– American Institute of Homoeopathy, drug proving, 65th Session, 1910, G.Royal,
Let us now return to the second part of our student’s question: “How can the knowledge and classification of symptoms assist us in proving drugs?” Such knowledge and classification of symptoms will assist the drug prover to determine what tissue or organ is affected by the drug which is being proved. As has already been stated, the sensation informs the prover not only what tissues are involved, but also what changes are taking place in the tissue. The pulsating, throbbing sensation signifies congestion or inflammation.
By changing the position of the affected part of the prover and noting the result the director can determine which of the two conditions exist. Again, the splinter-like pains in the nose indicate that ulceration is taking place and leads the directors to examine and ascertain whether the ulcer is deep or shallow, whether its edges are smooth or eroded, etc. When the amount of secretion from the mucous membrane is increased, the director can, by having the prover go into the open air and then return to a closed room, find the modality. Often the effect of this change in the air will determine the exact point of the mucous membrane which is irritated – e. g., the fact that the supra-orbital pains of hydrastis are greatly relieved by the free flow of mucus from the nostril while the patient is in the open air and aggravated by his return to a close, warm room indicates that the increased secretion came from the frontal sinuses. A knowledge of chemistry and the microscope enables the director to determine whether the variations in the urine indicate a physiological or pathological condition. Thus when we were proving chionanthus we found bile and sugar in the urine, and were able to note the effect of diet upon the latter condition. We also found that this drug produced a yellow sclera, a yellowish-white coating of the tongue, etc., symptoms of a condition which we called catarrhal hepatitis. How did I know that the liver was involved? How did I recognize the condition? By precisely the same process that I know that another group was the result of perverted circulation caused by belladonna, viz., by watching the effect of the action of belladonna again and again till it was fixed in my mind. So by watching the effect of something upon the liver we have the result fixed upon our mind. The cause in one case, something found in that plant which we call belladonna (beautiful lady), a name given because of its effect, primarily, on the eyes and then on the woman; in the other case, the cause, something pertaining to a disease which, from the result, we call catarrhal hepatitis. Let me use another illustration. A young woman came to her physician for sharp, shooting, burning pains along the course of the fifth nerve, relieved by heat. He gave her arsenicum. A few weeks later she returned and reported that the former pains were no better and that in addition she was thirsty, but that she vomited almost everything taken into the stomach. There was burning pain in and tenderness of the stomach. She was weak and restless. The potency of the arsenicum was changed but gave no relief. The next symptom was a bloated face. Then an examination of the blood showed anaemia. The feet began to swell and the urine contained albumin and tube casts, all the symptoms of chronic nephritis. Several remedies were tried, but to no avail. The young woman died. The post-mortem showed that nearly every tissue and organ in the body were changed from the normal, fatty degeneration of the liver and kidney being marked. This young lady left a written statement to the effect that she had begun taking arsenic for its cosmetic effect and had become addicted to its use and had died from its effects. You readily perceive from this case, this proving, that arsenicum produced symptom for every one of the four classes.
Here our knowledge of anatomy, physiology, pathology, etc., enables us to know the tissue affected and how affected by arsenicum. No one should be a director of drug proving who has not a good knowledge of the above subjects, for only thus can he be able to observe, arrange and classify the symptoms of drugs so that they may be successfully used in practice.
Let us now return to the second part of our student’s question: “How can the knowledge and classification of symptoms assist us in proving drugs?” Such knowledge and classification of symptoms will assist the drug prover to determine what tissue or organ is affected by the drug which is being proved. As has already been stated, the sensation informs the prover not only what tissues are involved, but also what changes are taking place in the tissue. The pulsating, throbbing sensation signifies congestion or inflammation.
By changing the position of the affected part of the prover and noting the result the director can determine which of the two conditions exist. Again, the splinter-like pains in the nose indicate that ulceration is taking place and leads the directors to examine and ascertain whether the ulcer is deep or shallow, whether its edges are smooth or eroded, etc. When the amount of secretion from the mucous membrane is increased, the director can, by having the prover go into the open air and then return to a closed room, find the modality. Often the effect of this change in the air will determine the exact point of the mucous membrane which is irritated – e. g., the fact that the supra-orbital pains of hydrastis are greatly relieved by the free flow of mucus from the nostril while the patient is in the open air and aggravated by his return to a close, warm room indicates that the increased secretion came from the frontal sinuses. A knowledge of chemistry and the microscope enables the director to determine whether the variations in the urine indicate a physiological or pathological condition. Thus when we were proving chionanthus we found bile and sugar in the urine, and were able to note the effect of diet upon the latter condition. We also found that this drug produced a yellow sclera, a yellowish-white coating of the tongue, etc., symptoms of a condition which we called catarrhal hepatitis. How did I know that the liver was involved? How did I recognize the condition? By precisely the same process that I know that another group was the result of perverted circulation caused by belladonna, viz., by watching the effect of the action of belladonna again and again till it was fixed in my mind. So by watching the effect of something upon the liver we have the result fixed upon our mind. The cause in one case, something found in that plant which we call belladonna (beautiful lady), a name given because of its effect, primarily, on the eyes and then on the woman; in the other case, the cause, something pertaining to a disease which, from the result, we call catarrhal hepatitis. Let me use another illustration. A young woman came to her physician for sharp, shooting, burning pains along the course of the fifth nerve, relieved by heat. He gave her arsenicum. A few weeks later she returned and reported that the former pains were no better and that in addition she was thirsty, but that she vomited almost everything taken into the stomach. There was burning pain in and tenderness of the stomach. She was weak and restless. The potency of the arsenicum was changed but gave no relief. The next symptom was a bloated face. Then an examination of the blood showed anaemia. The feet began to swell and the urine contained albumin and tube casts, all the symptoms of chronic nephritis. Several remedies were tried, but to no avail. The young woman died. The post-mortem showed that nearly every tissue and organ in the body were changed from the normal, fatty degeneration of the liver and kidney being marked. This young lady left a written statement to the effect that she had begun taking arsenic for its cosmetic effect and had become addicted to its use and had died from its effects. You readily perceive from this case, this proving, that arsenicum produced symptom for every one of the four classes.
Here our knowledge of anatomy, physiology, pathology, etc., enables us to know the tissue affected and how affected by arsenicum. No one should be a director of drug proving who has not a good knowledge of the above subjects, for only thus can he be able to observe, arrange and classify the symptoms of drugs so that they may be successfully used in practice.