Luesinum. Syphilitic virus. A nosode. Attenuations.
Clinical
Abscess, succession of abscesses. Alcoholism, hereditary craving for alcohol. Anus, fissure of. Aphasia. Asthma. Breasts, sensitive. Bubo. Constipation. Crying of infants. Deafness. Deltoid rheumatism. Dentition. Diplopia. Dysmenorrhoea. Epilepsy. Headache, syphilitic. Hoarseness, before menses. Iritis. Leucorrhoea, infantile. Mouth, ulcerated. Myopia. Neuralgia. Night-sweats. Ophthalmia. Otorrhoea. Ovaries, affections of. *Ozaena. Pemphigus Psoas abscess. Ptosis. Rectum, stricture of. Rheumatism. Sciatica. Sleeplessness. Spine, caries of. Strabismus. Stricture. Sunstroke. Teeth, carious. Throat, ulcerated. Tibia, pains in. Tongue, cracked, ulcerated. Ulcers. Whitlow.
Characteristics
I learned the value of this nosode from Skinner, who has made with it some very brilliant cures. It has been proved by Swan in the potencies, and Hering’s Schema, from which mine is taken, comprises also disease symptoms marked “(n) and cured symptoms, which have generally the name and the disease appended. Cured cases of secondary syphilis I have marked “(s.s.).” The widespread distribution of syphilis, acquired and hereditary, and the virulence and persistence of the virus, give this nosode a high degree of importance in homoeopathic practice. It has been mainly, almost exclusively, employed by those who are familiar with the use of high attenuations. I have used no potency lower than 200, and rarely repeat the dose oftener than once a week. The leading features of the disease are the keynotes for the use of the remedy, and (1) first in importance is the “Night <“: “Pains from *darkness to daylight, begin with twilight and end with daylight.” “All symptoms worse at night.” “Terrible dread of night, on account of mental and physical exhaustion on awaking.” This night aggravation will be found in a large proportion of the cases needing *Syphilinum, in ophthalmia, the pains are worse at night, and during the night the lids grow together. Neuralgia, and headache, asthma, coughs worse from sunset to sunrise, whether syphilitic or not, will be benefited by *Syphilinum Sleeplessness is itself a leading indication for *Syphilinum, which vies with *Sul. as a sleep restorer. (2) Next to the Night aggravates. Is Ulceration: this may affect mouth, nose, genitals, or skin, and the ulcers have greyish bases, in the nose they produce the most offensive form of ozaena with discharge of fetid clinkers. In such cases I have found *Syphilinum of the greatest service. Fetid discharges from the ear come in the same category. (3) Abscesses with foul secretions. (All pus formations of *Syphilinum are fetid.) *Succession of abscesses is one of the grand keynotes of the materia medica. Eyes, teeth, and skin give other leading indications. In ophthalmia neonatorum the lids adhere during sleep, pains worse 2 to 5 A.M., pus profuse, better cold bathing. Iritis, syphilitic or rheumatic, has been cured with *Syphilinum Ptosis, sleepy look from drooping lids. Diplopia, one image seen below the other. Teeth decay at the edge of the gums and break off, are cupped, have serrated edges, dwarfed in size and converge at their tips. The typical eruption of *Syphilinum is copper-coloured spots, but it covers many other forms, including pemphigus. The glandular system is affected throughout and nutrition impaired, leading to extreme emaciation. Burnett has recorded in his book on *Delicate Children many instances of the power of *Syphilinum to free stunted children from this constitutional blight. Further indications for *Syphilinum are: Pains worse and better gradually, are shifting, and require frequent change of position. Leucorrhoea, profuse, soaking through napkins and running to heels. Craving for alcohol in any form. Hereditary tendency to alcoholism. (Bacchus and Venus are close allies). The orifices of the body are all affected by syphilis, and *Syphilinum has a great sphere in rectal pain and constipation. “Obstinate constipation for years, rectum seems tied up with strictures, when enema was used the agony of passage was like labour.” Bones are affected, and especially bones of head and tibia. Nodes on the head. H. C. Allen says: “Syphilitics, or patients who have had chancre treated by local means, and as a result have suffered from throat and skin troubles for