Drosera rotundifolia. Round-leaved Sundew. *N. O. Droseraceae. Tincture of active fresh plant.
Clinical
Amblyopia. Asthma. Bronchitis. Catarrh. *Consumption. *Cough. Coxalgia. Epilepsy. Haemorrhage. Headache. Laryngitis. Measles. Nausea. Phthisis. Sciatica. Vomiting. *Whooping-cough.
Characteristics
The chief feature of the *Drosera effects is a spasmodic cough resembling whooping-cough, in which affection it is one of the leading remedies, as it is also in the spasmodic cough of phthisis. The characteristic cough is: Frequent spells of barking cough, worse evening and after midnight, patient holds his side, vomits if he cannot get up phlegm, every effort to raise a little phlegm ends in retching and vomiting, there may be bloody stools. Teste, who places *Drosera in his *Zincum group of medicines, mentions that it grows in damp prairies, along the border of marshes, and is avoided by animals. Barrich states that when eaten by sheep it gives them a cough which is fatal to them. Curiously enough, it was recommended by German physicians of the eighteenth century as a panacea for hoarseness, chest affections, and even for phthisis. Serrand, of Paris (translated *H.R., vi. 153) maintains that *Drosera has an important *role in the prophylaxis of tubercle. He refers to the fact that sheep eating *Drosera leaves acquire a nocturnal cough and die, and that the pleura of cats to which *Drosera had been administered were found studded with tubercles. The indications calling for it in the premonitory stage are: pallor, weakness, loss of appetite, dry cough, emaciation. Three laryngoscopic indications are: (1)
Anemia and pallor of larynx, (2) vocal cords not sufficiently approximated from functional impairment of cricoarytenoid muscles, (3) redness and swelling of mucous membrane covering and between the arytenoid cartilages. Dr. Serrand commends *Drosera in cases of declared phthisis as well. He gives it in the low attenuations. Buchmann of Alvensleben agrees with Hahnemann that *Drosera in high attenuation should not be repeated. He cured himself of a bronchial catarrh which used to attack him every spring and fall, characterized by a *violent *tickling *cough, which almost drove him to distraction at night, with *Drosera Ix. and O. A single dose as soon as the tickling in the larynx commenced sufficed to allay it at once and allowed him to rest, and it was only repeated when the tickling returned. Among the characteristics of *Drosera are: Spasmodic and constricting pains in abdomen, larynx, throat, chest, hypochondria. Crawling in larynx, feeling as if a soft substance were lodged in larynx, as a feather. Difficult swallowing of solids. Voice fails. Stitching pains in chest and all parts, lancinations in brain. Stitches from left loin into penis, itching stitches in glans. Haemorrhages of bright red blood, from nose, mouth (bloody saliva), with vomit, with stool, expectoration. Gnawing stinging pains in joints and long bones. *Drosera has many pains about the hip-joints and has cured sciatica with the following characters: “Pressing pains, worse from pressure, from stooping, from lying on painful part, better after rising from bed.” Eruption like measles, prickling burning itching, worse undressing, better by scratching, bleeding, burning ulcers, cutting pains. Epileptic attacks: with rigidity, with twitching of limbs, after attack, haemoptysis and sleep. Symptoms are worse towards evening and after midnight. Worse By warmth, by warm drinks, better in open air. Many symptoms are worse at rest and when lying in bed. Supporting the part better pains in head and chest. Stooping worse, walking better, singing and talking worse. Motion of eye worse head pains. Motion better stitching in chest and joints, and shivering. Worse From acids.
Relations
*Antidoted by: Camph. *Complementary: Nux-v. *Compatible: Calcarea c., Pulsatilla, Veratrum, Gnaph. *Compare: Belladonna, Coral., Cuprum, Hyoscyamus, Ip., Sambucus, Meph., Opium, Coc-c. In inability to expectorate, Causticum, Sepia, Arnica, Kali-c. Teste considers Meny. the closest analogue.
SYMPTOMS.
Mind
Mental dejection, caused by ideas of imaginary enmity. Anxiety, especially (in the evening) in solitude, with fear of ghosts. Great mistrust. Restlessness, which does not allow prolonged attention to the same object. Inquietude respecting the future. Discouragement. Inclination to drown oneself. Pertinacity in executing resolutions. The least thing puts the sufferer beside himself.
Head
Painful perplexity of the head, as after loud speaking. Vertigo on walking in the open air, which occasions falling (to the left). Pressive pains in the head, especially in the forehead and in the cheek-bones, sometimes with nausea and dizziness. Pressing headache (temples), with stupefaction and nausea (morning), worse when stooping and from heart, better from motion and in the cold air. Beating and hammering in the forehead from the inside outwards. Pains, as of excoriation in the scalp.
