Cimex Lectularius

The bedbug. Hemiptera.

Known to Dioscorides, wlio mentions it in the treatment of fevers, and to Ebn Sina, who prescribed it in hysterical affections. It preserved its reputation through the Middle Ages, and is still in use among the people, especially the Italians, as a remedy for fever and ague.

Proved by W. Wahle, of Kome, in the 2d and 3d trituration, on Dr. Bertoldi, a woman past the change of life, and a girl £et. seventeen ; also by Dr. Berridge, in the 200th dilution, on a man. Wahle made use of the 6th and 12th dilutions in the successful treatment of " most malignant and most obstinate tertian and quartan fevers, from three to four doses being sufficient."

Clinical Authokities. — Headache with hiccough and dryness of throat, E. W. Berridge, N. Y. J. H., v. 2, p. 462, 1874; Nocturnal emissions, Jeanes; Intermittent, T. D. Stowe, Allen's Therapeutics of Intermittent; H. M., v. 7, p. 162.

^ Mind. I Anxiousness.

Anxious with the oppression of chest, pains in shoulder,

and during the sweat has no rest anywhere. I At the setting in of the chilly stage her hands become

clinched; she becomes vehement; would like to tear

everything to pieces, and is scarcely able to restrain her

rage. ^Intermittent. ■Sensation as if he would creep into himself, and on that

account could not sufficiently crouch together.

■ His own sweat is disgusting to him. ^ Sensorium. iDulness of head.

^ Inner Head. Confusion of head, as if headache would ensue.

■ Pressing outwards in forehead, first 1. then r. side.

■ Drawing headache, particularly under r. frontal bone.

■ Pain like stitches with needles in middle of vertex, and

pressing pain in vertex with the cough. t/Intermittent.

■ Headache, almost depriving him of power of thinking.

■ ■Headache of the most violent kind. ^Intermittent. ■Violent headache, caused by drinking. ^ After chill.

^ Outer Head. Sweating on head and nose or on head and

'' Smell and Nose. ■Annoying dryness of nostrils.

■ Fluent coryza, with pressure in frontal sinuses.

■ Constant sneezing in forenoon; sneezing for an hour, at

noon. Sweat on the nose in the morning, during rest.

CIMEX LECTULARIUS. 136

■ Feeling as if burnt on tongue, in region of palate and

upper anterior gums.

Tongue whitish furred, feels scalded.

A taste like iron to the saliva. 13 Throat. ■ Pressure and gagging in oesophagus, which af- fects whole chest and impedes respiration ; although she is not thirsty, she drinks for the purpose of stopping the gagging.

■ Pressure and choking in gullet, during fever heat, spread-

ing through chest, impeding breathing; no thirst, but when drinking to overcome the choking, the water goes down only at intervals, as if the throat was contracted; or, as if she had swallowed too large a morsel.

■ Palate and upper gums feel as if scalded.

■ Dryness of throat, causing him to drink all day.

" Appetite, Thirst. Desires, Aversions. ■Great hunger after the heat.

■ Thirst: with dryness in throat; but afraid to move to get

a drink; during apyrexia; after the chill; before the chill and immediately after, not with it.

■ Desire to drink, without thirst.

^^ Eating and Drinking. Water can only be swallowed at intervals, as if oesophagus were constricted.

■ After drinking, violent headache, tickling and cough, op-

pressive breathing, heaviness in chest and anxiousness.

■ Drinking during the chill causes headache.

'■M^hen the patient drank she lost breath, gagged, had

dyspnoea and a gagging cough. ^Intermittent. I I Many complaints do not appear at all if they abstain from drinking. ^''Hiccough, Belching, Nausea and Vomiting. ■Hiccough slightly painful.

■ Qualmishness with the fever.

■ Sour eructations; sour vomit with the cough. Vomits ingesta from the day before.

I I Vomituritio. ^Dry cough. ^^ Hypochondria. ■Pain in liver, as if it had been strained by bending r. side inward; the spot is painful when touching it and when coughing.

■ ■Chronic liver complaint.

^■' Abdomen. Abdomen puffed up with backache.

