La Grippe

-- C. M. Boger, 1899

The following remedies, with their accompanying indications, are a summary of my experience with our late visitor.

ACONITE

Chills and creeps over the back; now hot, now cold.
Violent head and neck pains, of a shooting, neuralgic or tingling character.
Intense restlessness and erethism.
Bilious vomiting.
First stage, suitable to 40 per cent of the cases; its administration usually was followed by profuse, drenching sweats, then relief. Swan's dmm. potency.

RHUS TOX

Shooting, tearing pains in all the limbs, with great restlessness. Tearing in chest on coughing.
Stiffness of upper eyelids. Easily chilled on slightest uncovering.
Tongue indented on edges, or later red at the tip.
Every surface he lies on seems hard.
Covers 35 per cent of the cases. 45m., Fincke.

ARSENICUM

Restlessness, must sit up in bed. Tongue flabby, indented on the edges and coated with a faint white film. Advanced stages when the patient constantly picks at the lips and nose (Aru. tri.); this symptom frequently occurred in children. 30x trit or 40m.

CAUSTICUM

Rawness in the larynx and trachea. Cough provoked by a tickling in the larynx or supra-sternal fossa (Rumex, Nux, etc.), without expectoration in early stages; later, when loose, the expectorate cannot be expelled, but is swallowed on account of muscular debility.
Weakness of the upper eyelids (Gels.).
General debility and relaxation, old people without fever or reaction. Sometimes involuntary escape of urine on coughing; fully 15 per cent of the cases required Causticum, 1m. potency.

GELSEMIUM

Prostration, aching and lethargy. Heavy eyelids, disturbances of vision. Occipital or basilar pains; sneezing; vertigo; face looks heavy and expressionless.

CHINA

Severe brachialgia, especially in cervical region, scalp sensitive. Bitter taste.
Noises in ears.
Pains in marrow of bones.
Every little draught chills him.
20m., fluxion.

EUPATORIUM PERF

Severe bone pains, with bilious vomit and tendency to sweat. 45m., Fincke.

EUPATORIUM PURP

Intermittency, bone pains and alteration in the amount of urine passed; given this combination of symptoms, a cure always followed. 45m., Fincke.

COCCUS CACTI, 3X

Paroxysmal cough, ending in gagging and vomiting, the latter often caused by the expectorate adhering to the posterior pharynx or velum; much post-nasal discharge, with hawking and gagging. Expectoration transparent and stringy. Urinary organs involved urine, thick (Aspar.), dark or coffee coloured; hot, painful, soreness over region of kidneys. Leucorrhea of transparent lumps. Pulsation in glans penis. This remedy is not used as frequently as it should be, the combination of pulmonary and nephritic symptoms is not at all uncommon, and occurs especially in whooping cough, pneumonia, etc. It is one of my favourites and has given me many successes.

It is worthy of remark that Lachesis has many points of resemblance and that both are animal poisons. One patient for whom the remedy was indicated had the intolerance of the pressure of clothes about the neck, just like Lachesis. This aggravation from pressure of clothes applies equally well to several of the other symptoms of the cochineal and is of a piece with the sensitiveness of the buccal cavity to gargling, brushing the teeth, hawking, etc. This remedy occupies a middle place between Cantharis and Lachesis, having many of the modalities of the latter and a milder type of the urinary symptoms of the former. This unique position enables us to cover a group of symptoms hitherto found quite difficult to handle. Remember whooping or spasmodic coughs with nephritis.

CISTUS CAN

Mouth and throat feel as if full of sand. Expectoration of immense quantities of tenacious, gluey mucus, amounting to over a pint and a half a day. Patient an old asthmatic, contracted catarrhal pneumonia, was called in after patient had tried home treatment and failed; high potencies seemed without effect; 2x. cured.

KAL IOD

Giant urticaria, with right-sided face ache, and a sanious, excoriating nasal discharge. Pain in malar bones. Intolerant of heat. 1m. potency.

STANNUM

Yawning followed by griping pains in abdomen; pains slowly increase to a certain height, then slowly decrease. 5m. potency.

MERC. IOD. RUB

Aching in malar bones, with increased saliva and indented tongue. 200, B. and T.

DAPHNE ODOR

Hot saliva; left tonsil swollen; suppuration seemed impending; cold drinks caused sharp shooting into ears; is subject to quinsy. 30x., B. and T., aborted whole process.

VERATRUM VIRIDE

Oppression of breathing, with faintness or giddiness on rising. Dry stripe down center of tongue.
Sometimes simultaneous vomiting and purging. 20 dilution.

KALMIA LAT

Violent, shooting, neuralgic pains over entire body; very quick pulse and intense prostration; stiffness of upper eyelids. 30, B. and T.

SANGUINARIA CAN

Pneumonia, with circumscribed redness of cheeks; tendency to hectic, supra-orbital pains, having the modality of sun pains.

KALI PHOS

Golden yellow, putrid, hot stools, with tendency to sweat. Pain at the base of the brain. Great weakness.

BAPTISIA

Prostration from start; illy defined general aching; bed seems hard; apathy; dark face. Answers questions and relapses into sleep. Stools dark and very foetid. 20, dil.