Homeopathic Materia Medica

A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica, John Henry Clarke

Erigeron Canadense. Canada Flea-bane. N. O. Compositae. Tincture from the fresh plant when in bloom.

Clinical.─Black eye. Bruises. Cough. Dysuria. Gleet. Gonorrhoea. Haematocele. Haemorrhages. Haemorrhoids. Placenta praevia. Proctalgia. Spermatorrhoea. Wounds.

Characteristics.─Erigeron is chiefly known as a remedy for haemorrhages and congestions in pretty well all parts of the body. Its characteristic haemorrhages are bright red. The Indians use it as an application to wounds. It compares as a vulnerary with Arnica. It has been proved by Burt and others. The throat and genito-urinary organs are specifically affected. Sensation as if something had lodged in upper part of oesophagus. Pains in umbilical region were very prominent. Feeling as if anus had been torn. Urination is painful or suppressed; sharp stinging pains in region of left kidney. Gonorrhoea and gleet have been cured by Erig. Wilmot Moore has given it with success in three cases of placenta praevia. He gave the 1x trituration (of what part of the plant is not mentioned) on the tongue. Rest >; every movement < flow; = bloody lochia to return. Rainy weather < all symptoms.

Relations.─It is related to Senec., Erech., botanically and in effects. Compare: Ipec., Ham., Arn., Canth., Copaiv., Sabi., Tereb.

SYMPTOMS.

1. Mind.─Great despondency.

2. Head.─Congestion of the head, red face, nose-bleed; febrile action.─Awakened with dull headache [forehead and r. eye]; with aching distress in all the large joints.─Dull frontal headache with smarting in eyes.

3. Eyes.─Smarting of eyes, all afternoon and evening.─Slight agglutination of lids in morning.

4. Ears.─Loud singing in r. ear.

5. Nose.─Epistaxis of bright-red blood.─Increased secretion of mucus all forenoon.

8. Mouth.─Bad taste in mouth.

9. Throat.─Increased secretion of mucus in nostrils all forenoon, with a feeling of roughness of pharynx and sensation as if something had lodged in the upper part of the oesophagus that caused frequent inclination to swallow.─Rough feeling in pharynx in morning.

11. Stomach.─Violent retching and burning in the stomach, with vomiting of blood.─Eructations of air.─Sharp cutting pains in epigastric region every few minutes followed by dull pains.

12. Abdomen.─Frequent distress in umbilicus with hard, aching distress in whole dorsal region.─Frequent dull pain in umbilical region, with a feeling in anus as if it had been torn.─Constant dull pain in r. umbilicus; twice the pains were severe and cutting (first day, second day pain was in l. umbilicus).─Rheumatic pains in abdominal muscles.─Sudden pain in hypogastrium, followed by mushy stool (7 p.m. first day, 8 p.m. third day).─Dull pain in l. hypogastrium and umbilicus.─Dull pain in hypogastrium followed by dark-coloured, hard, lumpy stool.

13. Stool and Anus.─Natural stool, followed by severe neuralgia in anus with tenesmus.─Stools small, streaked with blood; tormina; burning in the bowels and rectum; hard lumps of faeces mixed with the discharges.─Mushy stools.─Haemorrhage from the bowels.─Haemorrhoids; bleeding; with hard, lumpy stools; burning in the margin of anus; it feels as if torn.

14. Urinary Organs.─Urination painful or suppressed.─Dysuria of teething children; frequent desire; crying when urinating; urine profuse, of very strong odour; external parts (female) inflamed or irritated, with considerable mucous discharge.

15. Male Sexual Organs.─Sticky sweat on genitals.─Pain in r. lumbar region passing down to testicle.─Gonorrhoea and gleet.

16. Female Sexual Organs.─Metrorrhagia, with violent irritation of rectum and bladder; after abortion, with diarrhoea and dysuria; with prolapsus uteri.─Very profuse flow of bright-red blood; every movement of patient increases the flow; pallor and weakness.─Leucorrhoea profuse, with spasmodic pains, and irritation of the bladder and rectum.─Bloody lochia return after the least motion; > during rest.

17. Respiratory Organs.─Cough; bloody expectoration; incipient phthisis.

19. Heart.─Palpitation.

20. Back.─Dull aching distress in whole dorsal region.─Dull pains in lumbar and sacral regions.─Severe sticking, stabbing pain in region of l. kidney; passing to r. kidney.

21. Limbs.─Aching dulness in all the joints and limbs.

24. Generalities.─Excessive languor in morning; all day with great depression; no ambition to move in afternoon and evening.

26. Sleep.─Frequent disposition to yawn in afternoon and evening.

Leaders In Homoeopathic Therapeutics, Eugene Beauharnais Nash

Are three remedies having a reputation for their power to control haemorrhages. Erigeron has cured epistaxis, with congestion to the head, red face (Melilotus) and febrile action. Haematemesis, with violent retching and burning in the stomach. Bleeding from haemorrhoids, with burning. Haemoptysis and blood spitting. Haematuria, with stone in the bladder and uterine haemorrhage. The only marked symptom in addition to the haemorrhage that should lead to its selection over other remedies of this class, especially in its haemorrhages from the pelvic organs, is the marked violent irritation of the rectum and bladder. Here we must remember also Cantharis, Lilium tig. and Nux vomica.

Trillium, from clinical use, seems to be a genuine haemorrhage remedy. The blood is bright red, whether of the active or passive kind of haemorrhage. It is especially useful in menses every two weeks, lasting a week and very profuse. Here a choice may have to be made between it and Calcarea ost. and Nux vomica.

It resembles China in flooding, with fainting, dim sight and noises in the ears. Of course, China would be the best for the after effects of such a haemorrhage.

There is sometimes with such flooding a relaxed sensation as if the hips, sacro-synchrondroses and small of back would all fall apart; wants to be bound together. This should doubly indicate it in post-partum haemorrhage.

It is also especially useful at the climacteric with the above symptoms. It has cured haemorrhages from other organs, but I have no experience with it there.

Millefolium is the only one of the three that has seemed to have produced haemorrhages in its pathogenesis. Hahnemann says of it: "It causes nose-bleed. It causes haematuria." Clinical use has verified it.

The blood from the different organs is generally bright red, like that of Aconite, but the anxiety of that remedy is not there. In fact, no great fear is present in the cases where I have used it. Sometimes the blood in the urine forms in the bottom of the vessel a bloody cake. When a young man I was troubled for a long time with frequent attacks of profuse epistaxis. Dr. T. L Brown prescribed for me several times, but without success. I became weak from loss of blood. Finally my old grandmother told me to chew yarrow root, and showed me the plant growing in my father's yard. I did so and was quickly cured. While on my vacation at Blue Mountain Lake, in the Adirondacks, I met a man there in the last stage of consumption. He had his medicine from his doctor in New York with him. He was spitting daily large quantities of blood, with severe cough, and his Secale was nor able to control it in the least. He finally said to me: "Doctor, can you do anything to stop this bleeding?" I stooped down (I did not want that patient on my hands) and pulled up a little root of yarrow growing at our feet, handed it to him and told him to chew it. He looked surprised, but did so, liked the taste of it and kept on chewing. It stopped his bleeding and soothed his cough so much that he dug up a basket of yarrow and took it home with him. That controlled the bleeding. He went to Florida for the winter, but died the next spring. It is especially recommended for haemorrhages after a fall or other injuries. If Arnica failed in such a case I would think of Millefolium.