Eyes
Shooting in the eyes towards the outside, especially on stooping. Suspension of the sight, or confusion and paleness of the letters while reading. Gauze before the eyes. Presbyopia and weakness of the eyes. Contraction of the pupils. Dazzling by candle-light and daylight.
Ears
Shootings and squeezing in the ears, especially on swallowing. Hardness of hearing, with buzzing and roaring in the ears. Humming and drumming in the ears.
Nose
Bleeding at the nose, especially in the evening. Discharge of blood on blowing the nose. Black pores on the nose. Constant dryness of the nose. Great sensibility to acid smells. Fluent coryza with sneezing.
Face
Paleness of the face, with cheeks hollow, and eyes sunken. Small pustules here and there on face, with fine stitching sensation worse when touched. Burning and pricking sensation in the skin of the cheeks, below the eyes. Lips cracked and constantly dry. Pressure in the cheek-bones towards the outside, aggravated by pressure and contact.Black pores in the chin.
Mouth
Shooting pains in teeth, after taking hot drinks. Ulcers on tongue. Bleeding of the mouth. Ulceration of velum palati.
Throat
Rough, scraping dryness deep in fauces, and in region of soft palate, inducing short and hacking cough, with yellow mucous expectoration, hoarse deep voice, oppression in chest as if breath could not be expelled when coughing or talking. Shootings in the throat, after eating anything salt. Stinging in the throat during deglutition. Difficulty in swallowing solid food, as from contraction of the throat. Sensation of dryness in the throat. Sensation in the throat, as if crumbs of bread had been stopped in it. Hawking of yellowish or greenish mucus.
Appetite
Thirst, especially in the morning (during the hot stage of the fever and not during the cold stage). Insipidity of food. Aversion to pork. Bitter taste of food and especially of bread.
Stomach
Bitter risings. Frequent hiccough. Water-brash. Vomiting at night, and after dinner. Vomiting of bile, in the morning. Vomiting of blood. Nausea after eating fat food. Vomiting of slimy matter and of food during the cough. Shootings and beatings in the pit of the stomach. Clawing sensation in the pit of the stomach.
Abdomen
Pains in the hypochondria, on coughing and on being touched (he has to press on them with the hand when he coughs). Colic after taking acids.
Stool and Anus
Frequent evacuations of sanguineous mucus, with cutting pains, after the stool, pain in abdomen and small of the back.
Urinary Organs
Frequent want to make water, with scanty emission, often drop by drop. Emission of urine at night. Brownish urine of a strong smell. Watery, inodorous urine (with fetid stool of white mucus).
Female Sexual Organs
Catamenia suppressed. Catamenia retarded. Leucorrhoea, with pains like those of childbirth, spasmodic pains in the abdomen.
Respiratory Organs
Tingling in the larynx, which excites a slight cough, and shootings extending to the throat. Sensation, as if there were a soft body, such as a feather, in the larynx. Sensation of dryness, or roughness, and of scraping in the bottom of the gullet, with inclination to cough. Hoarseness, and very low voice. Oppressed breathing when talking, mostly while sitting. Sensation of oppression in the chest, as if the voice and breath were retarded when speaking and coughing.Fine stitches in larynx extending down to right side of oesophagus. Cough without much sound. Cough as soon as the head touches the pillow. Accumulation of slimy matter, alternately hard and soft, yellowish, greyish or greenish. Cough and hoarseness. Cough, proceeding from the depth of the chest, with pains in the hypochondria and in the chest, mitigated by pressing the hand upon them. Cough at night, and in the evening, immediately after lying down. Dry, spasmodic cough, with retching. Fatiguing cough like whooping-cough (attacks, every one to three hours, with barking or dull-sounding coughs, choking the breathing, caused by tickling or dryness of the throat, yellow and bitter expectoration, has to swallow this mucus down) with bluish face, wheezing respiration, attacks of suffocation, bleeding from the nose and mouth, and anxiety. The cough is excited by laughter, weeping and mental emotions, after having had the measles, aggravation after lying down, and still more increased after midnight, when at rest, when lying in bed, from heat, from drinking, from singing. Vomiting of food during the cough, and afterwards. Cough, with fetid breath. Singing, tobacco-smoke, and drinking, excites the cough. Cough, with expectoration of a bright red blood, or of blackish clots. Cough, in the morning, with bitter and nauseous expectoration. Cough, with expectoration of purulent matter, and shootings in the lower part of the chest. Greenish expectoration. Laryngeal and tracheal phthisis.
