Guaco

Volume I — Special Symptomatology

(Mikania Ouaeo.)

Description. — A plant, or " liane" found in Central and South America The Mikanias are climbing perennials, with opposite, commonly heartshaped and petioled leaves, and corymbos-panicled, flesh-colored flowers. One species is indigenous to the United States, the M. scandens, " Climbing Hempweed ;" flowers from July to September

Officinal Preparations. — Tincture of the plant; dilutions.

Analogues. — Arsenicum ( f), Baptisia ( ?), Mercurius ( Phytolacca ( ?), Vcratrum album.

° Bites of venomous serpents.

[Dr. C. Dunham gives the first account in American journals of this plant, in the American Homoeopathic Review, Vol. III., p. 423. He quotes Humboldt, Forster, Schomberg, Poppig, and Tschudi, who all agree that in South America the Guaco is the best remedy for the bites of poisonous serpents. The freshly expressed juice of the plant is dropped into the dilated wound, the surrounding parts are rubbed and covered with the bruised leaves, and the juice at the same time taken internally. It is used also as a prophylactic] ° Chancres; syphilis.

[Turchitti states that the Guaco, locally applied, destroys the specific property of the pus from a chancre, and prevents the production of a second chancre by inoculation. He also claims for it positive curative powers in syphilis.] ° Cholera, and similar maladies.

[Said to be used successfully in Mexico, Havana, Poland, and Venezuela. 1 ° Cancers/ obstinate ulcers. ° Spinal and cerebro-spinal irritation.

[Dr. Elb, of Dresden, has made a proving of the Guaco. He refers to it in an article on " Spinal Diseases " (All. Horn. Zeit., 61, 72, and 23.) That proving has never been translated, but by the kindness of Dr. C. Dunham, 1 am in possession of a translation of the indications given by Dr. Elb for the use of Guaco in " Spinal Diseases," which includes a portion of his pathogenesis. After a few remarks upon the general term, spinal irritation, as embracing various conditions of congestion, anaemia, and irritation or algia, and pointing to certain remedies as corresponding in a general way to these conditions, he desires, he says, to call attention to a class of remedies, heroic, but not sufficiently considered in relation to these affections. "From the symptoms produced by snake bites we cannot fail to see that serpent venom acts specifically upon the spinal marrow." He then cites and analyzes the symptoms of Lachesis, Crotalus, and Naja tripudians, and gives the indications for each in spinal disease. This done, he goes on as follows (A. H. Z., 61, 23): " It being admitted by homoeopaths that the antidoting power of drugs resides not in their chemical properties, but must be referred to their similarity of physiological

action, we may assume that an antidote to serpent venom would produce on the healthy symptoms similar to those resulting from serpent venom.' This consideration induced him to prove Mikania Guaco, a noted antidote to snake bites, and he gives the symptoms in so far as they relate to the spinal cord.]

The Gxiaco produces in the nape of the neck burning, which extends to the shoulders; tearing stiffness, drawing tearing, extending to the axillae; drawing tearing in and between the scapula, extending into the forearm; tearing, sticking tearing in the back; frequent fine stitches, tearing and violent drawing pain along the spine, more painful on bending; increased aching in the lum bo-sacral region and forward pressing; in connection with these spinal pains, severe aching in the occiput, which sometimes extend over the upper half of the back.

In the 'upper extremities. — Aching drawing and simple drawing pains in the deltoid muscle, with a paralyzed sensation; tearing and luxative pain in the shoulders — both of these sensations extending into the forearm; burning in the shoulder joint; tearing in the elbows and fingers.

In the lower extremities.-— Soreness and pain as if beaten about the hip joint; drawing in the thigh; drawing and swollen feeling in the calves; very considerable heaviness in the legs, and drawing in them; tearing in the ankle joints; burning and tearing in the soles of the feet.

All the pains in the back and extremities are aggravated by motion, and mostly continue a long time.

The following very constant phenomena should not be disregarded: difficult digestion, there being no inflammatory affection ; constriction of the larynx and tracheae; deafness; heaviness of and difficulty of moving the tongue (all of these symptoms came from doses of from five to twenty drops of the tincture).

