You who are present in this Bureau of Surgery are all interested in the subject, and I want to direct my talk to those of you who are not following the homoeopathic law in handling their surgical cases, especially industrial surgery.
I have never done major surgery, but have had over forty-seven years of industrial work that has covered the field from compound fractures to simple cuts and abrasions, and for the past twenty- five years I have not used the antiseptics which are standardized in hospital practice, depending on the homoeopathic law, mainly Calendula, and have never had to be afraid of pus. Pus will disappear in an infected wound and will never appear in a clean wound where Calendula is used.
It took me over twenty years to arrive at this method, because I was afraid not to use the same methods that were in general use by the profession at large.
Calendula, where the wound is badly lacerated, and even where there is loss of tissue.
Hypericum for punctured wounds, and Ledum for clean cut incisions.
Arnica for shock and contusions; dont forget this remedy to combat the shock we get in these terrible auto accidents it is better than an opiate.
Now all of this is “old stuff” for the ones who know their homoeopathy, but not all the physicians who know these remedies will trust them to the extent of treating surgical wounds without antiseptics, hypodermics, etc., because they are afraid. And remember, it isnt fair to blame homoeopathy for a failure unless you follow the law. Dont try to mix the two; you cant do it successfully.
Homoeopathic literature for many years past is replete with clinical case showing the successful handling of this type of surgery the homoeopathic way (in fact, I have myself contributed some of them) and I and many others in this society have abundant proof that it is as right as rain.
So now I ask you to swallow your prejudices, set aside your fear, and try the old and reliable homoeopathic law.
DISCUSSION.
Dr. Hubbard: I would like just to add a word about Oleum rutae, Shakespearean rue, and its great uses, particularly in sprains of the wrist. Nobody has mentioned it. It has use, of course, also in the ganglion. I would also like to mention the great usefulness of Rhus and Lycopodium and Calcarea in sprains of the joints, especially of the ankles.
Dr. Dixon: I could have mentioned Ruta, I could have mentioned Symphoricarpus, and I could mention a dozen other things. You all know that. I have used them all and I try not to overlook the homoeopathic angle of any surgical injury. I use the Calendula succus. I buy a quart of it at a time, and sometimes it doesnt last very long. It all depends on how many cases I have.
A very weak dilution is all you need. A teaspoonful of Calendula succus in a quart of water in a clean wash basin will take care of the whole thing. If there is a lot of injury to tissue, I usually take a piece of guaze and soak it thoroughly, squeeze it out so wont drip, and put on a wet dressing for twenty-four hours. After that, I may moisten it the first time I open the wound, and I am not in a hurry to do that unless there are some symptoms indicating it. I never have pus.
I want to illustrate what it did in one funny case. Out in Akron, we really live on automobile tires, you know. Every machine shop there has quantities of these molds that they cure the tire in, and they weigh on an average about 300 pounds a piece. A man in a machine shop let one of those slip.
It cut his shoes through and just took the plantar surface of his foot off away back to the heel. It didnt injure the bone. I took twenty- four stitches in that, and I put on a wet dressing of Calendula and never had any pus, even around the stitches. The man was back working in such a surprisingly short time that the industrial commission paid my bill without a murmur.
Dr. Alfred Pulford: Dr. Dixon, how about Calendula in tincture?.
Dr. Dixon: I have had some experience with that, but I have had such excellent results with the Calendula succus in the wet dressings and packs that I havent used it often. It has been successful when I use it, and I have often wondered why I dont change and depend on it entirely.
Dr. Woodbury: Have you ever used the flowers, Doctor, as I suggested?.
Dr. Dixon: That is the way they make it.
Dr. Woodbury: Have you ever used them in making the infusion?.
Dr. Dixon: No, I never have.
Dr. Woodbury: I think that is one of the prettiest ways in the world to use it.
Dr. Dixon: I can remember back twenty-five or thirty years ago when I had a bottle full of the blossoms and prepared my own, but I dont do it now. I am too busy.
Dr. Hubbard: I would like to add one thing, that I think the success does much better than the slave in a great many of these cases. The grease element, although it keeps it pure, seems to retard healing.
Dr. Dixon: I believe you are right. I never use it.
Dr. Hubbard: Unless it is a burn, where you need it.
Dr. Stevens: I have used the 200th internally at the same time as the external use of the succus and have felt that it helped that a little bit, and I have used the 200th in some cases of bleeding, both vaginal and rectal, with good results.
Dr. Grimmer: With reference to Dr. Stevens observation and haemorrhage, I had a case of intestinal malignancy that Calendula 10M, completely controlled. The patient got well afterward with other remedies, but for the haemorrhage part of the case, the Calendula perfectly controlled the haemorrhage. And it was a violent one. He couldnt even take water without setting up haemorrhage, both vomiting and from the rectum.
Dr. Moore: If you go back through the International Hahnemannian Transactions, you will find the use of the potency to make these solutions. They must have used it a great deal. Margaret Tyler used it, I know, and she emphasizes the idea that it is really better using the potency locally, making a solution, than the tincture.
Dr. Woodbury: I might suggest that sometimes Calendula is used locally in potency, even 200th.
Dr. Bond: Out in the Middle West once in a while we are called upon to treat animals. I recall one case we had where the whole hind quarter of the leg of a lamb had been chewed out by a dog. You could put your double fist in the hole. I simply sent a bottle of pure Calendula succus. The wound healed without any infection whatever, and it never got an infection. It had a little bad odor, but that was all.
Dr. Hayes: I want to add to Dr. Dixons list of remedies one that I have spoken of here before, but sometimes an idea needs to be repeated several times before it sticks. That is Collinsonia Canadensis for open bruises and where there is a laceration with contusion. You cant use Arnica there very well, but I have used only a third extract of Collinsonia, and that acts magically.
Dr. Hubbard: Dont forget Dr. Hayes pet remedy. Bellis perennis. I thought that was what he was going to say.
Dr. Hayes: I am speaking of Collinsonia again this afternoon.
Dr. Baker: I have a veterinarian in mind who uses that Collinsonia a good deal. I think he gets it from Lloyd.
Dr. Hayes: It came from the Indians originally.
Dr. Grimmer: It is quite a haemorrhoid remedy, too.
Dr. Woodbury: Has anybody had any particular experience with Echinacea, either locally or in potency.
Dr. Baker: I use it a great deal internally.
The Homoeopathic Recorder, Vol., LVII, No. 7.
Akron, Ohio
President, I.H.A.