Part 90

"A lady, by administering, morning and evening, an infusion of the dry leaves and flowers of Golden Rod (Solidago virga-aurea) tells me that she cured her husband of an affection of the bladder which had compelled him to use a catheter for a year or more. A friend of Homoeopathy, not a physician, desired to test the efficaciousness of this plant. He caused the first dilution of its tincture to be taken three times a day by seven patients of from forty-two to seventy-four years of age, who had been obliged to catheterize themselves for weeks, months and years, and cured them so thoroughly that they had no relapses. Surgeons who spend much time in catheterizing such patients for months and years could often cure them much more rapidly by prescribing for them the remedy just mentioned."

(Dr. A. E. White, Homoeopathic Recorder, July, 1891, relates the following case:)

Mrs.----, age 37, married, has had seven children. Came to me December 10, 1890, with the following history: "Had not had her menses for four months. Thought she was in a family way. Abdomen bloated up every P.M.; sick at her stomach all of the time; frontal headache, P.M.; felt better when first getting up in the morning, at which time her abdomen was almost normal in size.

"Her water she complained of more than anything else. Had to pass it every half hour during day and several times during night.

"Backache all of the time, which was not decreased by passing water. Urine had a white, slimy deposit on standing a short time.

"Requested an examination, but could not discover that she was in a family way. Found her back very sensitive in region of kidneys, trace of albumin in urine.

"I gave her a vial of Solidago 1x, told her to take two disks every four hours and report in three or four days. She came back December 13th, 'the medicine went right to the spot.' From the second dose her water became natural and she did not bloat so much in P.M. Her stomach did not bother her any more. I gave her a bottle of Puls. 3x to take with the Solidago, and she reported December 17th, that her menses had come on.

"I have used it in several other cases where it seemed indicated by the tenderness in kidney region and the inability to control the water from whatever cause, always with perfect satisfaction to patient and myself."

(The following paper on the use of Solidago virga-aurea is by Dr. M. Gucken, of Eupen, Germany:)

The Golden Rod is in Homoeopathy, according to my opinion, not as much made use of as it deserves. Foh. Gottfr. Rademacher, who has many admirers among us, says, in his Justification of Experience in Medicine, about Virga-aurea: "This herb is a very old and good kidney medicine. It is a specific for kidneys, and brings the patients back to the normal condition." I have used the Golden Rod for a long time, and have to make favorable reports. The results of extensive homoeopathic proving of this remedy on healthy persons cannot be found in our literature, but a Wuertemburg physician, Dr. Buck, has given us a list of cures with the Golden Rod in the popular homoeopathic paper edited by Dr. Bolle, which wholly confirms the statements of Rademacher, besides the cases reported by Dr. Buck.

According to this last, Virga-aurea is especially adapted for scrofulous subjects; at the same time other constitutions do not exclude the use of this remedy. In the first place, the condition and the action of the kidneys and the quality of their secretions are to be considered in the selection of this remedy. The symptoms on the part of the kidneys and the urinary organs, which point to Virga-aurea, are as follows:

Pains in the kidneys; region of kidneys painful upon pressure; feeling of enlargement and tension in the kidneys, also pains in the kidneys which extend forward to the abdomen and to the bladder. Dysuria, difficult and scanty urination; urine dark, red-brown, with thick sediment; stone and gravel, albumen, blood or slime in the urine; urine dark, with sediments of phosphates; slightly sour, neutral or alkaline; urine with numerous epithelial cells or small mucous particles. Epithelial cells with gravel of triple phosphates, or phosphate of lime. Bright's disease.

Side symptoms which point to this remedy:

Skin.--Scrofulous rash; little blotches on hands and feet, itching very much; very obstinate, itching exanthemas; exanthema of the lower extremities without swelling of the inguinal glands, but with disturbance in urinating (catarrh of the kidneys).

Sleep.--Insomnia.

Fever.--Rheumatic fever; very frequent pulse; high fever.

Head.--Headache.

Eyes.--Scrofulous, herpetic inflammation.

Ears.--Sudden deafness, with ringing in the ears and albuminous urine.

Nose.--Dry; the inner surface of the nose covered with blood crust; scalding and very scanty brown urine.

Mouth.--Flat ulcers in the mouth and throat.

Gastric: Stomach, Abdomen and Stool.--Continuous bitter taste, disturbing the rest, especially nights; heavily covered tongue, which does not become clean in spite of the use of anti-gastric remedies, and only cleanses itself at the return of abundant urinating; chronic catarrh of the bowels; diarrhoea, with scanty, dark urine; dysentery; costiveness; sensation of pain in the abdomen on both sides of the navel, upon deep pressure; physconia of the abdomen by gases; severe pricking in both hypochondria to the region of the kidneys, reaching to the lower extremities, with continued bitter taste in the mouth, especially at night, with very scanty brown and sour urine.

Female Parts.--Haemorrhage, chronic leucorrhoea, in connection with copious, watery urine and sediments of mucous particles and uriniferous tubules; epithelium.

Respiratory Organs.--Heavy expectoration in coughing; croup, with little blotches on the hands and diminished urine; chronic catarrh of the lungs; continuous dyspnoea; periodical asthma, with nightly dysuria.

Trunk and Lower Limbs.--Rheumatism of the intercostal muscles; chronic pains in the loins; limping, dragging gait; rheumatic pains in the legs; pains in the thighs; the legs can be moved horizontally, but when moved perpendicularly they feel lame.

In connection with these symptoms the description of a few cases of sickness, in which Virga-aurea proved itself, might be of some interest.

CLINICAL.

During the spring of 1886 scarlet-diphtheria appeared in this place. On March 28th I was called to attend the 8-year old son Matthias, of Wernerus, a weaver, in the hamlet of Niepert, that showed symptoms of the above disease. Cynanche was at high degree, and the throat was filled with diphtheritic coating, so much so that I had reason to fear the worst, on account of the accompanying fever and of the choked-up condition and weakly (scrofulous) habit of the patient. But the well-known remedy of Viller, given alternately with Belladonna, proved itself also in this case, and the symptoms in the throat assumed, after a few days, a less dangerous character. Not so with the fever, which gradually assumed the form of typhoid, and ran very high, while the scarlet-rash grew quite pale. On the morning of April 5th, his temperature was 42.5 deg., the patient unconscious, the pulse weak and intermittent, the feet swollen. Upon inquiry the parents told me that the boy urinated very little. His urine, of which I had taken a quantity the day previous for examination, contained a considerable amount of albuminous sediments. I prescribed Kali arsenicosum in the fourth centesimal potency, which had been recommended in similar cases by Dr. Hock in the international homoeopathic press; but, although the temperature decreased after using this remedy, the dropsical swelling of the feet increased more and more, and after a few days the entire body of the patient was swollen very much. The discharge of urine grew continually less. Under these circumstances I examined the patient again thoroughly, and found great sensitiveness of the kidneys against pressure, in spite of his otherwise apathetic condition. These symptoms reminded me of Virga-aurea. This remedy was immediately applied, and I had no reason to regret it. Within one day the urinal discharge became profuse, the general condition improving at the same time; the peeling off took place without further trouble, and after the patient had taken Virga-aurea for two weeks, and, on account of anaemia, for one week three times a day, a dose of Ferrum peroxydatum in the 2d trituration, he had so far recovered that I did not consider it necessary to give further medicine.