Petiveria tetrandra (Gom.). Erva de Pipi. *N.O. Phytolaccaceae. Trituration of fresh root.
Clinical
Conjunctivitis. Paralysis. Paraplegia.
Characteristics
Mure proved *Petiv., and I have given his terminology. Allen says in a note that it is probably identical with the Mexican and West Indian species, *P. *alliacea. Mure’s figure corresponds to this, and he says the roots, which are branching and fibrous, “smell strongly of garlic.” *P. *alliac. (according to *Treas. *of *Bot.) is called “Guinea-hen Weed” in West Indies,” and “Raiz de Guine” in Brazil, in which country “it is put into warm baths to restore motion to paralysed limbs.” Mure does not mention these names or this fact, but his proving brings out some strongly confirmative symptoms in numbness and paralytic sensations, weariness and weight of eyelids. Cold saliva, internal coldness, coldness inside bones were experienced. The symptoms in general were worse by movement, in the morning on waking and on rising, after breakfast and during and after dinner, bending backward.
Relations
*Compare: Botan., Phytolacca. In paralysis, Rhus. Cold saliva, Cist.
SYMPTOMS.
Mind
Excessive gaiety, inclination to sing, laugh, jest, followed by sadness and tears. Vanishing of thought.
Head
Head heavy. Compressed feeling as if head bound with a warm cloth. Head feels as if it would split. Headache better by motion. Sensation of hot water on scalp penetrating to brain. Weight at vertex pressing into brain.
Eyes
Eyes half-closed, swollen, surrounded by blue rings, especially next to nose. Rapid inflammation of left eye while at dinner, lasts three days. Weight on lids compelling to close eyes, on doing so sees a variety of figures. Pain in eyes as if the balls were pushed out of their sockets. Painful burning at margin of lids, worse on closing them. Lachrymation. Conjunctivitis. Dim sight.
Ears
Right ear deaf, as if stopped.
Nose
Coryza. Veins of nose swollen, bluish. Redness of left wing of nose and cheek. Dull pain over root of nose, evening. Nose slightly inflamed and shining. Intense and sudden itching of bridge of nose.
Face
Redness of left cheek. Bruised pain in zygomatic process. Sensation as if needle stuck in upper lip from within out.
Mouth
Burning tongue as if scalded, morning, on rising. Dry mouth. Flow of watery cold saliva, depositing ashy sediment and whitish granules. Offensive breath.
Throat
Sensation in throat as after eating something astringent. Pain in throat with difficulty of swallowing saliva.
Stomach
Sharp lancinations in epigastrium from within out, evening, after dinner, on rising. Stomachache with sensation of internal coldness.
Abdomen
Long blue horizontal spots on right hypochondrium. Lancinations: in hypochondria, through spleen from below up. Borborygmi, on moving in bed. Dull pain in hypogastrium. Circumscribed acute pains in groins. Colic of descending colon.
Stool
Diarrhoea of dark mucus, mixed with fecal matter in separate hard pieces. Constipation.
Urinary Organs
Micturition every five minutes from 11 a.m. till evening, with heat in urethra. Urine: pale, copious.
Respiratory Organs
Voice seems to come from afar. Voice hoarse from coughing. Suffocation, with cold feet.
Chest
Deep-seated, dull pain beneath sternum, worse by moving neck or bending head forward. Violent lancinations under right breast at each inspiration.
Heart
Contraction and throbbing in region of heart, evening.
Back
Strained feeling in spine, worse by sitting upright and bending back, better bending forward.
Limbs
Paralytic numbness, heaviness, and weariness in all Extremities, after rising from bed. Bruised pains in arms and legs.
Upper Limbs
Twitching sensation in shoulder-joint on stooping. Pricking, burning, crampy pains in arms, with inflammatory redness. Numbness, at right arm, at wrist, at fingers (right), at finger- tips. Lancinating and heat as from whitlow at tip of right thumb. Itching in left palm.
Lower Limbs
Weakness of lower Extremities. Sudden numbness of knees with dull pain in tibia. Numbness, itching and weakness of legs, from knees to soles.
Generalities
General rigor when lying down. Prostration as from drowsiness but without inclination to sleep. When walking seems as if she does not touch the ground and would fall. On lying down body numb.
Skin
Itching, pricking and formication of skin.
Sleep
Drowsy: all day, with frequent yawning, after dinner. Sleep deep and prolonged. Dreams: of corpses and starts up in cold sweat, sad, unpleasant, of quarrels.
Fever
Excessive coldness of hands and feet piercing to bones. Cold feeling in interior of bones. Febrile heat with pale face and cold hands. Dry heat all over, especially of palms. Profuse cold sweat all over, with shuddering, after first sleep. Sweat in palms.
