Mephitis putorius
Mephitis mephitis · Animal
The Mephitis patient is primarily a child or adult with severe spasmodic respiratory complaints, especially whooping cough. The cough is so violent it seems life-threatening, with inability to exhale and cyanosis. The patient desires to bathe in ice-cold water. Mental excitability with inability to sleep or work accompanies the physical symptoms.
Key symptoms
- Violent spasmodic and whooping cough, worse at night
- Cough so violent each spell seems it would terminate life
- Cannot exhale during cough paroxysm; child turns blue in face
- False croup with suffocative paroxysms
- Mucous rales through upper chest
- Few paroxysms in day-time but many at night with vomiting after eating
- Asthma as if inhaling sulphur
- Sudden contraction of glottis when drinking or talking
Worse (aggravation)
- Night (cough worse with many paroxysms)
- Talking
Better (amelioration)
- Ice-cold water (patient wants to bathe in it)
Skunk (MEPHITIS)
A great medicine for whooping-cough. In order to insure its full success, it should be given in the lower dilutions from 1x to 3x. Suffocative feeling, asthmatic paroxysms, spasmodic cough; cough so violent, seems as if each spell would terminate life. Child must be raised up, gets blue in face, cannot exhale, Mucous rales through upper part of chest. Patient wants to bathe in ice-cold water.
Mind
Excited, full of fancies. Can neither sleep nor work.
Eyes
Pain from overexertion; blur; unable to distinguish letters; conjunctiva red; eyes hot and painful.
Mouth
Painful jerks in root of teeth. Bloated face. Coppery taste, as after eating onions.
Respiratory
Sudden contraction of glottis, when drinking or talking. Food goes down wrong way. False croup; cannot exhale. Spasmodic and whooping-cough. Few paroxysms in day-time, but many at night; with vomiting after eating. Asthma, as if inhaling sulphur; cough from talking; hollow, deep, with rawness, hoarseness, and pains through chest. Violent spasmodic cough; worse at night.
Sleep
Awakes at night with rush of blood to lower legs. Vivid dream of water, fire, etc.
Relationship
Compare: Dros; Coral; Sticta.
Dose
First to third potency. Has a very short action.
Mephitis putorius. Skunk. N. O. Mustelidæ. Alcoholic dilution of the liquid contained in the anal glands.
Clinical
Asthma. Blindness. Choking, easy. Cold, sensitiveness to. Eyes, affections of. Laryngismus. Sight, weak. Whooping-cough.
Characteristics
Mephitis was proved by Hering in the 30th. Among the symptoms he developed was "choking while eating or drinking," and "cough on reading aloud, while talking, and after drinking; caused by choking." Lower ribs painful to touch or pressure, esp. < on coughing or sneezing. Neidhard gave Meph. to "a young man afflicted with symptoms of consumption," in whom it produced "a spasmodic cough with a crowing sound, lasting all night and returning several times." This homœopathic aggravation suggested to Neidhard to use Meph. in whooping-cough, and this is his conclusion, quoted by Hering: "If the facts collected since 1851, which are numerous, do not prove that Meth. will supersede all other remedies in whooping-cough, it certainly may be considered a valuable …
Phatak's chapter on Mephitis putorius is available in the app.
Read Phatak in the appClassical texts are in the public domain. Educational reference only — not medical advice.
