A Review On Therapeutics Of Intermittent Fevers By Dr H.C. Allen - homeopathy360

A Review On Therapeutics Of Intermittent Fevers By Dr H.C. Allen

Author:
Dr ASHNA S.
Assistant Professor
Dept of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Yenepoya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital
Mangalore

INTRODUCTION

  • This book was written by DR H C ALLEN to tackle all kinds of fever. The author was very much affected by the fact that quinine (the Peruvian bark) which was mostly used for fevers gives injurious effects and sometimes it only suppresses the symptoms and thereby leads to the increased sufferings of the patients. This book includes the therapeutics of typhoid, typhus and fevers of all the intensities and names.

KEYWORDS  

  • Therapeutics of fevers, typhus, typhoid, the malarial theory.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  • HENRY C ALLEN M D (1836-1909)
  • Born in London
  • Studied Medicine in College of Physicians & Surgeons in Ontario
  • Western Homoeopathic college in Cleveland
  • After Graduation – worked as Army Surgeon
  • Later Hahnemannian  Homoeopathic Medical College
  • Appointed as Materia Medica Professor at University of Michigan

 WORKS

  • Keynotes of Materia Medica with nosodes S
  • The Materia Medica of nosodes
  • The Homoeopathic Therapeutics of Intermittent fever
  • The Homoeopathic Therapeutics of Fever
  • Therapeutics of Tuberculous affections

THE THERAPEUTICS OF FEVER

  EDITIONS

1st edition – 1879

2nd edition – 1884

Reprint edition – 1998

  PARTS

  • 2 parts – Materia Medica and Repertory part.

PREFACE

  • Include therapeutics of typhoid, typhus, fevers of every grade and name from acute sporadic, epidemic, intermittent to malignant type of malarial fevers.
  • Have to consider patient as a whole not only fever stage.
  • His/ her idiosyncracies & constitutional inheritance.
  • Family history
  • Miasm.
  • Authors own experience- remedy selection from totality (objective, subjective and miasmatic).
  • Expressed obligation.

INTRODUCTION TO FEVER

   THE CAUSE                                                                                 

  • Homoeopathy gives importance to objective & subjective symptoms
  • Allopath – intermittent fever cannot cure without quinine as it’s the antidote of marsh miasm which is the cause of intermittent fever
  • Many theories given by different stalwarts.

 THE MALARIAL THEORY
   (MARSH MIASM)

  • Epidemics occur
  • As a result of decaying substance
  • Should know the internal cause that is the miasm and treat

   THE PSORIC DIATHESIS

  • Another cause for intermittent –inherited – psoric or tubercular diathesis
  • In Hahnemann’s chronic disease – more deeply psoric more malignant the attack
  • This is true for all continued fevers

 SIMILIA – A NEVER FAILING GUIDE

  • If the attack due to miasmatic must wait till disease show its true picture
  • Physician should sure about with symptoms and which remedy to select
  • Consider the objective and subjective symptoms

 EXAMINATION OF THE PATIENT

  • Case taking
  • History of disease
  • Knowledge of Materia Medica
  • Symptoms during different stages of fever
  • Time of occurrence of paroxysm
  • Degree or absence of thirst
  • Constitutional ailments aroused by fever
  • Individualising peculiarities must be noted
  • Treating with quinine only suppress or destroy the disease

     THE GENUS EPIDEMICUS

  • In seaside intermittent – Arsenicum Album, Gelsemium , Natrum Mur
  • After outflow of a river – Baptisia , Bryonia , capsicum , Rhustox
  • Epidemic dysentery – Cinchona , Eucalyptus , Ipecac ,Malaria Officianalis
  • Observe symptom peculiar to all patients n select remedy

WHEN TO ADMINISTER REMEDY

  • In aphorism 236 – administration of remedy after termination of paroxysm
  • In aphorism 237 – if interval is too short give medicine when perspiration decline / subsequent stage of paroxysm decline
  • In aphorism 238 – one dose of properly indicated remedy  may prevent many attacks
  • In aphorism 245 – during improvement never repeat the remedy