years, are nearly always benefited by this remedy at commencement of treatment unless some other remedy is clearly indicated.” Thomas Wildes (H. P., xi. 267) gives his experience with *Syphilinum In chancre he gives *Syphilinum 1M (Swan) _ according to Skinner’s calculation this is much lower than 1M of the centesimal scale _ one dose every night. The chancre increases for the first two weeks and then gradually fades away, not being followed by secondaries. Where the edges of the chancre assume the appearance of proud flesh in the third or fourth week, and become everted, jagged, and angry dark red, he gives *Lac caninum cm (Swan) every night for ten to fourteen days, until the sore takes on a more natural appearance, when *Syphilinum 1M is again given to finish the case. For any remaining induration *nitricum acidum 30, four times a day, is given. Headaches in great variety he cured with it, aphasia, ptosis, paralysis of tongue, facial paralysis, hemiplegia, “persistent pains in any part of the body,” catarrhal and nerve deafness, itching of nostrils, dark purple lines between alae nasi and cheeks. Itching scabby eruptions on face or breast, singly or in clusters, looking like herpes. Pain and pressure behind sternum. Epilepsy. Wildes cured with *Syphilinum 1M a book-keeper who for many months had a piercing, pressing, excruciating headache over right eye extending deep into brain. It was so severe, he was losing continuity of thought and memory. Under *Syphilinum every night the headache disappeared entirely in ten days and the mental faculties were fully restored, but in six weeks the whole eyebrow on that side broke out into a sickly, yellow, syphilitic eczema with a red, angry, and oozing base extending under the arch to the lid from canthus to canthus up into forehead and down the side of the nose. The cure of this was tedious, because, Wildes thinks, he did not stick to *Syphilinum, but changed the remedy. This man had syphilis a few years before. In 1879 a lady, 26, extremely bright and intelligent, came to Wildes with a dreadful ozaena. She had also curvature of the spine and congestion of right ovary. Always delicate from a child. *Syphilinum cured the ozaena and improved the health, but it “drove out a saddle to which the *Sepia saddle is but a shadow” _ a furious inflammatory mass of syphilitic sores, scabs, and eczema, red and angry, with a fiery base extending from one malar prominence to the other, across nose up to eyes and forehead. This took eighteen months to cure. The ozaena never returned. A boy, 4, had an obstinate rash, a combination of prurigo and herpes, on chin, lips, cheek-bone, forehead, and hairy scalp, on arms, chest, back, bends of joints and on the joints, and on fingers and hands, nowhere profuse. In spite of authorities to the contrary, Wildes maintains that syphilitic rashes may itch, and that prurigo is infectious and is one of the initial stages of leprosy. This boy had a spot of eruption on the left thigh the size of the top-joint of a man’s thumb. This was distinctly a leper spot. *Syphilinum 1M caused the rash to come out strongly all over the body in patches, the face was one-third covered with a thick, yellow, scabby eruption. The remedy was continued and the boy got well, wonderfully improved in health, no longer nervous, growing well, sleeping well, appetite good. Girl, 16, had measles a year before which did not come out properly. A year and a half prior thereto subject to neuralgic headaches. Ailing about two years, very despondent, wants to die, headaches growing more violent. During the headaches the temple veins stand out, has pains all over the body, is very irritable, restless, *walking about much of the time, does not wish to be soothed, *violent on being opposed, has tremors and *seems on the verge of convulsions, dazed, *absent-minded, and almost *insane. *Always washing her hands. Was formerly constipated, but now subject to “a kind of diarrhoea.” Menses never have come on properly, and for the past year have been very irregular, much delayed, scanty, and *always extremely painful. Often feverish. Sleep anxious, distressed, and often *wakeful and violently *restless. The italicized symptoms indicated *Syphilinum, and under this she steadily recovered. A young lady contracted “lepra-syphilis” from vaccination. She had an