A tincture is made of the fresh root of Hydrastis Canadensis, L.
General Action
A “catarrhal” drug, causing inflammation of all mucous membranes, with profuse discharges. It depresses the vitality, causing atonic as well as catarrhal dyspepsia, constipation and general weakness. Its action on the liver is marked; jaundice, and symptoms of inflammation resemble its near relative, Chelidonium.
Allies. Pulsatilla, Stann., Borax., Chelidonium, etc.
Generalities
Darting pain occasionally in long muscles. Pain at night, but too sleepy to notice where. Tendency to take cold easily. Malaise, Languor; in morning; at 4 P.M.; (<) towards evening, with headache, and giddiness, and when walking falling; and ennui. Disposition to lie down. Dullness. All symptoms except the gone feeling (>) dinner.
Clinical The hydrastis patient generally suffers from debility, constipation, atonic dyspepsia, a palpitation, dyspnoea, and in a general way is subject to catarrhal discharge and ulceration of mucous membranes. Scrofulous affections, particularly marasmus in children. Malignant ulcerations, particularly marasmus in children. Malignant ulceration (epithelioma). Retarded convalescence from typhoid fever, with loss of appetite, constipation, etc.
Mind
Affection active, Exhilarated; and desirous to sing. Sanguine and contented. Vindictive. Spiteful, (>) towards evening, and disposed to hit any one who differed from me. Angry, and desirous to curse everything and anybody who bothered me. Fretful. Despondent, (>) “quiz” in evening. Gloomy, taciturn. Fearful that he will become sick all over. Dislikes to go out, to read, write, do anything. Averse to mental occupation, and memory dull. Forgetful when writing. Memory deficient; and head confused.
Head
Aching on rising; after breakfast, with sensation as if brain were pressed against frontal bones; A. till sleep; with sticking through temples; extending from centre of brain to r. parietal protuberance; bounding, throbbing; nervous, gastric, till noon. Heaviness, amounting to pressure over root of nose. Fulness after breakfast, then aching in temples, (<) every step or sudden movement or coughing, with bursting sensation on ascending stairs or on sudden stooping. Confusion, with heat in it and loss of memory of recent events, the heat and confusion (>) pressing cool hand across forehead. Brain feels partially narcotized, than cutting darting through temples. Intoxicated feeling in morning.
Forehead – Pain; on rising at 6.30 A.M.; at 8.30 A.M.; in supraorbital regions at 8 A.M.; over l. eye at 9 A.M., with soreness in forehead, stoppage of r. nostril, the aching (>) walking in open air, when watery coryza sat in, the latter stopped again in the room; above l. eye at 10 A.M., always (>) laying hand on part; at night, and in temples; throbbing P. across sinuses. Bursting, almost stupefying sensation on waking at 9 A.M. (>) pressing skin towards middle of forehead and when in motion and when mind was engaged, (<) pressing skin towards temples on pressing in forehead and on wearing a light hat or loose hat drawn tightly. Heaviness, (<) over l. eye at 9 A.M., in a warm room, (>) open air, with fulness.
Temples.- Stinging, with dull pains in vertex and over eyes. Cutting through T., with dim vision. Pain over l. eye at 11 A.M.; P. at 9 P.M. from emotion, (>)pressure and open air; in l. at 8 A.M., extending into l. nostril; throbbing P. all day, (<) with all other symptoms, in warm room, when sitting and resting, especially when thinking of the symptoms, (>) fresh air.
Pain in r. parietal protuberance at 8.30 A.M., on ascending stairs; P. in a spot over l. parietal protuberance at noon; heavy P. in l. side, with drowsiness. Dullness in r. side. Pain in r. cerebellum, then l. Heavy pain in l. occiput, (>) pressure of cool hand and cool open air; with pale face, heat in head and pressure outward in region of temporal fossa.
Eyes
Lids agglutinated in morning on waking.
Clinical Catarrhal ophthalmia, acute, with swollen lids, profuse secretions, smarting and burning; chronic, scrofulous, with profuse discharge, opacities of the cornea, etc. Dry catarrh of the conjunctiva. Blepharitis.
Ears
Pain in r. at 6.30 P.M., after supper, then fulness in forehead and pain over l. eye; P. extending from l. mastoid process to scapula at 9 P.M.; tensive P. in r. in morning and afternoon. Eustachian tube partially stopped. Noises; at night on waking, with rumbling in bowels. Ringing, with pain in anus. Roaring at 9 P.M. Noise as of cogwheels at night. Whirring like a partridge on habitual waking at night.