  THE SIMILLIMUM

  • More perfect similimum , the quicker and sure about the cure
  • Remedy should be proper whatever the potency is otherwise case will be an utter failure. Eg; Arsenicum Album, cinchona can never cure a Nux fever
  • Dunham says ; we seek a parallelism between drug symptom and symptom of patients

 TO CURE AN INTERMITTENT FEVER

  • Study the patient during apyrexia
  • Observe all symptoms of pyrexia in three stages of cold , heat and sweat
  • Note if a stage is absent & which among them is marked
  • Give importance to first rank symptoms to which drug must correspond in order to cure

 ANALYSIS OF A CASE

  • Time
  • Prodrome
  • Chill
  • Heat
  • Sweat

 THE POTENCY

  • Must use all potencies
  • Every case of intermittent fever can be cured with potentised remedy
  • If cure takes place for patient he will surely have faith on physician and his methods

CHARACTERISTIC

  • General action & constitutional action of remedy to be give importance
  • Both objective & subjective symptoms has to be considered
  • In aphorism 153 – characteristic symptom
  • Drug based on constitutional symptoms their conditions and concomitants

TYPHOID TYPHUS & CONTINUED FEVERS-

  • This is the disease which Homoeopath should give more careful investigation.

  ANAMNESIS

  • Case taking
  • Individualising patient
  • Record the  case
  • 1st remedy palliates – constitutional miasm & family history should consider
  • Dr Carroll Dunham – once similar remedy found don’t change till change of symptoms form a new picture of disease
  • Typhoid – ailments from morbid influence – mental / physical

THE NAME: IT’S USE & ABUSE

  • Typhoid – group of symptoms appear sporadically, endemically , epidemically and even annually
  • Typhus more contagious & malignant due to bad sanitation , ill treatment, live in crowded area
  • Remedy based on diagnostic  – on pathological
  • Based on therapeutic – characteristic of patient
  • Pathology needed for prognosis , sanitation, diets etc
  • Allen gave importance to constitutional miasm

 THE TRUE CAUSE OF TYPHOID

  • Cause lies in psoric and tubercular miasm
  • Psoric miasm is more severe and fatal

  THE TENDENCY TO RELAPSE

  • In typhoid typhus malarial fevers relapse assumes a weekly or monthly
  • First prescription may restore health by removing symptoms but may produce fever again
  • In second prescription  the miasm inherited tendency and family history should consider, Eg : Sulphur – remedy for relapsing
  • If sulphur fails , then Psorinum or Tuberculinum which prevent future relapse

 SANITATION – THE SICK ROOM

  • Sanitary surroundings
  • Temperature should adapt for sick
  • Free ventilation
  • Fresh air and sunshine
  • Disinfectants should avoid
  • Bathing is essential especially during fever exacerbation
  • Never use cold or ice bath
  • Never waken sleeping patient

 DIET OF THE TYPHOID

  • Absolute rest for speedy recovery
  • Pure water and libitum
  • Hot water
  • Cracked ice or melted ice is injurious
  • Fruit juices – orange , grape, raspberry, strawberry, watermelon etc &  not lemon or vinegar ca take
  • Rice water , dried apple are allowed
  • Toasted bread
  • Barley cracked wheat oatmeal allowed later
  • No extract or essence of beef
  • Abnormal craving has to be noted

MATERIA MEDICA

  • In Material Medica part remedies are given in alphabetical order
  • Some remedies other than in Keynotes are also mentioned. Eg: Aranea, Cimex, Eucalyptus, malaria officianalis, Robinia etc
  • No of medicines 147

