Magnesia Muriatica

Caulophyllum, Actea racemosa.

Chamomilla, Pulsatilla, Mercurius. Magnesia mur. \ .

Sulphur, Lycopodiurn, Sepia.

[ Phosphorus, Ignatia.

> Chamomilla.

The next remedy of which I shall speak is the Chloride of Magnesia or Magnesia mur. This remedy acts particularly on women and chil- dren, especially in hysterical women and in scrofulous children.

It is indicated in women who suffer from hysterical paroxysms, with the following symptoms: after dinner the patient is seized with nausea, eructations, trembling and fainting spells. These occur after dinner, because that is the principal meal, and more is eaten then than at other times. The patient is anxious and restless, and is always made worse from mental exertion. The headaches are described as congestive, with sensation as of boiling water in the cranium, or as a frontal numbness.

The pains are referred to the temples, and seem to be relieved by firm pressure with the hands. They are also better from wrapping the head up warmly. The patient also complains of a

MAGNESIA MURIATIC A. 647

sensation as of a ball rising from the stomach into the throat. This is relieved by eructation. This shows that the accumulation of gas in the stomach is the cause of this reflex symptom. She also has bear- ing down in the uterine region and uterine spasms.

The menses are black and pitch-like, and are accompanied by pain in the back when walking, and in the thighs when sitting. She also has leucorrhoea after every stool, or following the uterine spasms. In nearly all these cases in which Magnesia mur. is indicated, you will find characteristic constipation, in which the stools are passed with great difficulty, being composed of hard lumps, or they are so dry that they crumble as they pass the anus. If you find that symptom present with the uterine symptoms, you may be sure that Magnesia mur. will help the patient.

In other cases we find the liver affected. Magnesia mur. is one of our best remedies for liver disease. The liver is enlarged and the ab- domen bloated. There are pains in the liver, which are worse from touch or from lying on the right side.

The tongue is large, coated yellow, and takes the imprint of the teeth. You will see at once how this resembles Mercurius, but it is differentiated from that remedy by the characteristic crumbling stool. The feet are often cedematous from interference with the portal circulation, and there are palpitation of the heart and dyspnoea, both of these last-named symptoms being reflex symptoms from the hepatic disorder.

Frequently we find Mag?iesia mur. indicated in the enlarged liver of children who are puny in their growth and rachitic. They suffer, too, from skin affections. They have what is known as tinea ciliaris, an eruption which occurs at the roots of the hairs, particularly of the eye- lids. The hairs drop out.

A scaly eruption appears around the hairs, the skin ulcerates, and the hairs drop out. With this tinea there are pimples on the face, and acrid ozsena, with redness and swelling and scaliness of the nose. With these symptoms there is sweat of the feet. Here we are reminded of Silicea, but the sweat under Silicea is offensive.

A general characteristic of Magnesia mur., belonging to either men or women, is palpitation of the heart, which is worse when the patient is quiet, and better from moving about. The symptom has been con- firmed many times. Then there is another symptom which occurs fre- quently in women, and that is inability to pass urine without pressing on the abdominal walls.

The analogues of Magnesia mur. must be studied here, or else you

648 A CLINICAL MATERIA MKDICA.

will not be able to separate it from similarly acting drugs. We find that in uterine spasms, Caulophyllum and Actea racemosa act like Mag- nesia mur. I must say that I believe Caulophyllum leads the list. I know of no other drug that produces such continued spasmodic condi- tion of the uterus unless it be Secale.

" Silicea ought to be mentioned as similar to Magnesia mur. in the treatment of scrofulous children. Both remedies have sweating of the feet, enlarged liver, rachitis, and ozaena. The difference lies in this: the Silicea patient has offensive-smelling sweat, both of the feet and of the head. That is one good distinction. There are many others. There is a resemblance between the headaches of the two remedies. Silicea and Mag?iesia mur. both have headache, relieved by wrapping the head up warmly.

Mercurius is similar to Magnesia mur. in liver affections. It is dis- tinguished from the latter by its diarrhoea, with tenesmus, or, more exceptionally, with gray or ashy stool.

- Also similar to Magnesia mur. is Plelea, which is useful in conges- tion of the liver when there is a feeling as of weight and pressure in the right hypochondrium. The liver is found to be enlarged. The patient here finds relief by lying on the right side.

I may say that the Magnesia salts have been placed with Zinc as remedies acting on the nervous system. This fact led Schiissler to "nesia phos. as a nerve tonic.

LECTURE LXIII.

BARYTA CARB., STRONTIANA CARB., AND LITHIUM CARB.