A tincture is made of the fresh leaves of Nerium oleander. L.
General Action
A narcotic poison, with tendency to conclusions. General paralytic symptoms supervene, with a weak, irregular pulse. It exerts a marked effect on the skin, especially on the scalp (compare Anacard. and silicea).
Generalities
Fell senseless. Lay as if slumber, but conscious and able to move (Gelsemium). Stretching of upper part of body and of arms. Outstretched, stiff, pale, limbs cool. Arms drawn up against chest, lower limbs to abdomen and chin against chest, Spasm, with cold, clammy skin and barely perceptible pulse. Spasmodic contractions of all muscles, more in upper than in lower limbs, on attempting to rouse him, (>) towards evening, between the spasms he lay on his back, but the superior contractions of l. side threw him over on the right.
Tearing in l. side of neck and l. scapula, alternating with T. in temple and second l. molar, towards evening and in night. pinching in several parts of body and of limbs, fingers and toes, as if bones were crushed. Pressure inward in several parts. Bad feeling with weakness in abdomen and chest. General sick feeling, with weakness of limbs. Restlessness. Weakness; (<) rising. Faint; and down-hearted, general giving so that rising in bed was difficult. (Symptoms more severe on second than on first day.)
Clinical Hemiplegia preceded by vertigo.
Mind
Lively in afternoon and jumping about. Screaming. Fretful; and reserved. Passionate, but he immediately repented of it. Intolerant of contradiction. Anxiety. Loss of self-confidence, causing sadness. Disinclination to work; or to undertake any other agreeable occupation. Confusion when reading, if he makes a great effort to understand the book. Difficulty in grasping the connection when reading a long sentence. Disturbed by other ideas of his own when reading. Busy with beautiful images concerning the future when studying. Loss of memory (Anac); of the names of his acquaintances. Stupidity. Insensibility. Coma, from which she could be aroused by loud talking, speech connected but difficult, as soon as she stopped talking she sank back into coma, with distortion eyes.
Clinical Said to be valuable in the mental condition slow perception.
Head
Boring in brain. Pain in brain; P. as if head were pressed forward. Tightness, more stupefying than painful. Heaviness; (>) lying, with Dullness of it, nausea and other disagreeable sensations. Dullness. Vertigo; on rising from lying; on walking in open air, swimming of objects, darkness before eyes, with flashes of lightning; if he looked towards the ground when standing erect, with double vision (Gelsemium); as if hearing and vision would vanish, especially as if it would become black before r. eye. during dinner, which he swallowed in haste.
Forehead. Pain as if it would burst. Hammering in a spot in forepart. Pulsating pain. Sudden, stupefying pain in forepart, as from a blow. Pressure on r. eminence. Pressure outward; above F.; in l. eminence,(>) pressure of hand. Compression. Uneasiness. Whirling vertigo, with tottering of lower limbs.
Temple. Pinching in r. Pain, now higher up, now lower down, when chewing; P. like a shock in l.; in l., drawing upwards and downward, (>) open air. Drawing in l. Sensation in l. T. and meatus auditorius like that caused by yawning.
Vertex. Deeply-piercing stitches in r. side. Boring in upper part of brain. Pressure in upper cranial bones as if sore. Contractive burning pain externally on l. side.
Side. Pressure inward in r.; stupefying. Pain over mastoid process as if a nail were driven into it, with stupefaction.
Occiput. Tensive stitch in bone. Sharp pain externally on l. side. Pressure in a spot.
Scalp. Desquamation. Itching pimples. Gnawing itching; biting itching at night, as from lice. (Itching) eroding as from lice, after scratching smarting as if scratched raw.
Clinical Vertigo on looking or on rising in bed or on looking down. Headache, (>) forcible squinting (Farrington). Crusta lactea; the eruption is moist and scaly, occurs especially on the Occiput and behind the ears; after scratching there are burning and soreness, with occasional biting-itching.