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTION

  • Characteristic                                                 
  • Aggravation & amelioration
  • Relations
  • Type
  • Time
  • Prodrome
  • Cause
  • Chill
  • Heat
  • Sweat
  • Tongue
  • Pulse
  • Apyrexia
  • Analysis
  • Chill
  • Heat
  • Sweat
  • First three sections are given as in Allen’s Keynote
  • All sections remedy comparison is given in bracket
  • After pyrexia comparison of remedies given in some remedies, Eg : Antimonium Crud, Apis Mellifica, Arnica, Arsenicum album etc
  • In some cases given as clinical, Eg: Aranea,
  • Arsenicum album is given long section with detailed about paroxysm of intermittent fever
  • In Benzium in last section a letter to Dr Allen from St Clara Smith
  • Bryonia last section with clinical cases
  • Camphor –  Apyrexia with cases
  • Cascrilla – after sweat section, a symptom cannot drink but hot drinks during fever by A.O. Hardenstein – wonderful result for above symptom
  • Chininum Sulph after pyrexia – comparison between cinchona and discussed about clinical case
  • Malaria Officianalis – about its prover & how proving conducted by Dr Yingling with 30 potency

REPERTORY-

  TYPOGRAPHY

  • 3 gradation as Kent
  • BOLD
  • Italics
  • Roman
  • Rubrics arranged in alphabetical order

   PLAN & CONSTRUCTION

  • 147 medicines
  • 31 chapters
  • 5 sections
  • chill
  • Heat
  • Sweat
  • Appetite taste tongue
  • Apyrexia

 SUBSECTION

  • Type -389
  • Time -394
  • Cause – 400
  • Prodrome – 404
  • Commencement of chill – 410
  • Chill location of – 413
  • Chill aggravated- 418
  • Chill ameliorated – 420
  • Symptoms during chill – 421
  • Chill character of – 422
  • Chill symptoms during – 423
  • Chill followed by -440
  • Heat aggravated by – 443
  • Heat ameliorated by – 444
  • Heat absent – 445
  • Heat in general – 445
  • Heat symptoms during – 445
  • Heat followed by -463
  • Heat characteristics of – 464
  • Sweat aggravated – 470
  • Sweat ameliorated – 471
  • Sweat followed by – 472
  • Aggravates while sweating – 473
  • Ameliorates  while sweating – 473
  • Sweat absent – 473
  • Sweat in general – 473
  • Sweat predominates – 474
  • Sweat produced by – 474
  • Sweat character of – 475
  • Sweat time of – 480
  • Sweat location of – 482
  • Sweat symptoms during – 485
  • Sweat suppressed – 491
  • Ag after sweat – 491
  • Amelioration  after sweat – 491
  • Appetite, taste, tongue etc- 491
  • Apyrexia symptoms during – 503
  • Typhoid , typhus , prodromic stage – 519
  • Symptoms of mind – 519
  • Sensorium – 531
  • Head internal – 533
  • Head external – 535
  • Eyes & sight – 536
  • Hearing and nose – 538
  • Smell and nose -539
  • Face -541
  • Gastric – 549

MERITS

  • No repetition of same rubrics
  • Contain many additional rubrics than other  repertories
  • Different stages of febrile conditions are given
  • Each stages of fever is again subdivided
  • Eg : chill location
  • Eg: cause – mechanical injuries

DEMERITS

  • No definite pattern for arrangement of chapters
  • Number of medicines is less
  • Even though grading is given ,there no information about its marks
  • Rubrics in some places not followed alphabetical order
  • Under section chill , two chapters with same heading with different rubrics
  • No index is given
  • Name of chapter given only in the beginning of each chapter and not in subsequent page top.

SUMMARY

  • It gives the list of medicines under each type of fever and thus helps us to find the similimum for every intensity of fever. It does not overrule anywhere the Hahnemann’s law of similimum based on syptomatology, but it only adds to the greater intensity of finding the similimum up to the physical symptoms.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr ASHNA S.
Assistant Professor
Dept of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Yenepoya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital
Mangalore

About the author

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