CHILDREN IN THE JONES FAMILY


This case is a boy of two and a half, the son of very wealthy parents. He has been under the care of a pediatrician since birth, but still has eczema, mostly dry and scaly behind the ears, on the face, buttocks, and in the flexures of some joints. It is not severe and not constantly present but is annoying. It is aggravated by eating celery, meat, fruit and sugar.


These few simple cases occurring in the children of one family show how the homoeopath must differentiate in his prescribing.

1. Psoriasis, cured by Medorrhinum C.M. and Iodum C.M.

2. Wart on one child cured by Causticum 10M., on another by Thuja C.M.; on another by Causticum C.M., and on another by Hepar sulphur 40M.

3. Nocturnal enuresis cured in one child by Sulphur 500; in another by Phosphorus 30.

4. A girl of twelve who has not menstruated, cries easily, easily offended, and has general aggravation from heat.

Pulsatilla relieved the disposition and she soon menstruated.

5. Another girl of six is very irritable and unstable mentally, poor appetite, has repeated crops of styes and a yellow leucorrhoea. Sepia in various potencies cured.

I have not of course included all the various illnesses and conditions which have been prescribed for in the last fifteen years, but have chosen a few to show how diversified our prescribing must be.

This case is a boy of two and a half, the son of very wealthy parents. He has been under the care of a pediatrician since birth, but still has eczema, mostly dry and scaly behind the ears, on the face, buttocks, and in the flexures of some joints. It is not severe and not constantly present but is annoying. It is aggravated by eating celery, meat, fruit and sugar. He h as clammy feet and his back sweats profusely on exertion, he is high strung, picks at his finger nails, masturbates, and for several days at a attacks of vomiting. Nursemaids are changed frequently.

Dec. 22, 1925-He was given Sulphur 1M.

Jan. 23, 1926-Has developed a yellow urethral discharge, and was given Silica 1M.

Feb.20, 1926-The urethral discharge is gone and he is free from eczema.

Mar. 13, 1926-The only symptom remaining is a return of the foot sweat. Silica 1M.

Dec.3, 1926-Some back sweat. Silica 1M.

Feb.12, 1927-He was given Sulphur 1M. Since this time he has been given Psorinum 200 on two occasions on account of a return of the eczema. He has been free form all his symptoms for over a year and has developed into a robust boy. SOUTH MANCHESTER, CONN.

DISCUSSION.

CHAIRMAN WRIGHT: I would like to ask Dr.Sloan whether he considered that the return of the eczema after several months showed that it hadnt been thoroughly cleared up, or whether something new happened to bring it out.

DR.SLOAN: I think it hadnt been cured.

DR.WOODBURY: Was the urethral discharge in a boy?.

DR.SLOAN: Yes.

DR.WOODBURY: Was it sycotic?.

DR.SLOAN: Yes.

DR.WOODBURY: Warts are my strong point. I suppose I have cured more warts than anything else. I always delight to see warts come. I had one wart of my own. I tried vainly to take it off with the fulguration method. The result was I got two warts. I took some sepia, and Sepia immediately took them away. I have used Thuja, Causticum, and Dulcamara.

DR.GREEN: The interesting thing to me about warts is that when one is treating a chronic case and doesnt get all the symptoms, the patient will come back and say, “Do you know, since I was here before I have lost the whole crop of warts”. In one case, I never knew anything about the warts, and they disappeared before we were acquainted with them.

The building of theories to account for facts in science is a very pretty amusement, always innocent, perhaps, and no doubt often profitable. But let us beware how we make any theory our Shibboleth, the pronunciation of which shall admit or exclude a man from our brotherhood. But let us rather give ourselves to such careful experiments and observations as we may, and give to our brethren as we can from time to time the results of our studies. Thus and thus only may we hope to build up our system to the beautiful proportions of a perfected science. Any other course dooms us to the same condition of bigotry and dogmatism which characterizes the old school of medicine.-W.A. HAWLEY, 1864.

Thomas G. Sloan