X-ray – Medicine


X-ray – Medicine.

General symptoms

      If Co……


General symptoms

      If Constantine Hering had never given the homoeopathic profession anything but his admirable pathogenesis of Lachesis he would have been remembered in gratitude for all time by the homoeopathic world.

If Bernhardt Fincke had never given the homoeopathic profession anything but his proving of the X-ray, his name, too, would be held in grateful remembrance by posterity, for its possibilities in the cure of many of the most obstinate of chronic diseases appear almost limitless.

We are indebted to Dr. John B. Campbell, one the original provers, for the discovery of the great value of this dynamic agent in rousing the reactive vitality of the system, both mentally and physically, and thus bringing to the surface suppressed symptoms of persons laboring under a combination of dyscrasia, the miasms of Hahnemann. This is especially true of the deep seated constitutional ailments, sycotic in character, which so often terminate in malignant disease, especially cancer.

When the sycotic or syphilitic virus is grafted on a psoric or tubercular diathesis; when from the paucity of presenting symptoms it is almost impossible to be certain of the predominant diathesis, in consequence of which the best selected antipsoric, Calcarea, Medorrhinum, Psorinum, Sepia, Sulphur, Syphilinum, or Tuberculinum, fails to relieve or to rouse the overpowered vitality to a sufficient degree to throw off or bring to the surface the predominant toxin, the X-ray bids fair to be our curative remedy.

Every physician who has had even a limited experience in the treatment of the toxic effect of the X-rays on either a bone or soft tissue will not need any proof of its deep-seated character and the extreme difficulty under any form of treatment of arousing the overpowered vitality and effecting a cure. An X-ray burn, so-called, whether of the bone or skin, is almost impossible to heal, and despite the best efforts of the ablest practitioner, the best treatment known to medical science of the present day, is often fatal.

Here is a field of action in which the potentized dynamic remedy bids fair to be unrivalled, for there is no known homoeopathic agent, either crude or potentized, that in its primary action is so deep-seated or long acting in results. Neither is there any known agent that will more surely suppress and render incurable many chronic diseases as this, or none which better illustrates what Shakespeare said so long ago, that, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread,” or where “A little learning is a dangerous thing.

Drink deep or touch not the Pyerion spring.” There is no therapeutic agent that so often cures, and so often fails where we think it ought to cure, in its empirical use, as this. If when its empirical use has roused latent vitality and restored suppressed symptoms we could correctly observe and interpret them, and for them find the simillimum, what possibilities lie in the future? As maintained by Hahnemann, Hering and Fincke and demonstrated by the work of the Austrian Provers Union, the dynamic potentized drug is the chief factor in both proving and healing. Like Magnetis Polus Australis and other imponderables, electricity and the X-ray are both capable of potentization, and the potentized dynamic remedy is just as superior to the crude drug as Aurum, Lycopodium, Silicea or Sulphur.

A very able description of the discovery of the X-ray by Professor Roentgen was given in the homoeopathic Physician (March, 1896), by Dr. Walter M. James, and concluded with the words: “Why should not the homoeopath seek to procure a proving of the effects of the X-ray upon the animal economy of the human being? An inviting field is there opened up to the experimenters of our school. May it soon be cultivated!”

March 27, 1897. A drachm vial filled with absolute alcohol was exposed to a Crook’s tube in operation for half an hour, and then brought up to the sixth centesimal potency. With this smallest globules were moistened and the vials containing them presented to the members of the Brooklyn Hahnemannian Union, which met the same evening in regular session.

Of course everyone was curious of trying the new remedy and took a small number of globules on the tongue at once, and lo! It began to reveal its existence immediately, and during the two hours of our being together a number of symptoms were observed, which were at once announced and taken down by our diligent Secretary. Some of the members from that time have been seriously affected, that they would not for any consideration try any more of that mysterious power.

The following is a narrative of its action upon the several provers, being perfectly healthy up to that time, which lasted from the beginning to two months. The action reveals not only new symptoms, but also hunted up many old ones.