immense blood-boil on her arm which would not heal. Face broken out with a lumpy fiery rash. With *Syphilinum 1M at bedtime she recovered rapidly, the arm healed quickly and her face became free from eruption. Boy, 3, had cluster of yellow blotches on fingers and roots of nails, distorting the nails. The boy’s father was epileptic. The boy was helped with *Fluor. *ac. and cured with *Syphilinum, the nails becoming straight. Many persons, says Wildes, after taking *Syphilinum for a few days, complained of heavy, crushing, cutting pains across the base of the cerebellum, others of heavy aching and stiffness from base of neck up through muscles and cords of neck and into the brain, others of a heavy, clouded, dull feeling at base of brain with physical lethargy, and sometimes with dizziness, sometimes with confusion of thoughts and often a feeling as if going insane or about to be paralysed. Sometimes a far-away feeling, with a feeling of indifference to the future. Accompanying these there may come a heavy, dragging, dull feeling in lumbar region, with stiffness and want of elasticity. *Peculiar Sensations are: A seething feeling as if hot water or hot oil running through all veins of the body, all night long. As if going insane or about to be paralysed. Tongue feels as if paralysed. A far-away feeling with apathy. As if head were pulled back by a weight. As if blood went to right inner canthus and temples and could get no further. As if sand in eyes. As if right eye were wide open and cold air were blowing in it. Fluttering as of something alive in teeth. As if a worm in tooth. As if teeth had got out of place. Distress as if in omentum. As if rectum were tied up with strictures. As if urethra had been stuffed up and clogged. As if sternum was being drawn towards dorsal vertebrae. As if she would suffocate with cough. As if skin were drawn up in center of chest on drawing back head. Coccyx as if swollen. As if toes on right foot were disjointed. Like growing-pains in limbs. As if bones were sawed. Palms and soles as if pricked by needles. As if throat tearing to pieces. As if top of head were coming off. As if teeth were loose. As of a nervous chill commencing in anus and running down legs. As if bitten by bugs. A number of *linear pains have been observed in *Syphilinum cases. G. H. Carr (M.A., xvii. 162) relates this case: An old man had been troubled two or three winters with an *intense cold pain in both legs, it came on every night on lying down, and lasted all night, the only relief being by getting up and walking. Magnetic leggings had given most relief. *Syphilinum 1M, one dose daily, was given. He lost the pain for six weeks, when it returned in milder form. *Syphilinum CM was given, and he had no more pains all the winter. This medicine, he said “made his genitals ache so that he could not sit still.” This lasted over a month. *Syphilinum cm cured (*ibid.) a lady of “asthma” that she had for twenty-five years, the attack coming on *only at night after lying down, or *during a thunder-storm. Swan (M.A., xxviii. 239) says he gave crying infants, when they developed the propensity immediately after birth and did not cease, one dose of *Syphilinum CM, and it was difficult to make them cry after that. Yingling (M.A., xxix. 135) reports this case: Rev. D., 30, dark, free from venereal taint, had a constant dull, heavy ache above inner angle of right eye, very distressing, with an occasional *thrust as of *an iron rod from the same spot through to lower part of occiput. This thrust was excruciating. He was due to preach next day, but the pain quite incapacitated him, hence his appeal for help. Haggard look. *Syphilinum cm, one dose, was given. He was free from pain before he reached home, next morning was perfectly well. The symptoms are worse by touch (tibia, os uteri). Pressure causes pain in spot middle of thigh, better throat, pressing teeth together better toothache. No position suits. Motion aggravates. Rising arms laterally aggravates. Walking better pain in hips and thighs. Worse At night. Warmth and cold worse and relieves. Warmth better headache, of stove better pain in swollen wrist and big toe. Hot or cold things worse toothache. Cold water better ophthalmia pains. Damp weather, warm, damp weather, thunderstorm, seaside aggravates. Better In mountains. Worse Winter.
