ARUM DRACONTIUM.

Arum Dracontium, Linn.

Natural order , Araceæ.

Common name , Green Dragon or Dragon-root.

Authority.

C. P. Hart, M.D., Am. Hom. Obs., 1875, p. 537.

A little over 1 ounce of the expressed juice was mixed with 9 ounces of pure saccharum lactis, marked "matrix." Of this a 1st dec. trit. was prepared in the usual manner.

July 6th. Prover, æt. thirty-six years, took 10 grains 1/10. At 2 P.M. pulse 74, full, soft, and regular. In five minutes felt a peculiar acrid sensation in the mouth and throat, but not sufficiently marked to be unpleasant. The heart beat so violently as to shake the walls of the chest. Pulse 80, full, hard, and somewhat jerking.

2.15 P.M. Tingling or slight stinging sensation in the fingers and toes, as when the circulation is impeded. Pulse 80, small and irregular; artery seems to roll under the finger, and requires considerable pressure in order to be correctly counted.

2.45 P.M. Fine tingling sensation all over right hand, which is warmer and redder than the left, and appears somewhat swollen. Pulse 80, moderately full, and more regular.

7 P.M. Shooting pain in the left anterior inferior triangle of the neck, near the clavicle; aching pain in the left forearm, left hand, and right humerus. Pulse 74, full, and nearly natural, but rather weak and irregular.

7.20 P.M. Sharp shooting pains at the styloid process of the right ulna; right hand still remains somewhat red and swollen. Retired to rest at 9 P.M., and slept soundly till 7 A.M. Head feels heavy and aches slightly in occipital and right parietal regions. Throat feels somewhat raw, and there is rattling of mucus in the larynx at every full expiration , but this disappeared after rising and moving about.

July 7th, 8 A.M. Half hour after breakfast shooting pains in the right ear; they are transient but frequent, and leave a feeling of fulness and slight aching in the middle ear.

9 A.M. Took 15 grains "matrix." Late and insufficient stool.

9.15 A.M. Eructation of flatus from the stomach; fine tingling or pricking sensation in the hands and feet, especially the right; shooting pain down the right thigh; flushing of the hands and face; heart's action increased, but not as violent as after taking the first decimal preparation yesterday; aching in the right humerus.

9.35 A.M. Copious semifluid stool, with much flatus; also eructations tasting of the medicine; small accumulation of mucus in the throat, the raising of which, by coughing, produces a slight mucous rattling in the larynx; disposition to swallow, arising from excess of mucus, but not unpleasant acrid sensation in the throat, as I had expected.

10 A.M. Pulse 74, full, soft, and regular. Feeling of warmth and fulness in left middle ear, similar to what was felt at 8 A.M. in the right, but no shooting pains; probably this symptom arises from an accumulation of mucus in left Eustachian tube.

10.20 A.M. The ear symptom has changed sides; warmth and fulness now in the right ear; left ear normal. The disposition to swallow has subsided, but has left a slight uneasiness in the throat, and a disposition to cough. The act of swallowing develops a slight soreness in the muscles of the throat, and renews temporarily the feeling of warmth and fulness in the ears, sometimes in one and sometimes the other, seldom in both at once. I am satisfied that the throat and ear symptoms, with the exception of the soreness, are owing to an excess of mucus in the throat, larynx, and Eustachian tubes.

3 P.M. Increased soreness of the larynx, and greater disposition to cough; burning of the soles of the feet; heat, dryness, and smarting of the eyelids; fine shooting pain in the course of the left spermatic cord.

5 P.M. Preternatural heat in the palms of the hands; loose cough, with soreness of the throat, closely simulating a mild attack of catarrhal angina; the soreness is not very marked, except during the act of deglutition; there is a feeling of dryness and smarting in the throat, a kind of rawness, with a sense of fulness, not really painful, but sufficiently annoying to attract constant attention, and producing a continual disposition to clear the throat by swallowing, coughing, or hawking.

9.30 P.M. Retired to bed and slept well the first part of the night, but awoke about midnight with great oppression of breathing, a kind of asthmatic attack, which however, soon passed off, leaving considerable rattling of mucus in the larynx and upper part of the trachea. Noticed that the rawness in the throat and the soreness in the laryngeal region, which were present on retiring, had almost entirely disappeared. Slept badly the rest of the night. In the morning raised by coughing a small amount of mucus. No rattling of mucus at this hour (7 A.M.) except by forced expirations ; the undue secretion is now limited to the larynx, but can be distinctly heard whenever the expirations are prolonged.

July 8th, 8 A.M. Natural motion of the bowels; no flatulence.

9 A.M. Took 30 grains "matrix." 10 A.M. Occasional emissions of flatus from the stomach; ear symptoms as before noted, but not so marked; fine pricking or tingling sensations in the feet and hands, for the last half hour, began in right foot, and afterwards affected in regular succession the right hand, left foot, and left hand; occasional shooting pains have occurred during the same time in the following order; right malar region, right external malleolus, thenal eminence of right thumb, left malar region. Pulse 84, small and somewhat irregular. Occasional shooting and aching pains along the right humerus and right thumb.

10.30 A.M. Aching pain behind the right ear; also in the right shoulder; slight aching pain in the præcordial region and down the left arm; also in the right forearm and over the left eye; these pains are all very transient.

