Is it possible for a cure-all to exist where one remedy will restore to health all cases afflicted with any one disease? In my experience of more than forty-nine years, it has not as yet been my good fortune to find any such remedy. The individual patient must be taken into consideration and also the remedy that will remove the abnormalities in each case; then the patient will recover, regardless of the name of the disease.
A few years ago I read of an occasion where a very large ship went far out on the ocean. They were so unfortunate as to have cholera develop on their ship; they were unable to combat the attack; their sailors were dying; their ship captain then happened to think of a little box of medicines that Hahnemann had given him for a token of friendship. He had had it for more than twenty years. He got the medicines, found the vials labelled, giving the indications for their use. They lost no more sailors. Did one remedy cure them all? No, but the indicated remedy for each case did save the rest of the sailors. The most frequently indicated were Arsenicum alb., Veratrum alb., Colocynth, and a few others. There was no specific remedy.
Early in my practice it was my great pleasure to be called to treat a case of diphtheria, having consulted many medical books to find some little encouragement for the successful treatment of diphtheria. It was in The Practice of Medicine by Custis where my first hope for favorable results were found. It was with constant care and observation of the progress of the case and giving the remedies accordingly that we got favorable results.
The remedies as follows:.
Apis virus: Great debility from the beginning; puffiness around the eyes, and oedematous swelling of face and neck; bright red color and puffy, glossy and varnished appearance of fauces, uvula oedematous; stinging, burning pain in throat and dryness; pain in the ears when swallowing; difficult swallowing on account of irritation of the epiglottis; sensation as of a rapid swelling of the lining membranes of the air passages, hoarse cough; intense sensation of suffocation, could bear nothing about the throat; labored inhalation as in croup; headache; painful or suppressed micturition; albuminous urine; pain in shoulders and neck; darting, cutting, in periodical spells; itchy, stinging eruption on the skin; sensation of weakness in the larynx, weakness of feet and hands, even paralysis, marked prostration and depression, nervous restlessness; high fever; rapid pulse; skin perspires and dries up in starts, this in combination with scarlatina.
Arum triphyllum: Whole throat raw and sore. The discharge from the nose and mouth is very acrid and excoriates the skin wherever they come in contact with it. Picks his lips until they bleed.
Belladonna: Only at the very commencement, when there is a dry, sore throat with cerebral symptoms.
Bromine: The diphtheria begins in the larynx and comes up.
Bryonia: To develop the case.
Cantharis: In cases where its urinary symptoms are prominent.
Diphtherinum: If your apparently well-indicated remedy fails in post-diphtheric paralysis, think of Diphtherinum. It has been found to work well in many of these cases. -Dr. Allen.
Kali bichromicum: Croupy cough in paroxysms, with expectoration of viscid, tough mucus, which may be drawn out into long strings. Great fetor, yellow exudation with a clean tongue, pains shoot into the ear. The membrane is dirty and yellow, tough and stringy. In nasal diphtheria I find it specific. In laryngeal diphtheria it does all that medicine can do. -Dr. Hughes.
Lac caninum: Membrane diffused like the lid of a pepperbox, and dry. Exudate begins on the left side and goes to the right. After the throat began to improve, the disease seemed to work through the whole alimentary canal, with great prostration.
Lachesis: Exudate begins on the left side and spreads to the right. The throat is very sensitive to touch or pressure. Hawking and spitting from mucus in the throat. Sleeps into an aggravation, pain extending into the ear when swallowing, aching over the whole body.
Lachnanthes: Neck very stiff and painful, drawn to one side.
Lycopodium: Exudate begins on the right side. Aggravation of all symptoms from 4 to 8 p.m. The child is cross on awaking from sleep.
Mercurius cyanatus: Putrid diphtheria, extending all over the mouth, fauces, pharynx, etc. Salivation. This is the routine remedy for diphtheria, and it has cured many desperate cases.
Mercurius protoiodatus: Great swelling of the salivary glands, with dirty yellow coating on the tongue.
Phytolacca: Violent aching over the body. Great exhaustion. Excessive fetor of the breath. Feeling as if a ball of red-hot iron had lodged in the throat. Difficult deglutition. The fauces look like venous congestion.
Rhus tox: Should a typhoid condition set in, bloody saliva runs out of the mouth during sleep.
Zincum: To bring about a reaction.
My first patient was a girl eight years of age. Her parents had neglected her, thinking it was only a sore throat from which she would soon recover. When they called for help, the disease had developed all of the symptoms as given above in Belladonna, which did not appear very favorable. Belladonna did its work. The symptoms then developed into the symptoms of Kali bichromicum, came in and brought the patient favorable to Hepar sulph. after which and for a more speedy recovery. Zincum brought a complete recovery.
Another doctor just across the street had a patient, a boy eight years of age, who was suffering from the same cause or kind of disease. His doctor of course gave the orthodox treatment of the old school. His patient died before morning as usual.
My next one after that was a consultation of four doctors; they had given up all hopes for his recovery. At the time of my first call and after my examination, the patients prospects for recovery did not seem very favorable. He was gasping for his breath. They had all of the doors of the house open so as to give him plenty of air. His breathing could be heard clear out on the street. The whole back part of his throat seemed to be involved from the posterior to the palatine arch.
It appeared to be in a condition of ulceration and sloughing; very rapid pulse. He was given Sulphur. The boys uncle, who was an old school doctor, came from a distance to see the boy. After my introduction to the doctor, I asked very kindly if he would relieve me of further treatment of the boy. His response was positively no; that he had lost every one he had treated and he asked me to continue with my treatment. My next remedy was Hepar sulph. which brought about a complete recovery.
My next patient was a little girl four years old that two doctors were treating. They had gone on a vacation and left their patient when she should have had the most critical attention. It was my duty to inform the health officer, which was done immediately. He at once advised antitoxin treatment. My request was for him to take care of the patient which he did. He gave the antitoxin. The little girl died very promptly as usual in those days.
In about two weeks it was my great pleasure to be called to another patient, a boy eight years of age. Again it was my duty to inform the health officer to quarantine their home. He came and after examination of the patient then asked me if antitoxin was going to be given to which my answer was no, positively not. He then informed the patients father that his boy would be dead within forty-eight hours that the quarantine would not be there very long. The health officer was very much mistaken. The boy recovered very promptly with the remedies given as indicated in the progress of the disease.
I have had many very remarkable recoveries with the remedies mentioned in this paper. I have also known of many who had been given antitoxin and died very promptly, some within a half hour after they were given the treatment.
After about fifty years practice and careful observation, it is my opinion that there is as yet no specific remedy for any so- called disease. It is the individual that must be taken into consideration.
Diphtheria, antitoxin or any other toxin or vaccination for smallpox are not specifics or a positive preventive; therefore, their enforcement should be prohibited. We had six children die here in Columbus just a few years ago from vaccination and none for many years from smallpox. Vaccination has caused more deaths than smallpox ever did.
Sanitation and efficient sanitary improvements have and I hope will exterminate for all time the diseases such as smallpox, diphtheria, typhoid fever, etc. We should be very thankful that sanitation has accomplished, with the aid of the sanitary engineers, their goal in the obliteration of these diseases. With all their imposition and false claims, they cannot alter this.
All diseases are restored to health or cured from above down, from within out, and in the reverse of their coming. This means that the first apparent abnormalities from health will be the last to disappear.