If it is assumed that glass is opaque to the X-ray, it was not so in our case, for the alcohol in the vial was certainly affected by it, as the result of the provings show. If the X-ray penetrates certain tissues of the body in order to make the condition of the opaque organs, such as the bones and foreign bodies contained in the body, visible, it is also shows its penetration into that invisible interior of the human being, which is under the dominion of the life-force.

Dr. Alice B. Campbell, one of the provers, said: “Dr. Fincke presented each of us with a bottle of the X-rays, and said: ‘It is a sample, you can take a dose.’ Each of us took a dose. I thought it was such a low potency that it would not have any effect, and that was the reason I took it. We did not know what it was going to do. I took just the one dose.”

I was in the best of health and spirits when I began to use the X-ray; was a healthy girl, never had a doctor until pregnancy.

Nov. 24, 1906. A lady, aged 56, hereditary cancer in her family; mother died of it at 52. For an injury of right breast, which resulted in a tumor, which would probably develop into cancer, the X-ray was used for months, reduced its size and entirely relieved the pain. Some time after a stiffening of neck on left side appeared, to which little attention was paid. Suddenly one morning it went to right side, with intense pain, from which I have never been free for a moment since. Pain severe every night and occurs in paroxysms during the day. Sudden “cricks” attack first one side, then the other agg. on getting cold, and turning the head nearly produces convulsions. The pain is more severe behind the ears, the mastoid process. A sickening grating is heard between the bones of the cervical spine on turning the head. Skin behind the ears red and sore to touch.

The grating is heard and felt in nearly all the joints, especially the shoulders; toe pains are steady, but at times will appear in sharp “cricks, ” then in streaks down the course of the nerves agg. by moving head or neck; moving the head on pillow at night is agony. Sometimes the pain is relieved on keeping perfectly quiet, again gentle motion relieves.

Have read all the still neck symptoms in Lippe, Hering, Raue, T.

F. Allen and other works; the indicated remedy has failed to give me slightest relief.

Dec. 1, 1906. Last three days left side of head and neck pain intensely and constantly, at times paroxysms of cramping pain in cord, from left shoulder to head, and sharp shooting pain in head, back and above left ear. Cords feel too short. Only relief I have is in walking the floor. Skin is so sore, cannot bear the slightest touch, though hard pressure relieves for an instant. I am nearly mad with pain. (Dr. G _ has said frequently in the last month that he was afraid that I was getting too much X-ray’ I thought not, although I thought it very queer he could not relieve my pain.) Jan. 9, 1907. Have taken no X-ray treatment since Nov. 23s. Have not been out of the house for six weeks. Suffered torture for four weeks at every motion of head, neck or shoulders. The neuralgic pains were torturing, and the best selected remedies had little or no effect. Spigelia partially relieved severity of pains, but they appeared on the right side of head and neck, yet never left the left side for an instant. Atropine relieved the right sided pain for 24 hours, but neck and shoulder are still lame. I now have no severe pain, if I lie still on left side of face and body, but am unable to lift head from pillow without taking my hands, and then only by a slow circular motion.

I can sit up or stand for 15 or 30 minutes, and then clutching, shooting, aching pains begin behind left ear, and in muscles of left side of neck, and I must lie down on left side, and in a few minutes am free from pain. The stinging, contracting of the muscles relieved, but the pain in back of head is still persistent. Massage, at times, has given slight relief, at other times the slightest touch is so painful that it cannot be borne. Heat relieves the pains at times, but Arsenic does not.

Jan. 14. Improving some; yesterday could lie with a much higher pillow, first time in six weeks. Should be able to bear the pains could the darting, aching, clutching pain in the bone behind the left ear, which makes its appearance every time I sit up over twenty minutes, be relieved. The stinging, contracting pain is better, and notwithstanding all the suffering from the last few weeks, I do not look as if I had been ill; color good and gaining weight.

H. C. Allen
Dr. Henry C. Allen, M. D. - Born in Middlesex county, Ont., Oct. 2, 1836. He was Professor of Materia Medica and the Institutes of Medicine and Dean of the faculty of Hahnemann Medical College. He served as editor and publisher of the Medical Advance. He also authored Keynotes of Leading Remedies, Materia Medica of the Nosodes, Therapeutics of Fevers and Therapeutics of Intermittent Fever.