Clinical Catarrhal inflammation of the middle ear and deafness, after scarlet fever. Otorrhoea, with thick mucous discharge.
Nose
Constant snuffing through the day and occasional sneezing. Sharp excoriating feeling in nares, with constant inclination to blow nose and free discharge of mucus. Sore inside at 3.30 P.M., air felt painfully cold on inhaling, with hawking of mucus from throat and posterior nares; internal edge of r. wing sore and thickened, l. nostril stopped, r. dry and painful ( in room). Sensation in r. nostril of a curtain opening and shutting during inspiration, gradually passing to l., leaving r. stopped. Tickling in back part after sneezing. Tingling down r. nostril at 3.30 P.M., then a few drops of arterial blood, stopped with cold water; T. in r. at 4.30 P.M., causing sneezing. Itching in r. nostril from 6 A.M. to 1 P.M., always (>) cool air. Air seemed cold to l. upper inner nostril at 9 A.M. and 2 P.M. in open air, with pain extending from posterior nares deep into head and with pressure in over l. eye. Dryness; (<) r. nostril, with stoppage; and stoppage, with scabs in it. Stoppage; in morning; in r. nostril; l. nostril, with tickling in r. like a hair.
Sneezing at 7 A.M. after breakfast from tickling in r. nostril; S. at 7 P.M.; at night, every time he woke; sudden, at 8 P.M. in a warm room, then excoriating watery discharge from nose, he goes to bed every sick; constant.
Coryza; in afternoon; (<) morning, (>) evening; in r. nostril, with constant inclination to sneeze from 7 A.M. till 1 P.M.; with dry feeling in nose in morning on waking, on going into open air discharge of water, which ceases in room, and nose feels dry and sore when breathing through it. Stopped coryza. Stuffed-up sensation in posterior nares and nasal sinuses, with discharge of thin, clear mucus; posterior nares stuffed up, smarting as from a recent cold, with increased nasal secretion. Profuse discharge from nose and bronchia. Discharge of thick yellow matter (Pulsatilla); frequent D. of watery mucus on walking in cold open air; D. of thin mucus excoriating upper lip, afterwards thicker. Blowing out blood and yellow mucus. Bright red blood from nose at 2.30 P.M., after dinner.
Clinical Nasal discharge, watery, excoriating, with burning, rawness of the throat. Catarrh mostly in the posterior nares, which becomes obstructed, with headache, the discharge dropping in to the throat. Hypertrophic catarrh, with yellow greenish, offensive discharge. Ozaena, with ulceration and bloody discharge. Ulceration of the septum of the nose, bleeding easily on touch. (It has been used as a local application in diphtheria of the nose.)
Face
Pale. Tight feeling of skin around corners of mouth, which seem drawn down. Aphthae on under lip. Fever blisters in r. corner of lower lip.
Mouth
Edges of teeth sensitive to draught of cold air. Tongue, large and marked by teeth; aphthae (Borax), yellow, coat; broad yellow stripe and bad taste. Scalded feeling in morning on rising, (<) smoking; scalded feeling in l. side of tip, spreading over anterior half of tongue, with smarting and with a burning painful vesicle where the scalded sensation started; dryness at root. Sticky mucus around palate, with bad taste. Sticky, with fur on tongue and aphthae on upper lip. Smarting in l. side of palate in morning. Taste bad in morning; T. peppery; acid, peppery on forward half of tongue; strange, to food,
Clinical Numerous cases of aphthous sore mouth. Stomatitis in children or women. Canker in the mouth, after chlorate of potash.
Throat
Unusual clearing when singing. Hawking from increased mucus (Stannum). Sticky mucus around fauces; mucus in fauces, which cannot be swallowed (Pulsatilla). Soreness; in morning on waking; (<)coughing or swallowing; of r. upper part of pharynx, (<) dry swallowing, (>) swallowing fluids; (<) about epiglottis, with rawness and hoarseness; and dryness. Roughness in morning on waking, (<) swallowing, with soreness. Feeling of a lump in lower part of pharynx causing constant deglutition, at times the lump seems to rise, almost suffocating, the suffocative feeling (>) drawing long breaths through mouth. Dryness at 4 P.M., with swelling of uvula and mucus about posterior nares, throat seemed raw and swallowing scraped it. Tickling low down in pharynx at 6 P.M. after lighting a match, the fumes of which passed into mouth, (>) coughing and drinking.
Born in 1837in Westminster, Vermont. . He was an orthodox doctor who converted to homeopathy
Dr. Allen compiled the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica over the course of 10 years.
In 1881 Allen published A Critical Revision of the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica.