Eserinum
Physostigmine · Plant · Fabaceae
Eserinum is indicated in conditions involving spasm of the eye muscles including ciliary spasm, astigmatism from irregular ciliary action, blepharospasm, and glaucoma. It suits patients with excessive secretions (sweat, saliva, tears) combined with cardiac weakness and collapse.
Key symptoms
- Contraction of pupil with slow reaction to light
- Ciliary spasm and spasm of accommodation causing astigmatism
- Blepharospasm — clonic spasm of eyelids, upper lid failing on lower
- Violent headache with profuse sudden vomiting
- Profuse sweating of face and upper body
- Excessive flow of saliva
- Heart rate sinks; pulse small and thready
- Apathy, pallor, and collapse
Eserine. Physostigmine. The alkaloid of Physostigma venenosum, Calabar Bean. C15 H21 N3 O2. Trituration or solution.
Clinical
Blepharospasm. Ciliary spasm. Glaucoma. Headache. Pupil, contracted. Salivation. Sweat, excessive.
Characteristics
Eserine is best known as used by oculists to procure contraction of the pupils in glaucoma. It has been used by Fenoch of Berlin (H. R., iv. 127) in a case of chorea in a child of nine. Half a millegramme of Eser. sulph. was injected into the right upper arm, and the following proving was the result: In fifteen minutes the child cried out loudly, vomited profusely, and complained of violent headache. Soon the face and upper part of the body became covered with profuse sweat. Half an hour later the flow of saliva was increased. The heart-beats sank to 64, radial artery contracted, pulse small and thready. After repeated vomitings signs of cardiac weakness increased in spite of remedies, whilst sweat and saliva decreased, and in one half-hour had disappeared. A moderate …
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