Eyes
Fixed; and lustreless. Turned upward Distorted. Sunken. Aching as from overexertion. Pressure as from a hard substance. Pressure downward in l. eye and malar-bone. Biting in l. Lachrymation on reading. Itching of r. ball. Pupils dilated; contracted. Lids involuntarily drawn together, as if sleepy; sticking in l. upper, with itching tension in l. on reading; burning tension in r.; burning in r. upper; burning in lower, with itching about it. Tensive pain in one canthus as if eye were turned upward excessively, in evening, it was difficult to turn eye the opposite way. Sore pain on touch, in r. brow towards temple. Intermittent pressure on upper margin of orbit. It seems as if it would become black before eyes. Blackness before eyes on rising up; B. on looking sideways without turning head.
Ear
Sharp pain within. Cramplike drawing on outer, and below it, as if it were drawn outward. Burning in entrance of l. Shrill, stupefying ringing in l. Singing in l. Howling in l.
Nose
Numbness of back, like a painless pressure. Violent sneezing.
Face
Redness of cheeks without head; R. of face and eyes, face pale towards evening. Pale; in morning after rising, and disturbed look, eyes surrounded by blue rings, and cheeks sunken; with brown lips, (<) lower. Twitching, (<) about mouth. Benumbing pinching in malar-bones. Pain in bones of r. side. Pressure on r. cheek near angle of lower jaw; numb, painless, on l. zygoma close to ear; stupefying, between root of nose and l. orbit; tensive, more stupefying than painful, on malar-bone, extending deeply into head and root of nose. Pain in r. upper jaw, below malar-bone. Stiffness of muscles of jaw. Lips, twitching outward of l. corner; sudden swelling about l. corner; swollen (numb) sensation in upper; burning pain in r. side of lower during and after motion; burning sticking over l. corner.
Mouth
Teeth. Cutting when chewing. Drawing in r. lower molar; in second l, molar; tearing, in first l. molar, and at times in the next hollow tooth, at night, (>) rising, returning in bed, with anxiety as if he were to die, frequent micturition, nausea and heat of l. cheek. Molars sensitive on chewing, as if they were hollow. Loose sensation, with bluish-white gum.
Tongue coated white, with dry mouth and lips; T. dirty white and papillae elevated; stitches; burning stitches in l. side. Speech unintelligible; lost. Foaming at mouth. Taste bitter; T. flat and nauseous to food in evening; insipid, as from a disordered stomach.
Throat
Sticking in thyroid cartilage. Sharp pain in l. side, near Adam’s apple. Pushing in anterior cervical muscles, so that the must loosen the neck-band, a suffocating, choking sensation. Pain as if a dull point were pressing upon r. side of oesophagus, with pain in cervical muscles on external pressure. Burning in pharynx extending to stomach. Irritation of pharynx.
Stomach
Ravenous hunger (Cannab-ind., Lycopodium); after the nausea; after rapid walking, with trembling of hands when eating and general weakness; yet no appetite, but he greedily swallowed large amounts. Longing for the food before him caused his hands to tremble. Speedily satiated though he relished the food. Appetite lost; for food and smoking; and everything nauseated him, as if afterwards he would vomit or have diarrhoea. Aversion to cheese. Thirst; for cold drinks, especially cold water.
Eructations; of bad odor; empty, violent; empty, violent, when eating at noon.
Nausea; in mouth; in mouth, and with every act of retching running of water from mouth, cervical muscles spasmodically and painfully contracted, as if it would strangle him, abdominal muscles similarly affected, and at first with much retching he raises only mucus from fauces, then sour liquid portions of the food; in pit of stomach, in bed after sleep, with difficult breathing, (>) rising; (<) rising; (<) stooping, momentarily (>) eructations; with general sick feeling; with collection of water in mouth; with collection of water, if he swallows it the N. disappears for a moment, with flat taste; forcing him to stop eating though he relishes the dinner.
Vomiting; and retching; copious, painful; frightful, then thirst; violent, of green, bloody liquid; repeated, of mucus and bile; of bitter, yellow-green water; of the bread just eaten, with water.
Pain; in epigastric region; in a spot in gastric region beneath l. short ribs on every expiration, (>) inspiration, (<) external pressure. Oppression in pit when lying, with vomiting of mucus, water and bread. Heat and constriction. Intermittent throbbing in l. side of pit. Sensation in pit as if he felt every beat of heart through whole chest, as after great head, though the heart did not beat violently. Emptiness in pit, with full feeling in abdomen.
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.