Gambogia

Volume II — Main text

GAMBOGIA .

Gum-resin of Garcinia Morella, Desrous. Gamboge. Nat. Ord., Guttifera. I. Provings.-1. CAJETAN NENNING proved this medicine on several (female) subjects in doses of 30 dr. of pure tinct., 25 gr. of 1st, 20 gr. of 2nd, and 25 dr. of 3rd trit. He gives us no information regarding the provers or the doses each took, nor does he indicate in what provers the different symptoms occurred. a. Intolerable itching here and there, inhand,1. side of forehead, in eyes, eyelids, and canthi, in face, in upper surface of forearmjust under elbow, on ball of thumb, index finger, instep, back of hands; after scratching there remains a burning and ulcerative pain, along with swelling and redness of scratched parts; the itching usually occurs e. and n. A small pimple over upper orbital border, with tensive pain ; eruption of small pimples on inner surface of both forearms, with great redness and itching e.; a burning blister on inner surface of upper lip ; very itching blisters on both hands, at first pale, then red, lasting many d. b. Drowsiness all d.; longer sleep than usual in m.; very restless sleep at n.; sleep disturbed by continual anxious dreams ; anxious, vexatious dreams ; dreams of dancing, lice, &c. c. Chilliness alld., or onlya.m., inward and outward coldness from 6 to 8.30 p.m., lasting 4, 1 and 2 h., or all n. till 5 a.m., sometimes with thirst ; violent rigor, pro . ceeding fromback, with general external coldness, even of forehead,commencing at 7p.m., and lasting till 4 a.m.; rigor, with chattering of teeth, with external warmth of skin, great thirst, lips stick together; at n. sudden rigor, waking him up, lasts 5 m.; the chilliness is accompanied by empty eructation, yawning,sacral pains, and biting as from ants all over body, n., or at the commencement with severe stitches in ears . Increased warmth, with anxiety, also with some perspiration p.m. At n. slight perspiration; sweat all over body on waking at 4 a.m.; m., perspiration all

over. In e. or n. intense thirst that kept him awake. The type of the pain is remittent or intermittent, generally quotidian,but sometimes tertian, and more delaying than anticipating. d. Cheerful humour, great loquacity,well feeling, great agility in all movements. Crossness, anxietywith inclination for work; work does not get on well,although the necessity for it is felt. Crossness and disposition to anger, m., onrising. e. Vertigo frequentlywhenat rest andwhen moving,onrising inm.,or in forehead when spinning. Weight and throbbing in forehead a.m.; weight of whole head, with laziness, drowsiness and pain in sacrum. Pains in whole head and beating in forehead towards nose, a.m.; frequent rising of heat to head, with sweat. Pressive pain in head, with heaviness in forehead, relieved by open air, or with heat in head and whole body ; headache compressive from both sides, a.m.; headache in crown as if bruised, a.m., better in open air. Some sharp stitches in r. side of head and in temple. Painful drawing from r. ear up to crown, a.m. Transient tearing in 1. temple p.m. Great cold feeling in l. temple, as from a cold wet cloth, for h. p.m. f. Itching in 1. lower eyelid ; itching in inner canthi and in forehead,with watering ofeyes after rubbing and acrid, eroding tears, going off in open air; smarting in outer canthus, relieved by rubbing ; dryness of eyes, as from drowsiness, with yawning and sneezing; tiresome dryness of eyes, with redness of canthi ; nocturnal adhesion of lids, burning in m., photophobia all d. and frequent shooting pain in eyes ; violent itching ofeyes, e.; violent burning of eyes and photophobia, p.m. or e., relieved by walking in open air, but recurring next m.; strengthened vision and clearer vision of objects. g. Violent tearing deep in ears, e.; violent shooting in both ears; throbbing pain in l. ear, as from an abscess ; humming in ears frequently, p.m., and e., always going off after a sensation as if a membrane in the ear burst ; frequent noises in ear, m. h. Tearing in bones of dorsum of nose ; itching in both nostrils from e. till m.; ulceration of r. nasal cavity, with burning pain; bleeding from r. nostril, e. i. Tearing in r. zygoma for h. e., and in r. side of lower maxilla frequently during d. Throbbing in a r. lower molar in cold air; feeling of chill and of lengthening ofall front teeth, m.; cold feeling on tops of incisors. Tearing in all molars of r. side, also in gums, with raw feeling and swelling there. Dryness of mouth ; burning on tip of tongue for 1 h., e.; burning of front half of tongue; excessive sensitiveness of palate, pain as from an excoriation or sore, relieved bycold; sweetish taste in mouth and throat, followed by expectoration of bright red blood. Tearing in tendons of r. side of neck, also with retching, shooting tearing in l. side of neck under ear, much aggravated by external pressure, thence going down to laryngeal region, also shooting in throat when swallowing. Roughness and burning in throat, compelling constant hawking; sore pain in throat, also when touched externally; sore burning at back offauces when not swallowing; shooting in throat when swallowing, going off after eating; violent shooting in r. side of throat when swallowing and at other times, e.; choking from chest up into throat, taking away breath ; swollen feeling in throat ; sweet taste in mouth, and expectoration of bloody mucus .

