ELAPS CORALLINUS-CORAL VIPER. (Elaps-elops, a serpent.).
Introduction
This venomous snake is found in Brazil and was first proved by Dr. Mure of that country, who used the 3d trituration of the venom.
It is called coral-viper simply on account of its vermillion-red coloring, red rings or bands alternating with black ones.
Symptoms
Its action is evidently on the blood, as in the other snake poisons, causing disorganization of the blood, with bloody discharges or haemorrhages, but as Allen says, “our knowledge of its effects is too meagre to permit any generalization.”
In the ears we have dulness of hearing and sudden painless attacks of deafness at night, associated with roaring (65) and cracking (64) in the ears.
The nose is stopped up, the stuffiness being high up in the nostrils; the sense of smell is lost (170) to the patient, who is unaware of the very disagreeable odor emanating from the plugs of dry mucus (143) high up in the nostrils. It has been found useful in ozaena (148) and nasal catarrh, with pain at the root of the nose (96) and frequent nosebleed.
In the lungs besides the haemorrhage of black blood (28), we have cough, with tearing pain as if the lungs would be torn out, and noticed especially in the right upper chest.
Another prominent symptom under Elaps is the distress from cold drinks.
In the stomach “cold drinks feel like rice” (Hering) (177) and in the chest we have a feeling of coldness after drinking (29).
We can think of Elaps for metrorrhagia of black blood (136) but Allen did not think enough for the symptom to take it from his Encyclop. and put it in his Hand-book.
