Podophyllum Peltatum

Where are our original studies of this important remedy ?

In the Materia Medica of American Provings and Hale's New Remedies .

What is Podophyllum ?

It is the May apple or Mandrake ; its alkaloid is Podophyllin .

What part do we use, when gathered and how is the tincture prepared ?

The fresh root gathered after the fruiting season is treated in the same way as described under Gelsemium . The tincture is brownish orange color, has a bitter acrid taste.

Give its general action.

It chiefly affects the intestinal canal, especially the small intestine, producing a kind of gastro-enteritis ; it also produces an irritable condition of the rectum and anus, with piles and prolapsed rectal mucous membrane.

Give the characteristics of Podophyllum in diarrhoea.

A painless morning diarrhoea of watery, yellow stools, which are profuse and pour out like water from a hydrant, preceded by retching and vomiting, followed by a sensation of great weakness in the abdomen, and especially in the rectum ; the stools are worse after eating and drinking, and there is apt to be a natural stool later in the day.

The essentials are :

2. Watery, pasty, yellow or undigested, forcibly expelled.

Is it ever useful in the diarrhoeas of dentition ?

In greenish, watery stools, with grinding of the teeth, rolling of the head, whining and moaning during sleep, it is an excellent remedy.

What is another indicating feature of Podophyllum in diarrhoea ?

Prolapsus of the rectum during stool.

What are the liver symptoms of Podophyllum ?

Torpid or chronically congested liver ; the liver is swollen and sensitive ; the face is yellow and also the whites of the eyes ; there is a bad taste in the mouth ; the tongue is yellow or white and takes the imprint of the teeth ; there may be also constipation and clay-colored stools from absence of bile.

Caulophyllum thalictroides.

Where is the pathogenesis of Caulophyllum found ?

In Hale's New Remedies .

What is Caulophyllum and how prepared ?

It is the blue Cohosh , papoose root, or squaw root, and the tincture is made from the fresh root gathered early in the season when growth begins, in the same manner as the preceding.

What is its general physiological action ?

It acts especially on the muscular tissues of the female generative organs, and on the smaller joints.

What are its uterine symptoms ?

It produces a spasm of the uterus and is useful in dysmenorrhoea ; there is a sensation as if the uterus were congested, with fullness and tension in the hypo gastric region.

When should it be used during labor ?

When the pains are intermittent, sharp and crampy, and appear in the groin, bladder and lower extremities ; they are spasmodic and fly from one place to another ; patient is exhausted and weak.

What is another indication for its use in the puerperal state ?

In false labor pains occurring during last month of pregnancy.

What is still another use of Caulophyllum ?

Rheumatism of the small joints of hands and feet, and flying pains in the limbs.

Copyright © Médi-T 2002

Main