j. Bitter taste; appetite increased almost to ravenous hunger, and much thirst ; thirst after dinner, and especially e.; loathing and dislike to food ; nausea, inclination to vomit, flow of water into mouth with roughness of throat ; slight sickness and nausea frequently; nausea when taking soup, relieved by eating bread; after eating, immediately pinching in bellyor sleep. Nausea from the stomach, as if it would turn over, whilst walking in open air, with collection of water in mouth; belching up of sour water, and movements in stomach; stomach-ache, with slight sickness and flow of water into mouth ; frequent violent empty eructation; hiccup after rising, m.; constant retching, going off after dinner ; after nausea painful nipping in umbilical region and very relaxed diarrheic stools ; horrible vomiting and purging, with fainting; empty feeling in stomach and belly; weakness of stomach, as after long hunger, with rising of water into mouth; gnawing in stomach, with rumbling in abdomen ; painful feeling of constriction of stomach after dinner; contractive and sore feeling in stomach, with tenderness to touch ; ulcerative pains in stomach, going off after eating, afterwards when walking in open air rumbling in belly and ordinary stool after h.; persistent sore pain in stomach, with sensitiveness of integuments; sharp shooting in stomach, causing him to start; throbbing in stomach, increased by

leaning against anything ; a pressure in stomach and chest, taking away breath, in fits at 3 and 9 p.m., going off after eructation. k. Flatulent distension and tension of belly, with pinching in umbilical region ; burning and rumbling in belly ; extremely painfulburning inhepatic region; frequent severe pinching inwhole belly,without urging to stool, or sometimes with immediate purging and burning in anus,with cessation of the pinching; extremely painful contraction (as with pincers) about navel; feeling of contraction and twisting below navel,with urging to stool; painful gnawing in a small spot below navel; constrictive pain deep in l. iliac region ; pinching in iliac region, without discharge of flatus ; shooting in iliac region, as from flatulence; pinching as with nails in r. flank ; tension in flanks when standing, sudden startling shooting in r. flank when sitting; distension and accumulation of flatulence; feeling of flatulence in abdomen, worst in sacral region, followed by urging to stool ; rumbling in bowels. 1. Discharge of stinking flatus precededby cutting and movements in belly; frequent discharge of flatus, especially e. and n.; stool late in e., and discharge of much flatus which seems to lie on the bladder, and causes shooting pains, hardness, and tension ofvesical region and shortness of breath ; constipation and costiveness, ineffectual urging to stool ; frequent urging to stool with pinching about navel from m. till e., and protrusion of rectum; repeated nocturnal ineffectual urging to stool, a soft evacuation takes place next m.; firm stool followed by burning in anus and evacuation of a round-worm or with shooting in iliac regions and discharge of flatus before