Strophanthus Hispidus

Dr. Morris Weiner (quoted in New, Old, and Forgotten Remedies, tested

• ▸Succin.
• ▸ac.
• ▸, which he prepared himself from Amber by dry distillation.
• ▸The fumes of the crude

acid, he says, are inflammable, and produce asthma, cough, sneezing, weeping, dropping of

watery mucus from nostrils, pain in chest, and headache. On this indication he treated thirty

persons suffering from hay-fever, and cured them all, and saved them the necessity of making an

annual exodus. He gave one or two grains of the 3x trit. of Succinum itself diluted in twelve

teaspoonfuls of water; a teaspoonful every two hours. Burnett (Dis. of Spleen) used the non-

rectified oil as an organ remedy in spleen affections, especially when accompanied by nervous

and hysterical phenomena. The crude oil is a thick brown liquid having a strong empyreumatic

odour. It is a powerful local irritant, and has been used with success as such in lumbago,

rheumatism, and sciatica. It enters into the composition of "Roche's Embrocation," and "Haarlem

Oil," and has a popular reputation as a remedy for whooping-cough, the directions being for it to

• ▸be rubbed into the spine night and morning (Murrell, in Brit.
• ▸Med.
• ▸Jour.
• ▸).
• ▸A tablespoonful dose,

says Murrell, has caused persistent vomiting, diarrhoea, and symptoms of collapse; and the

patient aborted. These observations are of value in relation to Burnett's experience. He gave the

oil thus: To six ounces of Acorn-water are added half a scruple of the oil. They do not mix

chemically, but by shaking each time a dose is taken the required division and attenuation is

attained. Burnett's keynote is: "Painful spleen affections wherewith there are convulsive attacks

such as the hysterical and hypochondriacal often have." Burnett relates in his book a most

remarkable case of "chronic enlargement of the spleen, with hemi-hyperzesthesia, cephalalgia,

dyspnoea, orthopneea, convulsions "in a young lady" towards the end of her teens." After years of

treatment under others and himself, Burnett concluded from Rademacher's account of Succ. ol.

that it might provide the remedy. It was given in five-drop doses three times a day. In forty-eight

hours the convulsive attacks ceased for good, and all the phenomena slowly disappeared. Burnett

• ▸has also found Succ.
• ▸ol.
• ▸curative in splenic leucocytheemia.
• ▸A keynote of Burnett's is: "Fear of

trains and close places." His dose is five drops of the oil three times a day.

Symptoms of collapse; the patient aborted, but recovered.—Hysterical

convulsions in women (from the smell.—Burnett).

Temporal pains with double vision, impaired sight; brilliant eyes, flushed face. Senile vertigo.

Creeping, tingling sensation in external ears —Sudden burning itching in ears, nose,

• ▸lips, and eyes; in |.
• ▸ear in afternoon.
• ▸—Intense aching behind ears and down spine.
• ▸—Sharp, darting

• ▸pains behind r.
• ▸ear; behind ears and back of head and neck.
• ▸—Digging pain deep in |.
• ▸ear.
• ▸—Intense

fulness in ears.—Hearing extremely sensitive, hears slightest sounds.—Roaring; burning; noise

like wind.

Tongue: dry and papillze erect; dry, with white moisture on edges; gums and lips

violet; hot; sore, and roof of mouth.—Frothing at mouth.—Violent itching in roof of

mouth.—Taste: bad; feverish; hot and bitter; dry—Mouth filled with (frothy) saliva.—Articulation

difficult.—Speech: indistinct; lost.

Teeth clenched.—Toothache: at midnight; in |. upper teeth shooting into cheek-bone;

as if nerves suddenly pulled out, at night: drawing; shooting.

Nausea with special disgust for alcohol and so aids in treatment of dipsomania. Seven drops of tincture.

R. hypochondrium: aching at intervals, with sick, faint feeling; tense pain in r.;

sharp, needle-like and cutting pains.—Sharp pains in 1. hypochondrium shooting to pit of

• ▸stomach.
• ▸—Rapid pulsation in |.
• ▸hypochondrium and |.
• ▸temple.
• ▸—Abdominal muscles rigid in

tetanic spasms.—In muscles: sore, contracted, bruised feeling —Rumbling.—Griping, cutting,

• ▸gnawing pain in bowels.
• ▸—Sharp, cutting pain in r.
• ▸lower and |.
• ▸upper half of

abdomen.—Uneasiness in bowels and constipation.—Deep-seated, sore, contracted, cramp-like

feelings in lower abdomen.—Sharp, needle-like pains in 1. groin.

