Cuscutta reflexa (Cusc-r) = Teufelszwirn./= Spinnegewuppe/= Kletterpflanze./= Gold.-thread/= hailweed/= hairweed/= hellbine/= love. vine/= strangle. weed/

= witch.'s hair/= Dodder/= angel. hair/= Nesselseide

Vergleich: Asche enthält: 75% K; Enthalten im Scam; Coptis chinensis (= Chinese goldthread/= duǎn è huánglián enthält: Berberin.; Ranunculales.).

Siehe: Solanales + Druck- + Parasiten- + ‡ Mondzeitaltergruppe ‡ + Teergruppe + Unterdrückungsgruppe + Spiralgruppe

Indian Journal of Research in Homoeopathy Vol. 3, No. 3, July-September 2009

[R. Shaw/V.A. Siddiqui/Rajpal/Vinay Kr. Singh/N.R. Dey]

Introduction

The plant is acrid, bitter; astringent to the bowels, aphrodisiac, alterative, tonic; useful in diseases of eye and of the heart, in biliousness, and “kapha” (Ayurveda)

The herb has a bitter sharp taste; is an expectorant, carminative, tonic, antihelmintic, purgative; diaphoric, diuretic; purifies the blood and cleanses the

body; lessens inflammation; useful in jaundice, pains in the muscles and the joints, heat of the brain, headache, paralysis, diseases of the spleen, vomiting

and lumbago.

The seeds have a bitter bad taste; sedative, emmenagogue, diuretic; useful in the diseases of the liver and spleen, quartan fever, chronic fevers, griping,

hiccough; purifies the blood and cleanses the bowels;

the infusion is given in ophthalmia, the decoction in biliousness as a purgative (Unani).

1 The plant contains cuscutalin and cuscutin; cucutalin pharmacologically potent drug; seeds contain pigments amarbelin and cuscutin and a wax and yield

a semi-drying oil.

2 Cuscuta reflexa plant

The plant is regarded as alternative, purgative and antihelmintic. Seeds are carminative and anodyne.

Stem is purgative.

Cold infusion of the seeds is given as a depurative and carminative in pains and stomach-aches.

As poultice they are also applied locally. Its seeds are used along with sarsaparilla to purify blood.

Stems in decoction are useful in constipation, flatulence,

Drug Proving Research Unit (H), Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Objective:

To elicit the pharmacodynamic response of the drug, Cuscuta reflexa (= dodder) on healthy human volunteers, in non-toxic doses.

Proved through a double-blind method. The homoeopathic preparation of the drug was proved in three potencies (6C, 30C and 200C) on 13 volunteers

who were selected and declared apparently healthy during their pre-trial medical examination by specialists and through their routine pathological

investigations. The volunteers took 56 doses (four doses per day for fourteen days) of each potency (6C, 30C and 200C) in 3 stages

for a varying period. The symptoms generated during the trial period were noted by the volunteers and elaborated and cross-examined by the Proving

Master. The data obtained from the Drug

Proving Center was compiled at drug proving-cum-data processing cell at Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH) headquarters after

decoding the drug.

Observation:

Out of the 9 volunteers who were on actual drug trial, 8 manifested symptoms. The drug was able to produce symptoms in each potency. Only one

symptom appeared in more than one prover.

Conclusion:

Pharmacodynamic responses elicited during the proving trial will add to the literature available on the drug and benefit the research scholars and

clinicians. This also needs verification through clinical trials.

Liver complaints and bilious affections.

Varalians of the dodder are highly useful in piles.

Externally they are used against itch and other skin diseases. The fruits are used in fever and cough.

Common throughout India, the plant is abundant in Bengal plains. It has no root under the ground but only grows as a parasite twiner on other plants, and

hence called akaswel (sky-twiner) or amarwel (immortal twiner), because it grows during the rains and every year the growth is afresh on the same plant.

Part used in Homoeopathy

Twining stem.