midnight ; firm, hard, insufficient stool with great urging, pressing and prolapsus of rectum; repeated rather hard, then soft stool, later first hard, then soft stool ; repeated soft stool with rumbling in belly or with pain about navel and tenesmus afterwards; soft scanty stool, with feeling of a hard body in the way preventing the further discharge of fæces, going off after a subsequent stool; repeated purging with discharge of green mucus after pinching in abdomen; purging with burning painand tenesmus in rectum, prolapsus ani, and persistent pinching pinching round navel and evacuation of mucus ; repeated relaxation of bowels with burning and violent tenesmus ; diarrheic stool ofyellow and green fæces mixed with mucus, preceded by intolerable cutting painabout navel ; fæculent diarrhea discharged with great violence with long-continued burning in anus, h. before this violent cutting in abdomen waking him out of sleep at midnight ; the pain is relieved by firmly compressing the small, empty-feeling abdomen; on falling asleep again, woke up from sacral pain, copious watery diarrhea with pain in belly and tenesmus ; before stool shooting in anus as with coarse needle. m. Rare micturition; very scanty urine, only a drop or two, stopping for some time, then recurring with burning in orifice ofurethra; frequent micturition, but little at a time ; increased flow of urine. n. Recurrence of menses, which had ceased for 6 weeks ; very profuse menses some days too soon. Leucorrhœa. 0. Sneezing ; violent chronic sneezing, only during d., chiefly a.m., aggravated to a high degree by strong smells, with irritation in r. nostril just above ala nasi, dryness ofr. nostril, pressure in r. inner canthus as from a foreign body, making her rub frequently, sometimes dimness like a veil before r. eye ; this sneezing caused violent tearing frontal headache, very acute stitches in 1. side, heaviness in legs,general flush of heat. [This observation was made on an artificial flower maker, æt. 19, and was caused bypounding oz. of G.; it lasted with intermissions more than a year.] Muchnasal mucus of a fœtid purulent odour ; coryza at first dry, thenwith excretion of ill-smelling nasal mucus ; stuffed coryza. p. Scraping in larynx exciting dry cough, n.; frequent dry short cough by d.; cough,p.m., with some hoarseness and hawking of mucus; cough worst after lying down at n.; cough, especially at n., with sore pain in chest; severe dry cough at n., making her sit up; severe nocturnal cough with secretion ofthinmucus. 9. Repeated very painful stitches in sternum p.m. and e.; stitches under r. mammary region ; painful stitch in r. side of ribs towards axilla, taking away breath , after carrying a heavy weight; repeated digging and gnawing in both hypochondria, e.; great tightness and heaviness in chestwith stitches through to back, especially in hypochondria ; heaviness in chest and hence sleeplessness for 2 successive n.; pain in chest as if it were all raw inside; pressure in chest; pressure in middle of chest, and stitches from both sides of chest towards one another; sharp shooting under chest