Contraction of bladder; it expelled urine apparently as fast as it was

• ▸secreted.
• ▸—Bladder paralysed.
• ▸—Painful pressure in bladder and rectum.
• ▸—Uneasiness about

bladder and urethra < walking or sitting on anything hard —Darting and shooting pains from

bladder down thighs; from back of bladder down rectum; from front wall of bladder along

urethra; finally the pains left the bladder and settled in glans penis.—Scalding in

urethra.—Constant urging.—Urine: copious; scanty; variable, natural, dark like beer, thick, red

sediment, albuminous-looking masses floating in it.

Increased secretion; scanty and albuminous.

Menorrhagia; uterine haemorrhage; uterus heavily congested. Aching pain through hips and thighs during climacteric.

L. spermatic cord painful, 1. testicle swelled, painful only on standing

or walking; hard, swollen, later burning pain on 1. side of scrotum where the skin was tense on

the testicle, and a large abscess formed in the dartos and cellular tissue; this was opened by a

small incision and yielded a very large quantity of semi-transparent fluid, partly mixed with

blood, after the discharge of which the size of the testicle became somewhat less; there was no

connection between the testicle and the abscess.

• ▸Dyspnoea, especially on ascending.
• ▸Lungs congested.
• ▸OEdema of lungs.
• ▸Bronchial and cardiac asthma.

Pulse quickened. Heart's action weak, rapid irregular, due to muscular debility; and insufficiency. Cardiac pain.

Tightness about preecordia.—During day, dull pain, shifting along line of aortic

arch.—Fluttering sensation about heart with faintness —Sudden palpitation —Tumultuous action

• ▸of heart.
• ▸—Feeling as of heart coming into throat.
• ▸—Heart fluttering like a wounded bird.
• ▸—Pulse:

irregular; accelerated; corded, tense, strong; full, rapid; nearly extinct in the paroxysms.

Neck swollen; jugular veins distended.—Neck stiff, muscles like rigid

• ▸cords.
• ▸—Stiffness: painful; extending down back; momentary in |.
• ▸half of neck.
• ▸—Darting, knife-

like pains: in muscles of neck and top of shoulders; chest, abdomen; with sick feeling. —Violent

pain (stabbing, darting) in nape and down spine.—Back stiff—Convulsive jerks in the back, and

spinal column.—Intense aching or icy-coldness in entire back.—Agonising, gnawing pain in back

and neck and muscles of legs.—Cutting in |. half of back —Sudden stiffness in lower back and

hips.—Sharp, needle-like pain in back about waist.—Suddenly violent cutting pain in back about

waist, as though she were chopped in half, extending r. and 1. to stomach at night.

On washing his hands, half an hour after touching an abrasion on |. thumb

• ▸with Liquor.
• ▸Strych.
• ▸, immediately felt numbness extending from thumb to whole of |.
• ▸hand and

wrist and rapidly to elbow and shoulder; in two hours joints of all fingers swollen and numbness

gone; later enormous swelling of whole limb.—Arms stretched out, hands clenched.—Soreness,

• ▸tenderness of muscles.
• ▸—Sharp rheumatic pain in socket of r.
• ▸shoulder.
• ▸—Sharp pains in back of 1.

• ▸upper arm and fore part of thigh.
• ▸—Sharp pain r.
• ▸elbow-joint.
• ▸—Sensation as though a drop of cold

water were dripping off r. elbow at intervals; at times as if cold water dripped off r,

• ▸shoulder.
• ▸—Subsultus tendinum.
• ▸—Trembling of hands.
• ▸—Violent twitching in veins of r.
• ▸hand; it

seemed as if the blood had stopped and then flowed on.—Hands: partially paralysed;

spasmodically clenched.—Momentary stiffness of fingers ——Cramp-like; rheumatic, sharp pains in

hands.—Prickling, numbed sensations: in |. hand, at intervals; sudden in fingers.