Results:

Vertigo: with pain in neck and hands with constant nausea

Vertigo on standing, on empty stomach, walking; > after eating, rest

Head: Dull headache with fever

Throbbing pain in right side of head with mild fever

Frontal headache; < in evening with fever and bodyache

Violent cutting pain in occiput with heaviness; < in cold air; > by drinking hot tea

Severe throbbing pain in temporal regions;

< after sleep in afternoon

Pain in right side of temple, “As if beaten by hammers”

Throbbing pain extends to right parietal region; < waking up in morning; > after eating

Eyes: Burning pain in eyes with lachrymation

Burning pain in eyes with coryza and lachrymation

Redness and burning pain in both eyes with headache

Stye on lower eyelid with redness and pus

Nose: Running nose, < in rainy cold weather/fanning

Sneezing, running nose, < in open air/going outside; > in warm room;

Sneezing without discharge from nose, but with burning sensation in nose and throat

Face: Pain in mandibular joints, < chewing

Reddish small eruptions on face with severe itching

Mouth: Bleeding from gums while brushing the teeth in morning

Gums tender and teeth of lower jaw sensitive

Vesicular eruptions inside lower lip

Tingling sensation in mouth when drinking cold water, eating sweets; > holding hot water/tea in mouth;

Throat: Pricking pain in throat, < swallowing liquid; > drinking hot liquid (tea)

White patches on both the tonsils

Soreness of throat - with mild cough/< cold drinks; > in morning with little expectoration

Stomach: Loss of appetite (thirst for water)

Vomiting tendency, < at night

Vomiting just after taking food

Constant nausea with pain in neck and hands

Thirst increased/thirst for large quantity of cold water

Abdomen: Pain in abdomen, < after taking food

Severe pressing pain in abdomen, radiates upwards

Cutting pain in upper part of left side of abdomen

Rectum: Ineffectual desire for stool; passes with great straining; bleeding after stool

Much offensive flatus passes with stool

Diarrhoea at night

Stool: normal in consistency but blood drops after stool

Hard stool passed with pain and bleeding from rectum followed by loose watery stool which passes forcefully

Hard black stool passed with great straining

Stool small, stony hard

Sudden, watery, offensive, yellowish stool

Female organs: Violent itching in both labial commissures; itching followed by bleeding, burning

Larynx and trachea: Hoarseness of voice

Respiration: Difficulty in breathing with nausea and severe abdominal pain

Cough: Dry cough with cold and coryza

Dry paroxysmal cough with stitching pain in chest

Paroxysmal dry cough with pain in throat, < talking; > drinking cold water;

Cough with little expectoration, < morning

Chest: Electric pain in left side of chest, < evening

Stitching pain in left side of chest, < walking

Wheezing in chest with coryza and redness of eyes

Limbs: Pain between the shoulders, radiates to both hands up to fingers, < by movement, driving (scooter), lifting weight, > by rest;

Pain in both hands, radiates from the nape of neck.

Pain goes up to little finger, < bending neck forward; > lying down;

Pain in left shoulder up to left side of neck, radiates to back of hand up to the tips of fingers, < cold application/movement/jerk; > hot application;

Burning pain behind the left knee, < from morning to afternoon; > applying cold water;

Violent cramping pain in lower extremities, > pressure;

Pustular eruptions near right elbow with swelling down to hand with pain, < touch/jerk; > cold application;

Itching of upper and lower extremities with dryness, < in open air/putting off clothes; > cold water bath/after scratching;

Fever: with chill, loose stool and vomiting

Feverish feeling with bodyache and frontal headache, < evening;

Mild fever with throbbing pain in head

Great weakness, tired feeling with fever

Malaise and general weakness with occasional chill and sometimes hot feeling with headache, bodyache

General weakness with fever, loose stool and vomiting

Skin: Urticarial eruptions on body, hands, lips with severe itching; burning after scratching

Pustular eruptions with mild fever, cold air unbearable

Generalities: Weakness and tiredness; < morning;

Discussion

Drug was able to produce symptoms in 6C, 30C and 200C potencies. No mental symptom was observed. Only one symptom viz. redness and burning pain

in both eyes with headache appeared in more than one volunteer. Symptoms like nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite corroborate its toxic effects and

symptoms like constipation seem to be its secondary action as its primary action causes purging. Drug seems to be indicated in gastrointestinal disorders,

headache, sinusitis, conjunctivitis, cold, coryza, cough and fever.

A concomitant symptom of constant nausea with pain in neck and hands was also found. These symptoms may help in clinical application of the medicine.

It is possible that there might have been partial proving of the drug at individual level but it is not published in available homoeopathic literature.

Conclusion

The symptoms observed during the proving indicates that this drug may be useful in the clinical conditions like conjunctivitis, stye, cough, coryza,

cervical spondylosis and urticarial eruptions on symptom similarity basis. Symptoms that appeared during the trial will add to the available literature on

this medicine and benefit the research scholars and clinicians for clinical use.

Vorwort/Suchen Zeichen/Abkürzungen Impressum