IMPORTANCE OF AETIOLOGY IN HOMOEOPATHIC PRESCRIBING - homeopathy360

IMPORTANCE OF AETIOLOGY IN HOMOEOPATHIC PRESCRIBING

 We, homoeopaths, have often been labelled as symptomatic prescribers and it is said that we don’t take into consideration aetiological  factors and that we just “endeavour to give symptomatic relief to
patient. Recently, one of my allopathic colleagues asked me, “When  typhoid and diphtheria are caused by their respective organisms, why don’t you utilise this verified fact and give germicidal drugs for the
same?”
When a layman or a half-hearted homoeopath takes only a superficial view of the matter, he may also conclude that homoeopaths are orthodox and not scientific-minded. In reality it is the reverse. Allopaths
view the aetiology in a very narrow sense. For them it is confined on to the finding of the causative organism and then administering the required bacteriocidal or bacteriostatic drug, whereas we homoeopaths apply this term in a very broad sense which is beyond the imagination of an allopathic physician.         .
When we prescribe Rhus tox for the effects of getting wet in the rain, Nat. sulph. for the headache after head injury, and China ars. for the diarrhoea arising from eating fish, we are prescribing in all these
cases on aetiology alone. One can find hundreds of such rubrics in any standard repertory. What has an allopath to say about such cases? He has nothing to offer for the effects of getting wet in the rain, When
after getting wet in the rain, one develops pneumonia after 3-4 days, he will administer penicillin and will consider himself a scientific prescriber, forgetting the fact that a homoeopath in his place could have averted the whole thing in a few hours by administering Rhus tox. 0n the aetiological factor of getting wet in the rain. Our conception of aetiology is very broad; we take into consideration the aetiological factor
even in the mental, psychic and hereditary planes. Let me elucidate my statement with some illustrations.
Case I:
A young girl aged 22, residing. in a hostel consulted me for a headache which she was having persistently for the last 3 days. On the basis of the symptoms I prescribed Bryonia 200 to be taken half hourly till the headache disappears. But it had no effect and she came back next morning. On further enquiry I was told that she had been standing in a queue for the bus and as there was no bus for 45 minutes, she had
angrily gone back to her room. This further information gave me the clue for prescribing. It was a case of suppressed’ anger. She could not give vent to her anger and so had developed the headache. I gave her
Staphysagria 10M, 2 doses 3 hourly and I was informed by phone in the evening that she was alright and that her headache had started subsiding immediately after the medicine. Here the aetiology was on a mental
plane.

Case II:
A 3-year-old child, suffering from fever for the last 4 months was brought to me. He had been seen by several child specialists in Bombay and nobody could come to any conclusion about the diagnosis in spite of all elaborate investigations. He had been given all available antibiotics but still the temperature had refused to touch normal. Anti- malarial drugs were also tried as the fever was of an intermittent type but all in vain.
As the fever was coming on at mid-day and mid-night and as the child was thirsty, I prescribed Arsenic alb. but it had no effect. Then I gave Tub. bov., Pyrogen, Malaria officinalis etc., on various indications
but all without any appreciable change. I again talked to the father and on further enquiry I was informed that before the birth of this child, his mother had had four consecutive abortions. That gave me the clue
to the prescription. Here the aetiology existed on hereditary plane. I gave Lueticuari 10M, 3 doses at 24-hour intervals and the fever subsided completely.
Case III:
An old lady, a widow aged 55 years was admitted in: our hospital for diarrhoea of one month. As her symptoms pointed to Aloe, it was given but without any effect. Afterwards we gave Sulphur, Podopyllum,
and Acid phos. on various symptoms but still there was no improvement. On careful questioning we then elicited the fact that both her father and mother had died of tuberculosis. Her husband also had died of
tuberculosis within a year after her marriage. She was given Tub.bovinum 1M, and she responded very quickly. Here again the aetiology was exiting on a hereditary plane or as one may call it the miasmatic plane.
Case IV
A child of 3 years was suffering from continuous fever for 7 days. Her father having knowledge of biochemic medicine, had given Ferr. phos., Kali mur. and. Kali sulph. but there had been no effect. When
went to the house I found the girl quite active, cheerful and playful spite of her having temperature 102°F. The father gave the history that she had quarrelled with another boy in the school and that boy had given a blow with his fist on her abdomen. Since that evening she had been laid up with fever. There was no complaint of abdominal pain. First I prescribed Bryonia 200, 2 hourly as she had a coated tongue, thirst and also constipation. Next evening the report came that the! was no improvement and the fever had gone higher.
I understood my mistake. It was a case of trauma which was manifesting in a symptom-syndrome which is very similar to that of Arnica. The girl did not complain of pain. In adults one can get the classical symptom of Arnica-the patient says, he is O.K. when he seriously sick.
In children one has to spot out the characteristics from the objective symptoms. With Arnica, the fever touched normal within 48 hour.
Case V:
A young lady aged 22, suffering from Purpura haemorrhagica with poly-arthritis, consulted me. Her purpuric condition improved very much on Phosphorus in high potency given at 15 days interval but there was no change in her arthritis. Arnica, Bryonia, Colchicum) also did not give relief at all.        .
On further enquiry, she told me that an allopathic physician has given her Prednisolene (cortisone) for her purpura haemorrhagica an since then she had been suffering from arthritis. I got the hint for the drug. Here the aetiology was the toxic-effect of cortisone. I gave her few doses of Cortisone 30 and now for the last 11/2 years there is n recurrence of arthritis.
Individualisation is the crux of homeopathy and this is reflected in aetiology also. We homoeopaths do not limit the aetiological factors t finding out the causative germs only. We search and we find them existing in the physiological, pathological, psychic and hereditary planes also.

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