Naja Tripudia - General symptoms - Clarke

GENERAL

General

Naja tripudians. Cobra di Capello. The hooded Bothrops Lanceolatus ^snake of Hindustan. N. O. Elapidae. Tincture of the fresh virus. Trituration of sugar of milk saturated with fresh virus.

The poison of the deadly cobra has been used from ancient times, says P. C. Majumdar (Indium Metallicum ^Ind. Hom. Rev., vi. 6), by Indian practitioners in many nervous and blood diseases.

It was introduced into homoeopathy by Russell and Stokes, who made the first provings along with some forty other provers, including Gillow, Pope, and Drysdale.

It is rather remarkable that with so many able provers Naja should not have attained anything approaching the place of importance occupied by Lachesis ^Lach.

Nash suggests this may be due to the fact that many of the provings of Lachesis ^Lach. were made with the 30th potency, whilst those of Naja were with low potencies.

Majumdar had no success with Naja until he obtained fresh virus from the Bothrops Lanceolatus ^snake charmers (the cobra is the Bothrops Lanceolatus ^snake they charm) and made attenuations of that.

Previously the Naja used by Indian homoeopaths had been re-imported into India from England in the form of attenuations.

Deane in his experience in the plague epidemic of 1899-1900 found Naja prepared from the fresh virus more efficacious than Lachesis ^Lachesis, and he found its action more prompt if injected under the skin than if given by the mouth.

The affinity of Naja for the medulla oblongata and cerebellum is well shown in an experience of Frank Buckland (Curiosities of Natural History, 2nd edition, 225, quoted C. D. P.) after skinning a rat killed by a cobra bite "I had not walked a hundred yards before all of a sudden I felt just as if somebody had come behind me and struck me a severe blow on the head and neck, and at the same time I experienced a most acute pain and sense of oppression at the chest, as though a hot iron had been run in and a hundredweight put on the top of it." His face turned green.

He staggered into a chemist's shop and managed to get some ammonia, and was then able to walk to a friend's house, where he drank four large wineglasses of brandy without feeling tipsy.

He was then able to start for his own house, and for the first time felt a most acute pain under the nail of left thumb, the pain running up the arm.

About an hour before he examined the rat he had cleaned his nail with a penknife, and had slightly separated the skin, and that was how the virus entered.

These symptoms of Buckland's are highly characteristic and valuable.

The "hot-iron" symptom and weight on the chest should be especially noted.

Majumdar (Indium Metallicum ^Ind. H. R., vi. 8) relates this case A young woman suffering from a heart affection had oppression of chest amounting almost to suffocation feeble, irregular, almost imperceptible pulse; anaemic appearance inability to speak.

One dose of Naja was given, followed in four hours by a second.

These sufficed for the cure.

The next day, when the doctor called, his patient addressed him in a loud voice "Doctor, you gave me a poison last night." When asked to explain, she said that after the first dose she "felt awful heat in her system." This must be put beside Buckland's hot iron as a Naja indication.

Majumdar has saved a number of apparently hopeless cases of cholera with Naja, in the collapse stage, with pulselessness and difficulty of breathing.

Symptoms agg. at night; on walking; by lying on left side.

Ina case cured by Russell there was "dragging and anxiety in the praecordia occurring in great grief." According to Hering, nervous phenomena predominate in Naja over other Bothrops Lanceolatus ^serpent poisons.

It "acts primarily upon nervous system, especially on respiratory nerves, pneumo-gastric, and glosso-pharyngeal." The last gives the characteristic "choking" of Naja and other serpents.

Andrew M. Neatby (M. H. R., December, 1899) relates a cure with Naja 6 which had nervous palpitations and faintness; frequent sensation of swelling or "choking" in the throat, with dyspnoea, and occasionally of anaesthesia down right side.

Another characteristic is "grasping at throat" with the choking sensations.

OEsophagismus. Diphtheria with impending paralysis of heart indicates Naja, but the characteristic left to right direction of Lachesis ^Lach. does not appear in the Naja provings.

Naja has, however, agg. at night; patient awakens gasping; surface blue.

Naja has somewhat marked neuralgias and headaches Neuralgic pain in head, preceded or followed by nausea or vomiting, severe, throbbing in left orbital region drawing from thence back to occiput; from over-eating; from mental or physical exertion.

Headache after cessation of catamenia.

Dull, heavy constriction in forehead on waking.

Dull shoots up occiput.

Among the Sensations of Naja are "screwing-up" sensations and crampy pains as if head screwed together; as if heart and ovary were drawn up together; crampy pains in left ovary; pains in temple and ovarian regions.

Pain from heart to scapula.

Sensation as of a hair in larynx; pain as from needles in tonsil.

The left side is predominantly affected.

Mahlon Preston (Med. Adv., xviii. 532) cured himself with Naja 30 of asthma with difficult breathing, agg. lying down, amel. sitting up.

He cured many cases of hay-fever and autumnal catarrh, the symptoms being.

($51$) Flow of water from nose for a few minutes.

then (2) intense sneezing, which amel. the breathing. After recurring for a few days there is dryness in the lungs with great difficulty of breathing, agg. on lying down, Kent cured with Naja 45m a case having these symptoms "Almost constant heat of head and face. Pulse slow, sometimes as slow as 45. Cannot endure any mental exertion. Sweating of palms. Appetite voracious. Stitching pains in heart" (Med. Adv., xxii. 164). "Sweating palms" was a symptom which had been present from childhood and was cured with the others. Flora A. Waddell (H. R., viii. 445) relates a case in which heart pains were concomitant with left ovarian affection. The pains came on a week before menses, increased till the flow appeared, and then disappeared till next month. Naja entirely relieved. The following case was cured by Bunn (H. W., xxxi. 501) Miss S., 22, dysmenia since the function was established. Dilatation, galvanism, &c., had been tried in vain. She had shooting frontal headache, pains in eyeballs necessitating rubbing. Cramp pain in region of left. ovary. Faintness. Hypogastrium extremely sensitive to touch at time of menses. Examination revealed nothing abnormal except sensitiveness of ovarian region. Extreme restlessness with the pain. During the menses the pains suddenly became very severe. The flow stopped when the pain was at its worst, and returned next day with relief from pain. Naja 30 was given, and the next period passed absolutely free from discomfort. The symptoms are agg. By touch.

riding in carriage. at 3 p.m. (headache).

at night. after sleep.

by eating by alcohol. by exertion.

by motion. by walking.

lying on side on left side. Great amel. of pain and breathing by lying on right side. Very sensitive to cold. amel. By walking in open air.

by smoking.

Clinical

Angina pectoris. Asthma. Dysmenia. Hay-fever. Headache. Heart, affections of. Oesophagus, spasmodic stricture of. Ovaries, affections of. Plague. Spinal irritation (of nucha). Throat, sore.