(5 m.) then pressure in centre ofchest with want of breath (1 h.) gradually going off e.; occasional shooting in fore part of chest, p.m. and e.; shooting deep in fore part of chest, frequently alternating with shooting in r. mamma, e. r. Tearing in nape and 1. shoulder; sharp shooting in 1. renal region; shooting in r. sacral region; sudden painful shooting in sacral region, relieved by walking about ; bruised pain in sacrum as if strained; repeated gnawing in coccyx ; occasional shooting in top ofr. shoulder; repeated very acute shooting under 1. axilla, going off for a short time by rubbing ; shooting and numb feeling in balls of r. thumb and middle finger, then shooting in palm through back of hand to forearm, with hot feeling; sharp shooting through palm out at back of hand, then burning of hands ; a violent burning stitch, sometimes in fingers, sometimes in hands, also in ankles, later in whole body ; sharp shooting in distal joint of 1. index; the shooting pains occur or are aggravated e.; tearing in shoulders or axillæ, in tendons of extensors of fingers, in balls of thumb or forefinger, as also betwixt metacarpal bones of fore and middle fingers, so that the skin was drawn in by the pain; pinching in r. arm-bones ; itching ofball of 1. thumb. Violent sharp stitches in 1. groin (1 h.); repeated shooting in 1. calf ; violent shooting in r. sole, going off by rubbing ; some stitches under r. big toe; severe tearing in l. hip; frequent drawing and tearing in l. groin; tearing in bone from middle of r. tibia to above knee ; tearing and drawing in tendo Achillis as if it were shortened; cramp and tearing pain in calfwith drawing in oftoes, removed by strong friction; cramp-like tearing in the 2 small toes of r. foot; cramp in r. big toe, removed when walking and inbed e.; painful cramp-like contraction on r. outer ankle and in big toe, making him limp when he walks; painful pinching in dorsum ofr. foot towards toes; violent bruised pain under 1. patella, when pressed the foot pains as if ulcerated ; violent pain and stiff feeling in r. leg along tibia, only permitting foot to be stretched out by a great effort, p.m. and e., in bed; pressure as with hand above 1. outer ankle, and gone-to-sleep feeling there, going off on treading; great weight and weariness of feet. ( Noack and Trinks' Handbuch, i, 801. ) 2. a. A. L. RICHTER finds that, taken in small doses, G. acts as a stimulant to the abdominal organs, augmenting the secretion of the glandular apparatus; in larger doses it purges, generally causing severe colicky pain and tenesmus, and often vomiting besides. b. RAYER observed effects of G. upon persons who either had no acute disease or were convalescent from sickness. It was first given to 15 persons in doses of 5 gr. each. All vomited bile within 1 h. or 1 h ., and had from 2 to 6 stools, with little or no colic. There were no symptoms of local inflammation or general fever. A reduced dose of 3 gr. was afterwards given, and occasioned slight nausea, but no vomiting, and 2-6 stools, with slight colic or none at all. c. When G. is treated with alcohol there remains undissolved a gummy residue of a bitter and acrid taste, but, according to Krahmer, without sensible action on the intestinal canal in doses of 35 or 40 gr. The alcoholic extract, on the other hand, which constitutes 85 per cent. of the original mass, is purgative in a dose of 4 gr., and in Krahmer's experiments on himself itdid not occasion nausea, but moderate pain in colon, and produced two large fæcal and mucous stools. (STILLÉ , op. cit.) II. A barber-surgeon administered 3j to a patient, which produced violent vomiting and purging, with fainting and other accidents. The patient did not die immediately, but after some time and much suffering perished. (Ibid., from PAULLINUS.) III. The effects ofG. vary considerably in different animals, and also in the same species, according to dose and mode ofadministration. Flohrmann found that 15 gr. given to a horse 2 years old produced malaise, agitation, a frequent pulse, twitching ofmuscles, distension of abdomen, thin alvine discharges, and trembling of whole body. Viborg gave zj to a 9 mo. foal, producing II evacuations within 4 h., while a like dose administered to a horse had no effect whatever. The last-named experimenter, and also d'Aubenton, found that sheep were purged by 20-60 gr., and that Zij were often fatal. Drachm doses caused vomiting and purging in dogs. In an experiment of Orfila's 3ss caused efforts at vomiting, but did not purge, and animal died within 24 h. without any active symptoms whatever. In such cases the m.m. of the stomach, and also that of the rectum, was reddened but not disorganised . When finely powdered and applied to a wound in considerable quantity, G. appears

GELSEMIUM 583 to produce local inflammation and death without signs of pain and without vomiting or purging. These experiments are very far from rendering clear the medus operandi of G. The immediate phenomena, both local and general, and the lesions found after death, are insufficient to explain the fatal result. Few of the symptoms which a local irritant produces are displayed ; there is but little expression of pain, and seldom either fever, convulsions or coma, so that the action of the medicine must be regarded as veryobscure, and different from that ofthe drastic purgatives withwhich it isclassed. (Ibid.)