Rhododendron - General symptoms

GENERAL

General

Toothache. the approach of a thunderstorm or of cloudy windy weather, is always preceded by a pain, which partakes of the character of drawing aching (and cutting).

the thunderstorm set in in one or two, the cloudy and rainy weather several hours after the toothache.

the pain commenced in the ear, at least was in connection with a pain in the ear,.

Rheumatic and gouty symptoms well marked. Rheumatism in the hot season. The modality (worse before a storm) is a true guiding symptom.

head

Gouty-rheumatic subjects SENSITIVE TO WINDY OR STORMY, WET WEATHER

Sensitive to windy weather, even if he is in house

Tearing, zigzag, boring, rapidly changing, descending, paralytic pains

Confused and stupid; forgets his subject (Baryta Carb ^Bar-c)

Headache, worse early in bed, better eating

Throbbing in r

Deafness long after rising

Nostrils obstructed alternately

Tearing, jerking faceache or toothache; better food or warmth

Cool drinks lie heavy

Colic at navel

Pain from rectum to genitals

Diarrhoea, worse fruit

Profuse, foul, urine

Drawing from spermatic cord into abdomen and thighs Testes and glans feel crushed

Testes hard; pain alternately

Orchitis

Itching, sweaty, wrinkled scrotum

Hydrocele (of boys)

Menses with fever

Bruised, sprained feeling in chest and wrists

Strong heart-beat

As of a weight hanging to feet

Wants to cross legs

Drawing, tearing in periosteum of long bones and under scalp

Rheumatism of hot weather (reverse-Rhus Tox ^Rhus-t)

Formication; with sweat

Must cross legs to sleep

Rhododendron chrysanthum. Siberian Rhododendron. Yellow Helleborus Niger ^Snow-rose. N. O. Ericaceae. Tincture of fresh leaves.

The golden-flowered Rhododendron is not much known in general medicine, but the Treasury of Botany says of it that "it is narcotic in its properties and is used medicinally." Growing among the fogs and storms of the Siberian mountains.

its provings (by Seidel, Wahle, Herzog, Helbig, and others) show that it produces sensitiveness to storms and weather changes.

and this gives the grand keynote of its use in medicine.

Rhod. disturbs all parts of the economy, producing delirium, fever, headache, neuralgias (earache, toothache), rheumatism, and inflammations, but the chief determining characteristic is that the symptoms come on or are agg. on the approach of a storm; during a storm; or in wet weather.

Sensitiveness to electric changes.

It is suited to nervous persons who dread a storm, and are particularly afraid of thunder; agg. before the storm; affections which come on in the spring and autumn, the seasons of change.

Rhododendron is the chief modality, and will be found in some degree present in a large number of cases requiring Rhod.

But Rhod. has other characteristics.

Among these is loss of memory Words are omitted while writing; sudden disappearance of thought; forgets what he is talking about, has to think awhile before he can recall it.

Vertigo and confusion, "brain feels as if surrounded by fog." The narcotic reputation of Rhod. is borne out in the provings, for it produced actual intoxication, and also made the provers extraordinarily sensitive to the action of wine.

Vertigo occurs whilst lying in bed, and is amel. by moving about.

An intense degree of tinnitus aurium was caused by it, and this, associated with the vertigo, gives Rhod. a place in Ménière's disease.

A Peculiar Symptom is "Loud sounds re-echo long in ears." Like the other Ericaceae, Rhod. has a strong effect on the kidneys, producing increased urine, with offensive smell, clear, brown red, or of greenish tinge, and, whatever colour it may be, of offensive smell.

Rhododendron offensive smell reappears in the axillary sweat.

But the general sweat may be aromatic in odour and not unpleasant. "Formication with sweat" is characteristic.

Rhod. sets up diarrhoea; and also a paralytic condition of the rectum, so that an effort is required to expel a soft stool.

Pains in rectum extend to genitals; and the male generative organs experience the most intense action of the drug.

The scrotum shrinks; testes are retracted; or else they swell (especially at night), and are the seat of a bruised pain, as if they had been crushed violently.

These pains are agg. by touch; agg. sitting; amel. moving about.

They may be so violent as to arrest breathing.

The menses are too early and too profuse; the menses are always accompanied by fever and headache.

Menses reappear soon after they have ceased.

In one prover Rhod. restored the menses after six months' absence.

It has cured cysts in the vagina, and has caused the rupture of an ovarian cyst.

Chorea of left leg, arm, and face, agg. on approach of a storm, has been cured by it.

The paralysing effect of Rhod. was exemplified by the poisoning of a flock of sheep from eating the leaves.

In both instances the fluid entered the trachea instead of the gullet and caused suffocation.

Both sides are affected by Rhod.

Symptoms frequently alternate left and right nostril; burning in uterus and pains in limbs; chilliness and heat.

