CLARKE says, ” It is pre-eminently a worm medicine as it causes all the symptoms which characterize helminthiasis, both mental, nervous and bodily. There is irritation of the nose, causing constant desire to rub, pick, or press into it. In children there is extreme ill-humour and naughtiness. Nothing pleases them for any length of time. Gritting teeth during sleep, wetting the bed (when accompanied by picking nose, great hunger, restless sleep) tossing all about the bed in sleep; crying out as if delirious. Sherbino has found `getting on hands and knees in sleep a strong indication for it. Child lies on belly or on hands and knees during sleep.” -[Medorrhinum has this also.]
Among the symptoms of Cina Hughes also stresses “Canine hunger: hungry soon after a full meal. Craves sweets: refuses mother’s milk.
“Cough, dry with sneezing: spasmodic: periodic, spring and fall. Child is afraid to speak or move for fear of bringing on a paroxysm.”
“Hahnemann indicates it in whooping-cough (in which Dr. Jousset esteems it the principle remedy), and in certain intermittents accompanied by vomiting and canine hunger. Dr. Bayes commends it in the gastralgia of empty stomachs.”
H.C. ALLEN says, “Compare Ant-c., Ant-t., Bryonia, Chamomilla, Kreosotum, Silicea, Staphysagria, in irritability in children.
“In pertussis when Drosera has relieved the severe symptoms.
“Has cured aphonia from exposure, when Aconite, Phosphorus, and Spongia had failed.
“Frequently to be thought of in children, as an epidemic remedy, when adults require other drugs.”
“GUERNSEY adds, Complaints that come on whenever one yawns. Troubles that cause a constant desire to rub, pick, or bore into the nose.” (Arum triph.).
BLACK LETTER SYMPTOMS
(From Hahnemann, Allen’s Encyclopedia and Hering’s Guiding Symptoms.)
Child exceedingly CROSS, cries and strikes at all around.
Pitiful weeping, when awake.
Cannot be quieted by any persuasions: proof against all caresses.
Children wake in evening or before midnight with fear or fright. jump up, see sights, scream, tremble and talk about it with much anxiety.
When walking in open air stupefying, internal HEADACHE, especially in sinciput, afterwards also in occiput
Dull headache, affecting the eyes, in the morning.
Looks sickly about the eyes, with paleness of face.
Optical illusions in bright colours, blue, violet, yellow, green
Palpitation in muscles of eyebrows a kind of spasm.
In external EAR, cramp-like twitchings.
Dull stitches-a pinching pressure, under the mastoid.
Child frequently bores into NOSE till blood comes.
Itching of nose. Child picks its nose very much, is very restless, cries and is very unamiable.
FACE pale and cold.
White and blue about the mouth
Burning heat over whole face: rising heat and glowing redness of cheeks, without thirst, after sleep.
Adherent mucus in LARYNX, in a.m. on rising: must often hawk.
Great hunger soon after a meal: feeling of emptiness.
Desires many and different things.
Gnawing sensation in STOMACH, as from hunger.
Very short breath, with interruptions: some inspirations are omitted.
A kind of oppression of CHEST: the sternum seems to press on the lungs, and breathing is somewhat impeded.
Hoarse hacking cough consisting of a few impulses, with long pauses before exciting irritation recurs: in the evening.
Before coughing child raises herself suddenly, looks wildly about; the body becomes stiff, she loses consciousness, as if she would have an epileptic spasm, then follows the cough.
After coughing the child cries out, and a noise like gurgling is heard going down.
BACK AND LIMBS. Bruised pain in sacrum, not worse by movement.
Drawing, tearing pain downwards through whole spine.
Boring, cramping pain in left upper arm.
Single, small, twitching stitches, in right, or left hand.
Paralytic pain left thigh, not far from knee.
Obtuse stitches here and there in the body.
In body, limbs, arms, feet, toes, sometimes in the side, or on the back, or in nasal bones, but especially on the hip, obtuse stitches or squeezing, or aching, or like knocks or jerks: on pressing the part it pains, as if sore or bruised.
CONVULSIONS of extensor muscles: child becomes suddenly stiff: there is a clucking noise, as though water were poured out of a bottle, from throat down to abdomen.
Worm spasms, the child stiffens out straight.
When yawning, trembling of the body with shuddering.
PECULIAR OR CHARACTERISTIC SYMPTOMS
Child wants to be carried.
Cannot bear least touch: cannot bear to have head touched: paroxysms of chorea reproduced by touch.
Taking hold of child, it cries piteously.
Must be rocked, carried, dandled on knee constantly day and night: will not sleep unless rocked or kept in constant motion.
Or, desire to remain perfectly still in the dark.
Child discharges worms; picks nose or anus; has a hacking cough; is continually making attempts as if to swallow something; is very hard to please.
SANTONIN, a derivative of Cina, has produced and cured nocturnal enuresis in children-“not necessarily connected with worms.”
Like Cina it disorders vision. Sees colours, especially yellow and green: and it has some reputation for cataract. A few days ago a patient with cataract said eagerly, “Yes, I can always see green,” when a green Hospital card was shown her. It remains to be seen whether Santonin can help. in her case one eye was lost, after an operation for cataract, and the second was nearly blind.
HUGHES (Pharmacodynamics) gives some interesting eye cases and experiments with Santonin (see p. 392) where the late Dr. Dyce Brown in conjunction with an oculist, treated forty-two cases, of which thirty-one were cured or improved. They included choroiditis, retinitis, atrophy of the optic disc, pure amblyopia, and retinal anaesthesia. And in one case of undoubted double cataract, vision was greatly improved.
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