Colocynthis (Cucumis)
By Adolph von Lippe — Text Book of Materia Medica
Mind and Disposition
Aversion to talk; disinclined to answer questions.
Inclined to be angry and indignant.
Delirium, with eyes open and desire to flee.
Disinclined to occupy oneself, even averse to visit his otherwise well-like friends.
Head
Easy intoxication (from drinking beer).
One-sided headache, with nausea and vomiting, (5 P.M.).
Pressing and heaviness in the forehead; aggravated when stooping and lying on the back.
Pressing pain in the forehead and root of the nose as coryza would appear.
Profuse perspiration on the head, itching, smelling urine (also on the hands thighs and feet); worse night, in bed; relieved after rising and walking in warm room.
Biting, burning pain in the scalp.
Eyes
Sensitive pressure in the eyes, especially when stooping.
Burning and cutting in the eyes.
Secretion of acrid tears from the eyes.
Stitches in the eyes (and forehead).
Obscuration of the sight.
Ears
Pulsation and rushing in the ears.
Nose
Coryza, fluent; worse in the open air; better in the room.
Face
Face pale and relaxed, with sunken eyes.
Dark redness of the face.
Prosopalgia, left side; tearing or burning and stinging pain, extending to the ear and head.
Cramp-like sensation in the left malar bone, extending into the left eye.
Swelling of the face, with redness and heat of one cheek.
Mouth and Throat
Burning at the tip of the tongue.
Sensation as if the tongue had been scalded by some hot fluid.
Tongue coated white or yellow.
Burning of the under lip.
Feeling of constriction in the throat, with empty eructations and palpitation of the heart.
Stomach and Abdomen
Bitter taste of all the food and drink.
Vomiting of food; greenish vomiting.
Pressure in the stomach, with sensation of hunger.
Canine hunger; intense thirst, without hunger.
After taking the least nourishment, diarrhœa and vomiting.
Pain in the abdomen when walking (navel).
Bruised feeling in the abdomen.
Feeling in the whole abdomen as if the intestines were being squeezed between stones; tympanitis.
The (colic) pains in the abdomen compel one to bend double worse in any other position.
Colic, with great sensitiveness of the abdomen, after anger, with cramps in the calves of the legs.
Pain in the abdomen, cutting as with knives.
Sensation of increasing constriction in the intestines.
Rumbling in the bowels.
The colic and abdominal pains are relieved by bending, double, by violent exercise, by coffee and tobacco; every other food or drink causes an aggravation.
Stool and Anus
Constipation, and evacuations retarded (during pregnancy).
Diarrhœa; stools frothy, smelling acid and putrid.
Dysentery; discharges of mucus and blood, with tenesmus.
Constriction of the rectum during stool.
Discharge of blood from the rectum, with stinging, burning pain in the small of the back and anus (daily).
Urinary Organs
Frequent tenesmus vesicæ, with but small discharges.
Urine fœtid; it soon thickens; is viscid and like jelly.
Abundant micturition.
Urine (like that in dropsy after scarlet fever) of a faint flesh color, with a white-brown, flocculent, transparent sediment, depositing on the chamber small, red, hard, solid crystals, which adhere firmly to the vessel.
Itching at the orifice of the urethra, with desire to urinate.
Burning in the urethra after micturition.
Sexual Organs
Men. Retraction of the prepuce behind the glans, during sleep.
Impotence.
Women. Stitches in the ovaries.
Lochia suppressed; puerperal fever after vexation.
Respiratory Organs
Constriction in the larynx, which induces frequent deglutition, with oppression of breathing; better in the open air.
Nightly attacks of oppression, as if the chest were constricted.
Cough caused by smoking tobacco.
Dry cough from tickling in the throat.
Back
Pain in the shoulder-blades and back, extending into the neck, with tension.
Great weakness in the back, especially the small of the back, with pressing headache (morning).
Extremities
Upper. Swelling and suppuration of the axillary glands; subsultus of muscles.
Pain in the palms of the hands, as if the muscles were contracted and the hand and fingers could not be opened; worse when at rest.
Hands feel stiff.
Lower. While in motion, pain in the right thigh, as if the psoas muscle were too short; on stopping it ceased, but began again when he commenced to walk.
Cramp-like pain in the hip, from the kidneys to the thighs, with sensation as if the hip joint were fastened by iron clamps.
Stitches in the knee joints.
The knees feel stiff, preventing one from stooping down.
Sensation of coldness in the knees (in the morning).
The feet go to sleep (first the left, then the right foot).
Swelling of the feet.
Generalities
Tension and constriction in external and internal parts.
Stiffness of the joints.
Twitching of the muscles.
General shortening of the tendons.
All the extremities are contracted.
Faintness, with coldness of the extremities.
Stitches extending along the body.
Swelling of various parts, with oppression of breathing.
Pulsations through the body.
Burning pains.
Sleep
Sleep restless, disturbed by dreams.
Sleeplessness after anger.
Very wakeful and sleepless.
Fever
Pulse full, hard and accelerated.
Strong pulsation in the arteries.
Coldness and chilliness of the body, frequently with heat of the face.
Coldness of the hands and soles of the feet, while the rest of the body is warm.
External dry heat.
Internal heat, with attacks of flushes of heat.
Perspiration at night, smelling like urine, causing itching of the skin.
Perspiration, principally on the head and on the extremities.
Skin
The skin of the whole body scales off.
Carbuncles, with continuous burning pain.
Small ulcers, with itching and burning.
Conditions
The pains are often accompanied by stiffness and retarded motion of the affected parts; they often affect the hip joints; the pains are generally worse during rest, except those affecting principally the joints; they are also much worse from motion; the painful tearing (rheumatic pain) in the limbs is relieved by discharge of flatus.
Bad effects from anger with indignation and silent grief.