Pains go from within outward.

H. S. Budd (H. R., xv. 300) relates the case of Mrs.

X., 44, married ten years, three children.

Neuralgia for three years.

Attacks occur usually on Friday or Saturday and last till Monday or Tuesday, but are induced any time by high winds, damp weather, or an approaching storm.

Ammonol, Phenacetin, Antikamnia, had all failed, and Passif. only partly relieved, sometimes enabling patient to get sleep.

The pain was agg. after hard work; during any movement; in very cold weather; from hot applications.

Intense soreness all over right half of head.

Cannot rest on pillow or endure even lightest hairpins when pain is worst. agg.

At night. Intensely nervous and hysterical at being touched, even by accident.

During pain increased activity of kidneys, ceasing when pain ceases.

Pain greatest in right lower jaw.

Sometimes amel. for an hour by chewing gum or eating.

Afraid of thunder. Omits words when writing.

Rhod. 16x every hour was given on May 12th.

Each dose caused immediate agg.

Next morning pains stopped suddenly and did not return.

On June 7th there was a premonitory twinge, and A powder of Rhod. 1m was given, after which there was complete immunity.

E. V. Moffat (quoted Am. H., xxiii. 268) treated a girl, 10, for neuralgia, which had existed for several years.

The patient was of marked gouty heredity, and had been treated by leading old-school doctors in New York.

She was well during the summer, but suffered intensely during winter.

Pains general and shifting, sometimes intercostal, sometimes sciatic; in bad weather never absent.

The last form was prostrating headache, incapacitating her for school work.

The eyes were normal. While the sun shone she was comfortable.

If it stormed or threatened she was miserable.

If she had a headache on a stormy day and the sun came out, in ten minutes she was relieved, and it returned at once if snow or rain came on.

A cold day, especially if damp, was almost as bad as a storm.

Rhod. Ø, in repeated and increasing doses, cured in three weeks.

Colour, spirits, strength returned, and she no longer minded the weather or missed her school.

Peculiar Sensations are Brain as if in a fog.

Scalp as if bruised. As if a worm in ear.

As if water rushing into ear.

As if throat lined with mucus.

As from tension under short ribs.

Testicle as if violently contused or crushed.

As if a fist pressed forcibly against stomach.

As if blood ceased to circulate in arms.

As if arms asleep. As if feet and legs asleep.

As if heavy weights hanging to feet.

As of subcutaneous ulceration.

Undulating sensation arising from abdomen.

Warm undulations in heart.

Bruised pains. Pains flying about.

Crawling sensations. A Peculiar Symptom in the eyes is One pupil dilated, the other contracted.

There is a splenic stitch on walking fast.

The incarcerated flatus is felt in the hypochondria and small of the back.

It is not at all unusual to meet this symptom, "Flatus felt in the back," in cases of flatulent indigestion. "Increased warmth of hands even in cold weather" is another peculiar symptom.

The symptoms are agg. by touch (toothache, testicles, chest).

this sensitiveness is general). Rest agg.

motion (especially commencing motion) amel. (Walking = stitches in spleen; motion agg. pain in ears; and prosopalgia). Rheumatic pain in shoulder on which he rests.

goes off on turning. agg. Sitting. amel. Rising. agg. Standing. agg. When writing. agg. Wind.

east wind. rough weather.

wet, cold weather. getting wet. agg. Before a storm (ciliary neuralgia; pains through eye from head; toothache; diarrhoea; dysentery; pain in deltoids; paroxysmal chorea). amel. Warmth. amel. Wrapping up. (But heat in bed agg. formication of anus; and toothache.) Dry heat amel. agg. Change. agg. Thunder. Toothache amel. whilst and after eating and from warmth. Pain in left side amel. by eating. Drinking cold water = pressure at stomach. agg. Drinking wine.

easily intoxicated. Belching amel. General sweat amel. agg. Night.

morning in bed and on rising.

Yellow Snowrose. Seidel. Ericaceae.

*

Pains This is a very useful remedy in gouty patients who suffer from rheumatic pains, sometimes wandering from joint to joint, aggravated during rest, aggravated before and during storms, aggravated in cold, wet weather and ameliorated from warm wrapping.

These pains may be in the head or the limbs. It is a great palliative in old people who have suffered long from gout. Rheumatic swelling of joints. Pain in the aponevroses at night, during rest. He can always fortell a thunderstorm. There are tearing, shooting pains. Sore bruised pains. Stiffness of joints, neck and back. Extremely sensitive to cold weather, and aggravated from becoming cold. Paralytic Weakness during rest, yet be is weak from exertion.

Continued motion is his only relief. Painfully sensitive to windy cold weather. Chorea before a storm. General amelioration from motion, even when the painful part is aggravated from, moving the affected part.