■ Colic, followed by emissions of flatus or liquid stools.

■ I Colic ceases after wind passes.

137 CIMEX LECTULARIUS.

I Urging to stool ; after the discharge of a small piece of

white stool the rectum closes firmly.

I I Hemorrhoidal complaints; hemorrhoidal pains with stool.

^^ Urinary Organs. B Incontinentia urinse; ischuria.

■ During and after fever, urine very hot.

I Urine brown, with a deposit of sediment. lUrine deposits a red coating on inside of vessel. Urine less, more saturated, next day a red sediment. ^^ Male Sexual Organs. ■ Frequent erections in morning hours.

I Seminal emissions. ^^ Female Sexual Organs. BHot sensation inside the labia. ^ Pregnancy, Parturition, Lactation. • Expels the dead

■ Tightening pains in 1. side of trachea. ^Dry cough.

^'^ Respiration. Oppression of chest, shortness of breath, and frequent deep inspiration.

■ Loses breath when drinking, gags, has dyspnoea and a

gagging cough. ^Intermittent.

■ During the chill a constriction of the chest, has often to

take a deep inspiration. ^Intermittent. ^ Cough. Constant, short, dry cough, with painfulness.

■ Gagging cough when drinking. ^Intermittent.

■ Violent cough, with purulent sputa, and chill and fever in daily attacks.

Cough with a tense pain from upper 1. chest across to r., causing a shock, then dry cough often repeated, shaking the middle part of lower chest, extending to the liver.

■ Cough, with belching, gagging, or vomiting; with per-

spiration ; at intervals with gagging and pain in chest. Scratching sensation behind upper part of sternum causes

a continued short cough. Scraping, paroxysmal cough, which causes retching, with

pain in middle of chest after coughing ; sternum painful

to touch. ^^ Inner Chest and Lungs. ■ Concussive pain and pressure

in chest behind sternum. ^Dry cough.

■ Chronic chest complaints.

Scraping sensation beneath sternum with short cough. '^^ Neck and Back. Sensation of weariness and soreness in small of back.

CIMEX LECTULARIUS. 138

I Pain in small of back, extending over abdomen, with

chest, extending through whole arm down to nails;

fingers feel as if they had gone to sleep. Intermittent pricking pain in muscles at back of r. upper

arm. I At the beginning of chill draws fingers together, making

a fist, intermittent. ^^ Lower Limbs, i Uneasiness in lower limbs as if she were

tired by walking. ^After chill.

■ Heaviness in lower limbs.

Great weariness in loins, she is obliged to sit down.

The pain in sacrum and right hip bone extends below the

I Knees feel cold, like from a cold wind.

I I Hamstrings feel too short, knees are flexed; attempting to stretch them causes pain in thighs. ^During _ chill.

■ During chill hands and feet get cold and numb as if

dead. ^Intermittent.

■ Every attempt to stretch out arms or legs causes tensive

pains in these parts, and he suffers thirst rather than move.

■ Pains in all the joints as if tendons were contracted and

■ Has to sit down; loins or limbs are weary.

Must lie down; on account of pain in sacrum and r. hip

bone. Suffers thirst rather than move.

Great restlessness of lower limbs, like from overfatigue. Must change position of limbs constantly.

■ Every movement, especially extending a limb, gives ten-

sive pain in extensor tendons. Stretching : on attempting to stretch legs, pain _ in thighs ; causes tensive pains in limbs; all day inclination to; during the chill causes pains.

139 CIMEX LECTULARIUS.

^^ Nerves. iWeariness, with inclination to stretch, all clay. ^^ Sleep. Frequent yawning as if he had not slept well, with a feeling of coldness on skin, and a sensation as if the wind were blowing on the knees for several hours.

Gaping with cold feeling of the skin.

• Irresistible sleepiness.

She falls asleep in morning while sitting.

Sleepy with great weariness in limbs.

■Sleep very restless during fever, wakens often and falls asleep again. ^^ Time. In morning : sweat on nose ; falls asleep while sit- ting; phlegm in throat; dry cough from scratching under sternum ; chill and flushes on head ; sweating.