Painful convulsions in lower limbs and nape, with lightning-like pains in

lumbar region, constantly shooting.—Loss of power of lower limbs.—Stiffness; rheumatic pains;

sharp, needle-like pains in joints and limbs.—Trembling of legs —Sudden jerking of legs; at

• ▸night.
• ▸—Hard rigidity of legs.
• ▸—Stiffness of 1.
• ▸leg and back—Agonising, gnawing pain in muscles

• ▸of thighs.
• ▸—Cramp-like pains in r.
• ▸foot and leg —Severe pains in r.
• ▸ankle-joint <

• ▸walking.
• ▸—Cramp-like pains in feet.
• ▸—Sharp, darting pains in feet, esp.
• ▸in bottom of

heels. —Thrilling from toes up legs.—Stiffened, twisted feeling in toes —Violent itching-tingling

in soles and palms.

24. Generalities—Spasmodic, convulsive twitchings.—Every muscle of the body in a state of

• ▸constant twitching.
• ▸—Extremely violent twitching, first in limbs then in whole |.
• ▸side.
• ▸—Violent,

electric-like starting and shuddering; followed by opisthotonos.—Shocks in muscles so violent

• ▸that r.
• ▸thigh is dislocated.
• ▸—Constant inclination to bend towards r.
• ▸side.
• ▸-—Convulsions recurring

regularly.—Every attempt to move threatened a convulsion.—Convulsive jerks on falling

asleep.—In convulsions, skin hot, bathed in perspiration and steaming.—Everything seemed to

turn green and he fell on the floor.—Can lie in no position but on her back; any other =

convulsions.—An attempt to take liquids = violent, spasmodic fit preventing her swallowing

it.—Pains cramp-like, made her feel as though she would he stiffened —< Evening.—< At

night—< From 8 to 10 p.m.

Swollen, dropsical. Anasarca.

Urticaria, especially more chronic forms.

Skin: pale at first; then livid and bluish.—Burning; prickling sensation;

• ▸formication.
• ▸—Formication on tips of fingers.
• ▸—Intense itching of skin of entire body; esp.
• ▸of

scalp, face, arms, and legs.

Yawning; extreme drowsiness.—Sleeplessness: from internal uneasiness and anxiety;

from dread of rectal spasms; with visions of dead persons.—Extreme restlessness and talking in

her sleep with peculiar working in back of brain.—Restless nights with profuse

perspirations.—Dreams: disagreeable; strange wanderings of the imagination.

Extreme chilliness; and drowsiness.—Peculiar creeping chilliness all over with a

tremulous sensation in the jaws.—Extreme chilliness even in a warm room.—Icy coldness:

painful; of entire body; sudden.—A single cold chill down entire length of spine; afterwards she

• ▸felt deathly cold.
• ▸—Icy coldness down spine.
• ▸—Extremities cold.
• ▸—Lower extremities cold and

perspiration flowing in a stream from head and chest.—Fever of adynamic intermittent

type.—Intolerable sense of heat over whole body though some parts cool to the feel.—Burning

• ▸heat with hot sweat.
• ▸—Bathed in warm sweat.
• ▸—Profuse sweat after the spasm.
• ▸—Sudden cold sweat

and icy coldness of entire body.—Cold sweat with the convulsive shocks, and increased shaking

and stiffening.

Succinum.

• ▸Electron.
• ▸Amber.
• ▸(A mineralised resin not to be confounded with Ambergris, Ambra.
• ▸)

Trituration. Solution of the non-rectified oil (Oleum Succini non rectificatum) prepared by

dry distillation of Amber. Solution of Succinic acid. C4H6O..

• ▸Asthma.
• ▸Fear; of trains and close places.
• ▸Globus.
• ▸Hay-fever.
• ▸Hiccough.
• ▸Hysteria.

Leucocythzemia splenica. Spleen, affections of.

Compare: Digit (but is slower than strophant in its action); Phos ac (weak heart, irregular pulse, fluttering sensation in cardiac region, palpitation during sleep, fainting).

Tincture and 6x potency. In more acute cases, five to ten drops of the tincture three times a day.

Fingers and toes violet-coloured, fingers spasmodically drawn in, toes drawn

• ▸back.
• ▸—Limbs outstretched and rigid, at times jerking movements.
• ▸—Cramps.
• ▸—Darting pains in

muscles.—Rheumatic pains in arms and legs——Crawling in limbs after spasms.