While talking he forgets what he was talking about. Leaves out words in writing. Aversion to his business. Easily affected by wine.

Pain in the eyes before a storm, ameliorated by heat and motion. Weakness of the internal recti muscles with stitching pains before a storm.

Violent pains in ear, sometimes tearing, aggravated before a storm. Ameliorated by heat. Roaring, ringing and buzzing in the ears.

Neuralgia of the face in gouty subjects, aggravated from motion, aggravated from cold wind; ameliorated by, applied heat. The patient is generally aggravated during rest; comes in stormy weather.

Pains ameliorated by eating, and warmth. Pain in the teeth before a storm. Pain in teeth with earache, ameliorated by heat; aggravated at night, from cold drinks.

Empty eructations. Green bitter vomiting after drinking cold water. Sinking at the stomach. Pressure in the stomach after eating.

Pain as from flatulence high up in sides of abdomen. Stitching in spleen from walking fast. Rumbling in abdomen and fullness after eating.

Much straining to pass a soft stool. Undigested, thin, brownish stool. Diarrhea after eating, after fruit; from cold, wet weather, before a thunderstorm. Dysentery before a thunderstorm. Pulsating anus, drawing in anus extending to genitals.

Men Drawing pain in bladder with frequent urging to urinate.

Great pain in testes, cord, and hips, ameliorated by motion and heat. It has cured hydrocele in boys. Much itching of the scrotum.

Women Menses frequent and profuse.

Serous cysts in the vagina.

Constriction of chest.

Pain in heart.

Pain in dorsal region extending to arms in cold, wet weather, aggravated during rest,

Tearing pains in neck and back driving out of bed.

Limbs Rheumatic tearing pains in all the limbs in stormy weather, aggravated before a storm and during rest, aggravated at night; mostly in forearms and legs.

Wandering pains in the limbs and joints. Pain in bone and periosteum. Pains drive him out of bed. Paralytic pains in limbs. Cannot sleep unless legs are crossed. Sleepless after midnight. Pain in the shoulder joint so severe that the arm cannot be moved, but the patient and the pain are ameliorated by walking about.

Will naturally come in for notice while we are upon weather remedies. Like Dulcamara ^Dulcamara, its strongest characteristic is in its modality, "aggravation in wet stormy weather;" but Rhododendron is particularly worse before the storm, especially a thunder storm; after the storm breaks the patient feels better. The aggravation before the thunder storm does not at all seem to depend on the coldness or dampness, but partially at least on the electric conditions of the atmosphere. This is like Phosphorus ^Phosphorus, Natrum carb. and Silicea ^Silicea. Rhododendron resembles Rhus toxicod. in that it is worse during rest and better during motion. Again, the pains of Rhododendron, which are aggravated in damp weather, differ from those of Rhus toxicod. in that they seem to be deeper seated and are felt in the periosteum, as in the teeth, and in the bones of the forearm and tibia. These pains are not, however, confined to periosteal membranes, but attack also muscles and ligaments, so as to make it difficult to choose between these remedies.

So we have quite a list of marked wet weather remedies in Dulcamara ^Dulcamara, Natrum Sulphuricum ^{Natrum sulphuricum}, Rhododendron, Rhus Tox ^{Rhus toxicodendron} and Nux Moschata ^{Nux moschata}. (Calc Carb ^Calcarea phosphorica, wet cold, especially melting snow).

Rhododendron seems to have an especial affinity for the testicles. They are swollen, with drawing contusive pains, which sometimes extend to abdomen and thighs, and they are very sensitive to touch. The remedies most like it are Aurum metall., Clematis Erecta ^{Clematis erecta}, Pulsatilla ^Pulsatilla, Argentum metall., and Spongia Tosta ^Spongia. If the affection was of syphilitic origin we would prefer Aurum, especially if the case had been abused by old school mercurialization. If it came from suppressed gonorrhoea, Clematis Erecta ^Clematis or Pulsatilla ^Pulsatilla; if of rheumatic origin, Rhododendron. Of course all the case would come into the calculation when making up the perfect picture.

Dose

First to sixth potency.

Clinical

Amenorrhoea. Asthenopia. Bone, pains in. Bunions. Chorea. Ciliary neuralgia. Coryza. Delirium. Diarrhoea. Diphtheritic paralysis. Earache. Epistaxis. Eyes, affections of. Fever. Flatulence, incarcerated. Gums, itching of. Hydrocele. Lienteria. Lumbago. Memory, weak. Neuralgia. Nightmare. Ovary, cyst of. Rheumatism. Spleen, pain in. Sprains. Stiff-neck. Testes, affections of. Tinnitus. Toothache. Vagina, Cysts in. Wrists, pains in.

Region

FIBROUS TISSUES Forearm

Lower legs

Small joints

Bones

Genitals

Nerves

Vascular system

Single parts