Meningitis. Menses, suppression of. *Neuralgia. Paralysis. Rheumatism. Sciatica. Sea-sickness. Snow-headache. Sun-headache. *Sunstroke. Toothache. Trauma.
Characteristics
“Nitro-glycerine was discovered by Sobrero in 1847, by none could be obtained for physiological experiment until Morris Davis, a Philadelphia chemist, in the same year, after long and laborious trials, under direction of Hering, succeeded in producing the substance in sufficient quantities for proving.” I quote this from the *Guiding Symptoms. *Gloninum, is one of the many monuments of Hering’s therapeutic genius. It is to him that we owe the introduction of this notable remedy into the materia medica, and into medicine. The note of the action of *Gloninum is a tendency to sudden and violent irregularities of the circulation. It acts very quickly and very violently. The “signature” of this potent explosive may be said to be “bursting” and “expansion.” Bursting, throbbing headaches, sensations of expanding in the head and elsewhere. Throbbing of carotids, violent action of heart, rush of blood to head, flushes of heat rising from chest to head, then throbbing pain in head. The characteristic *neuralgias of *Gloninum are accompanied with much throbbing, and are often worse at night, preventing sleep. Supra-orbital neuralgia, pulsating, retinal congestion from exposure to strong light. Facial neuralgia, extending through head. Cardiac neuralgia (angina pectoris) with radiating pains.
Guernsey, with his usual graphic terseness, says that *Gloninum is suited to “Troubles of the head in type-setters, and in men who work under a gas-light steadily, so that the heat falls on the head, bad results from sunstroke, *can’t bear any heat about the head, can’t walk in the sun, must walk in the shade or carry and umbrella, can’t bear heat from a stove, great vertigo on assuming an upright posture, from rising up in bed, rising from a seat, etc. Heat in the head, throbbing headache.” The great sensitiveness to the least jar, which is a very marked feature of the *Gloninum headache, causes the patient to carry his head very carefully in order to avoid the chance of it. The headache is in the whole head and every part _ forehead, vertex, occiput. Many pains appear in occiput and base of brain, gnawing in occiput, sore pain, pressure, severe pain in occiput, extending to eyes and temples, sensation as if something were moving in nerves from back of neck upward to head. The eyes may be fixed or protrude, aversion to bright light, black spots before sight. Face flushed or pale. Climacteric disturbances.
Fainting, sudden unconsciousness, convulsions, especially during labour. Nausea and vomiting of cerebral origin. Violent, stabbing, neuralgic pains, so violent as to make patient frantic, he wants to escape, to jump out of window. Bad effects of fear, horrible apprehension, fear of being poisoned. A characteristic mental condition is loss of sense of location: “well-known streets seem strange to him.” Among the peculiar *sensations are: Chin feels too long. Chest feels screwed together. Brain as if expanding, as if moving in waves, as if hanging with head downwards, as if something were pumped into vertex, as if everything were crowded out at forehead, as if warm water were running upwards from nape of neck, as if the neck were gripped by a hand, as if some one were pulling eyes from within outward. Noise in left ear as if it came from heart. Lower lip feels swollen. As if heart would rise to throat. Pains are: Bursting, throbbing, pulsative, tearing, piercing, stabbing, gnawing. Burning between shoulders. Sitting or lying still, or walking in cold air better headache. Bending forward, bending head backward, and almost every movement worse headache. Rest worse pain in knee. Excessive heat and cold causes hyperemia or brain. Heat generally worse, cold applications and cool air better, but cold water applied to head worse head symptoms, even causes spasms Worse. Damp weather. Bad effects of having hair cut, of exposure to sun or fire heat. All summer, headache worse every day with the sun. Worse From wine. Pains from within outward, from front to back. Bad effect of too much riding or driving, sea-sickness, worse from jarring. Pressure better headache. Cannot bear weight of hair, clothing seems too tight. Suited to: Florid, plethoric, sensitive women, nervous, sanguine, readily affected persons. Old scars break out again.