11 A.M. Pain in the bowels caused by incarceration of flatus; escape of flatus from stomach and bowels.

12 M. Aching pain along the outer aspect of the left foot; immediately followed by a similar pain in the corresponding part of the left hand; shooting and aching pains in the left brachial plexus of nerves.

Note.

-Most Arum pains are observed to be very transient in any one part, and to course along the extremities, sometimes in one direction, sometimes in the opposite one; they are not very sharp, and are generally intermediate in character, between aching and shooting. Those in the nervous trunks partake more of the shooting character, but always leave an aching sensation behind them. I have not been entirely free from these pains longer than a few minutes at a time, for more than two hours, having noted down only the most prominent. At first they were almost entirely confined to the right side; now they are limited chiefly to the left. I have just had one of these characteristic pains in the left side of the head; it began in the left occipital region, gradually subsided, and reappeared successively in the left temporal and left frontal regions. This remedy acts primarily and pre-eminently upon the nervous system, and through it upon the circulation.

12.30 A.M. Pulse 74, full, soft, and slightly irregular.

4 P.M. Have an irresistible desire to pass urine, which is diminished in quantity, very highly colored, and has a burning or smarting effect on the urethra.

6 P.M. Great languor and depression of spirits; dull, heavy aching in the chest; sinking feeling at the pit of the stomach; aching along the spine, particularly between the shoulderblades and in the lumbar region; great weakness across the loins; feeling of extreme prostration.

Note.

-The urine subsequently passed normal both in amount and character. The symptoms last mentioned continued to increase until the exhaustion became so great that I was compelled to retire at the early hour of 8 P.M. At this time there was a slight perspiration upon the neck and breast, the first that has appeared during the proving.

July 9th. Awoke at 6 A.M. greatly refreshed. Found myself quite hoarse; expectorated a small quantity of thick mucus; throat raw and tender; rattling of mucus in larynx during expiration , but which ceased on rising, except when the expirations were prolonged by voluntary effort. Conjunctivæ highly injected; lids dry, stiff, and slightly agglutinated at their edges, which burn and smart.

Note.

-The proving was continued through the month, with the development of but few additional symptoms. The bowels were somewhat irregular, at one time slightly constipated, at another somewhat loose, but never any decided diarrhœa. Paroxysms of dyspnœa would sometimes occur, with much aching in the chest, and always associated with a considerable secretion of mucus in the larynx and trachea.

On the 10th, and also on the 17th, shooting pains in the right ear, sometimes very severe.

On the 23d an aphthous ulcer appeared on the tongue, and on the following day the mouth and throat became so sore that the proving had to be discontinued. It was resumed, however, on the 25th, by taking one drachm of "matrix;" this produced a violent asthmatic attack at night, and lighter ones on each succeeding night for about a week, when they left me altogether, but I still have (August 1st) an annoying cough, and a mucous rattling in the larynx, which indicate that this will prove to be a valuable remedy in laryngeal, bronchial, and pulmonary complaints.

August 1st. Took one drachm of the "matrix." Immediate effects similar to those already detailed.

August 3d. Deep shooting pains in the right ear; cough from laryngeal irritation, worse at night and when lying down; constant rawness of the throat, hoarseness, and rattling of mucus in the larynx.

August 4th. Similar symptoms, the shooting pains in the right ear occurring frequently, and continuing sometimes for ten or fifteen minutes.

August 5th. Similar symptoms, the ear pains being still persistent.

August 6th. Symptoms continue as before, with occasional shooting pains also in the left ear.

August 7th. No change in symptoms, except that I have had three copious bilious passages from the bowels, attended with aching in the abdomen and burning in the rectum.

August 8th. Bilious diarrhœa, borborygmus, and the escape of much flatus from the bowels.

August 9th. Bowels regular; slight burning in urethra after micturition.

August 12th. No marked change in symptoms until last night; coughed all night; in the morning had a very bad taste in the mouth; tongue and mouth coated with foul slimy mucus, having a putrid taste; but the most important symptom was a purulent expectoration , consisting of thick, heavy, yellowish-white pus.

August 16th. Since the 12th instant I have continued to raise this purulent secretion from the larynx in large quantities. Last night I was so annoyed by the gravity and persistence of the laryngeal symptoms -violent cough, hoarseness, rawness of the throat, and profuse purulent expectoration, which greatly alarmed my wife- that I took a dose of Spongia 3d x, which so far relieved me as to secure a good night's rest, the first I have had since the 12th instant.

August 17th. Frequent copious emissions of limpid urine.

August 18th. Inclination to urinate every hour or so during the day; urine increased to four or five times the normal amount; tenderness and slight smarting or burning of the orifice of the urethra, especially during micturition. Eruption of pimples, a species of lichen, on the nose, and a patch of urticaria on the right arm near the elbow.

Note.

-During the proving, i. e ., for the last four or five weeks, I have been entirely free from an intolerable itching of the scrotum -a chronic pruritus- of ten or twelve years' standing. I have also noticed during this time a great diminution, and most of the time an entire absence of, the sexual desire, penis flaccid and relaxed. This condition of the generative organs and a slight laryngeal irritation are the only pathogenetic symptoms remaining at this date (August 22d).