Materia Medica
Colchicum
Meadow Saffron
Affects markedly the muscular tissues, periosteum, and synovial membranes of joints. Has specific power of relieving the gouty paroxysms. It seems to be more beneficial in chronic affections of these parts. The parts are red, hot. swollen. Tearing pains; worse, in the ag toes hurts exceedingly There is always great prostra- tion, internal coldness, and tendency to collapse. Ef- fects of night watching and hard study. Shocks as from electricity through one half of body.
Head
Headache chiefly frontal and temporal, but also occipital and in nape of neck, worse afternoon and evening.
Eyes
Pupils unequal; left pupil contracted. Va. riations in visual acuity. Lachrymation worse in open air ; violent tearing pain in eyes. Dim vision after read- ing. Spots lefore eyes.
Ears
Iching in ears; sharp, shooting pains below Tight tragus. 261
Face
Pain in facial muscles, moving about. Ting- ling and cdematous swelling; cheeks red, hot, sweaty. Very irritable with the pains. [Cham.] Pain behind angle of right lower jaw.
Stomach
The smell of food causes nausea even to fainting, especially fish. Profuse salivary secretion. Vomiting of mucus, bile and food; worse, any motion; great coldness in stomach. Craving for various things, but is averse to them when smelling them, seized then with nausea. Gouty gastralgia. Abdomen immensely distended with gas. Burning or icy coldness in stomach and abdomen. Thirst for effervescent, alcoholic ever- ages. Pain in transverse colon.
Abdomen
Distention 1 of abdomen, inability to I out legs. Borborygmi. Pain over liver. stretch Cecum and ascending colon much distended. Fullness and continuous rumbling.
Stool
Painful, scanty, trarsparent, jelly-like mu- cus; pain, as if anus were torn open, with prolapse. Autumnal dysentery; stools contain white shreddy par- ticles in large quantities. Ineffectual pressing; feels faces in rectum, but cannot expel them.
Female
Pruritus of genitals. Cold feeling in thigh after period. Sensation of swelling in vulva and clitoris. Urine. -- Dark, scanty or suppressed ; bloody, brown, black, ink; contains clots of putrid decomposed blood, albumin, sugar.
Heart
Anxiety in region of heart. Impulse not felt. Pericarditis, with severe pain, oppression and dyspncea, pulse threadlike. Sounds of heart become weaker, pulse of low tension.
Back
Aching in lumbar and lumbo-sacral region. Dull pain across loins. Backache, better, rest and pres- sure. Sk'n.— Blotchy papular rash on face. Pink spots on back, chest and abdomen. Urticaria.
Extremities
Sharp pain down left arm. Tearing in limbs during warm weather, stinging during cold. P'ins and needles in hands and wrists, fingertips numb. Pain in front of thigh. Right plantar refcx abolished. Limbs, lame, weak, tingling. Pain worse in evening and warni weather. Joints stiff and feverish; shifting rheumatism; pains worse at night. Inflammation of great toe, gout in heel, cannot bear to have it touched or movcd. Tingling in the finger nails.
Modalities
Il'orse, sundown to sunrise; motion, loss of sleep, smell of food in evening, mental exertion. Better, stooping.
Relationships
Antidotes: Thuja; Camph.; Coccul., Nur: Fuls. Compare: Colchicinc (intestinal catarrh with shreddy membranes; convulsive jerkings of right hand; intense pain of rheumatism 3x trit.). Also, Carbo; Arnica; Lilium; Arsen.: Verat.
Dose
Third to thirtieth attenuation.