Relations
*Antidoted by: Aconite Camph., Coffea, Nux v. *Compare: Amyl nit., Actea r. (waving in brain), Petrol. and Crotal. h. (loss of location), Belladonna (cephalic cry but not as marked in Belladonna, also Belladonna has better bending head back, and better covering head, Gloninum Better uncovered), Apis, Hyoscyamus (fears being poisoned), Gelsemium (inclination to jump out of window), Stramonium, Sanguinaria (headache with the sun, ear sensitive to jar), nitricum acidum and Belladonna (sensitiveness to jar), Melilot. (headache with crimson face), Lycopodium and Phosphorus (Burning between shoulders), Digitalis and Diosc. (headache extending into nose), Secale (fingers spread apart).
Causation
Sun. Bright snow. Fire-heat. Fear or fright. Jarring. Injuries.
SYMPTOMS.
Mind
Falling down, with loss of consciousness and alternate palpitation of the heart, and congestion of the head. Fear, throat feels swollen, chest as if screwed together, apprehensive of approaching death, fears she has been poisoned. Fear, as if something unpleasant would happen to him. Unusually bright and loquacious, with great flow of ideas. Confusion of ideas, cannot tell where he is, well-known streets seem strange, way home too long, forgets on which side of the street he lives. Great mental agitation (with headache), frantic, attempts to run away, to jump out of window. Cephalic cry. The chin feels too long.
Head
Vertigo, worse from stooping or moving head, in open air. Giddiness when the head is moved. Heaviness in the head, principally in forehead. Dull headache with warm perspiration on forehead. Headache with accelerated pulse, red face, perspiration on the face, he becomes unconscious. Headache worse from the heat of the sun, better in the open air and from pressure. Headache, throbbing, etc., during or in place of menses. Fullness in the head, as if the brain was expanding itself, were moving in waves. Fullness in the head, distinct feeling of the pulse in the head, throbbing without pain. Sensation as if the blood were mounting to the head. Congestion of blood to the head (apoplexy). Pulsation in the forehead, in the temples, on the vertex, when walking every step is felt in the neck, when moving the head. Throbbing in the head, in forehead, in temples, in vertex, in occiput, worse when moving, better when sitting still and lying and from pressure. Throbbing in the temporal arteries, which were raised, and felt like cords. Stitches in temples or right side of forehead. Sore and bruised feeling in the brain, worse when shaking the head. Sensation of soreness through the whole head, is afraid to shake the head, as it seems that it would make the head drop to pieces. The pain, heat, and fullness in the head ascend from the chest, neck, or back part of the head. Severe pain the occiput, extending to the eyes and temples. Shaking worse the headache, as well as stooping motion, ascending steps, external pressure better, walking in the open air, uncovering the head better. Cracking sensation in the brain. Skull seems too small, and as if the brain were attempting to burst the skull, violent action of the heart, and a distinct pulsation over the whole body. Shocks in the brain synchronous with the pulse. Undulating or wave-like motion in the brain. Hemicrania, sees half light, half dark. Gnawing in occiput.
Eyes
Eyes dull, staring, sunken. The white of the eye is red, the eyes protrude, look wild. Eyes feel as if some one were pulling them from within outward. Pressing, protruding pains in eyes. In the eyeballs, stitches, twitchings, soreness, pressure. Pupils dilated, eyes rolled upward. Heat in the balls of the eyes, lids, and around the eyes. Sparks, flashes before the eyes. The letters appear smaller. As if focus of right eye were suddenly displaced, sees everything half light and half dark. Black spots before, and obscuration of the eyes, with fainting.
Ears
Sensation of fullness, in and around the ears. Ears sensitive to jarring. Deafness, ears feel as if stopped up. Stitches in the ears, the ears feel as if closed. Throbbing, piercing from within outward in right ear. Ringing, singing, or cracking in the ears. Ringing in the ears, audible pulse.
Nose
Pain at root of nose. The headache extends into the nose.