In forenoon : constant sneezing.

At noon : sneezing for an hour ; after aching in belly, loose stool.

3 P.M. : backache most violent.

Towards evening: urging without stool.

In evening: chilliness.

At night : night sweats. ^ Fever, l Before chill, thirst and heaviness in legs.

I Chill, commencing with clenching of hands and violent

raging.

■ Evening chilliness without thirst; her feet become cold

first; after this she has a cold shuddering, as if cold water had been poured over her, with painful prickings in centre of vertex for two hours.

I I During chilliness all her joints are painful, as if the ten- dons were too short.

iChill, attended with pain in all joints; sensation as if ten- dons were too short, knee-joints are usually contracted, so that the legs cannot be stretched ; chest feels oppressed, must take a long breath, frequently; irresistible sleepi- ness ; hands and feet as if dead.

■Well-marked chill followed by thirst, no fever. ^Inter- mittent.

■After the chill thirst, drinking, however, causes violent headache ; tickling in larynx, causing dry, continuous cough, which lasts through the heat; oppression of breathing, heaviness in middle of chest, and anxiety; abstaining from drinking > all this.

■The most violent headache, but only after the chill. ^Intermittent.

■ During apyrexia much thirst, less with the chill, during

the dry heat still less, none with the sweat.

■ Chill terminates with a tired feeling in legs, obliging one

to change position constantly. Chilliness, followed by creeping flushes of heat on body, with sensation as if sweat would break out.

CIMEX LECTULARIUS. 140

I Chilliness over whole body, followed by dry heat, which is succeeded by some moisture over skin.

I Heat: without thirst; with gagging; the oesophagus feels constricted; respiration is impeded.

■ Sweat, mostly on head and chest, accompanied by hun- ger but no thirst.

I Musty smelling sweat, the odor is to him very offensive.

■Sweat relieves all other symptoms; during feverish affec- tions.

I Night sweats of several years standing. ^Hemorrhoids.

iTertian and 1 1 quartan intermittent. ^^ Attacks, Periodicity. Often repeated: dry cough; yawn- ing; waking; taking a long breath.

For an hour: sneezing.

For two hours : pricking in centre of vertex.

For several hours : sensation as if wind were blowing on knees.

All day : drinking on account of dryness of throat ; weari- ness with inclination to stretch.

Tertian and quartan intermittent.

For six days : no stool.

For several years: night sweats. ^ Locality and Direction. Right : pressing outward in side of forehead; headache under frontal bone; pain in liver as if he had strained side by bending inward; twitching in muscle of neck; pain in shoulder extend- ing through whole arm down to nails ; pricking pain in muscles at back of upper arm ; pain in hip bone extend- ing below knee.

Left: pressing outward in side of forehead; tightening pains in side of trachea.

From 1. to r. : pain in upper chest; headache. *^ Sensations. As if he would creep into himself and could not sufficiently crouch together; as if tongue was swol- len; as if tongue was scalded; as if burnt on tongue, in region of palate and upper anterior gums; as if throat was contracted; as if she had swallowed too large a morsel; palate and upper gums as if scalded; as if oesophagus were constricted; as if he had been strained by bending r. side inward ; as if fingers were asleep ; as if hamstrings were too short; as if hands and feet were dead; as if tendons were contracted and too short; as if wind were blowing on knees; as if cold water had been poured over her, causing shuddering; as if sweat would break out.

Concussion : in chest behind sternum.

Scraping: cough causing retching; beneath sternum.

Scratching: behind upper portion of sternum, causing cough.

141 . CIMEX LECTULARIUS.

Constriction: of chest.

Tightening pains: in 1. side of trachea; in tendons and

extensor muscles on motion. Tense pain : from 1. upper chest across to r. ; in arms and

middle of chest after coughing; in small of back; in

region of sacrum and loins; in r. hip bone; in thighs;

in all the joints. Dulness: of head.

iThe flexors are most affected; every motion or stretching

side painful to ; sternum painful to. Pressure lessens aching in upper and lower jaw; has to

in intermittents).

CINA. 142