To draw from these few and not severe sensations along the medulla spinalis and in the extremities, the conclusion that Guaco must play an important part in the treatment of spinal affections, would be very venturesome, had I not instituted upon those indications some experiments upon the sick. The affection alone of the tongue, the muscles

of deglutition, and the larynx is to be regarded as an unmistakable picture of a commencing paralysis proceeding from the medulla oblongata, as we see it frequently in a more developed grade in apoplexy. Inasmuch as T experienced during the proving no depression of spirits, no decrease of mental activity, and in general no debility, but rather an excited condition, and suffered often from headache and heat of the face, I became convinced that the paretic conditions as well as the back pains depended not upon a direct affection (lesion) of the medulla, but rather upon a hyperemia of the same; and this view is supported by the fact that during the proving there were clear indications of a congestion of the hemorrhoidal vessels. Moreover, the character of the affection of the extremities— the absence of numbness, formication, etc., the customary forerunners of paralysis — seems to indicate that a primary affection (lesion) of the nerves, at least a paralytic, did not exist in the parts, while, on the other hand, the fact that most of the symptoms of the extremities originated in the point of origin of the nerves from the medulla and extended thence to the ends of these nerves, gave clear evidence that these phenomena were not local, but dependent upon the spinal cord. On the basis of this significance of the pathogenesy I have often given Gvaco in cases of spinal irritation, and in my experience it has shown itself almost " specifically" helpful in robust, not anaemic, ruddy persons, inclined to congestions, excitable, especially in males, where the spinal disease has not been caused by loss of fluids or depressing causes — in persons disposed to hemorrhoids, where the pains, with only a slight feeling of weakness in the lumbo-sacral region, are mostly in the upper part of the vertebral column, mostly aching, drawing or sticking in character, very severe, with at the same time only pains in the extremities, but no paretic conditions, and the parts affected are extremely sensitive to pressure. This condition may be acute or chronic. "We have, then, before us a real picture of pure material stasis. If with this condition be

associated inflammatory or febrile symptoms, then, according to my experience, Guaco does no good, and is far inferior to Belladonna. Arterial stasis may pass on into inflammations, or, by the rupture of vessels, may terminate in apoplexy. Those in which Guaco is indicated incline to the latter termination. It has therefore approved itself a most excellent remedy in paralysis resulting from pressure on brain or spinal marrow, i. e., apoplectic paralysis. I was led to these experiments by the already mentioned paralyzed state of the tongue in connection with most violent headache, heat and redness of the face, i. e., a close resemblance to the forerunners and sequelae of apoplexy. Frequent administration of it has taught me that this remedy is of use only after the first violent febrile storm has abated, no matter whether a soporous condition exists or not. Guaco developes its most eminent curative power when extravasation has caused paralysis of the tongue or of the extremities; the former is often relieved in a few hours; the latter yields to Guaco much more quickly than to any other remedy. But Guaco renders inestimable service, not only in acute but also in very old paralysis, when these ha,ve resulted from extravasations of blood and not from exudations. It is a peculiarity of its action that the paralysis of the lower extremities yields very readily while that of the upper extremities is seldom entirely cured by it. It matters not whether the paralysis be confined to one side or not.

Volume II — Special Therapeutics

This is one of those South American plants which possess curative virtues, doubtless of a specific character, worthy of our close study. The plants of the tropics are supposed to be far more virulent than their relatives of the temperate regions belonging to the same botanical family.

This climbing plant, “Liane,” is known to botanists by the name of Mikania guaco. It has been asserted by some writers that there is a probability that the notorious “Cundurango” is the same as the Guaco. The similarity in the alleged curative action of the two plants, and their similar appearance, doubtless gave rise to this supposition.

The Guaco has been but little used in this country. I have never used it in my practice, nor do I know of any clinical experience with it in the hands of my colleagues. Dr. Elb, of Dresden, Germany, published provings and a pathogenesis of the medicine, but a translation has not been made.

Dr. Elb recommends it very highly in spinal diseases, and gives us full indications for its use in those affections. These indications you will find in my “ Symptomatology of New Remedies.” Its action seems to be analogous to Lachesis, Naja, and Crotalus. It has a great reputation in South America as an antidote to bites of venomous serpents. It has been used successfully in the treatment of cholera, syphilis, old ulcers, apoplexy, paralysis, etc.