Writer’s cramp :: Cramp in thumb – Writer’s cramp – Cyclamen

Sri D.N. an employee of the Railways met me incidentally at the counter of the Reservation Office at Ajmer Rly. Station on 9.1.67 when I went there to make reservation for the Kottayam Homoeopathic Conference.

He knew me but I had not met him earlier. He took this opportunity of asking me a patent homoeopathic medicine for his complaint “Writer’s Cramp” from which he was suffering for the last few years. I explained to him that it was not possible for me to suggest any drug without going into the case fully and so advised him to come to the hospital.

The patient came to see me on 3.3.67. On asking how it started he told me that it started after he was sent to a busy Railway station where he had to send several hundred messages on telegraphic lines. He explained that formerly he was not used to so much work. It seemed that his fingers possibly could not bear the strain and so his troubles began. The patient had great difficulty so he was given a clerical job. But here too, he found writing extremely difficult and had to hold his right wrist with the left hand while writing. I could not get any other significant point in the history.

The patient tried Allopathic treatment but it did not do him any good. His condition deteriorated so much that he was afraid of losing his job. The patient told me that he had taken Mag. Phos 1000 1 dose and Gelsemium 1000 1 dose in alternate weeks on some body’s advice and he had obtained relief from pain. I decided to give a fair trial to this prescription and the patient took these two drugs in alternate weeks till 18.6.67. The patient experienced some improvement but whenever his writing work was more he experienced more pain and cramps. Therefore, I decided to change.

In Boericke’s Therapeutic Index for writer’s cramp two drugs Arg M. and Sulph. Ac. are mentioned. To me Arg. Met seemed to be applicable for this case and I gave this drug in 6th potency and later went up to the 200th but no appreciable change was noticed.

On 29.8.67 I consulted Kent’s Repertory and on page 972 under the section Extremities Cramps, found the rubric “Cramps. Forearm flexing.” I had noticed that when the patient wrote, his whole hand including the forearm jumped off. I felt the above rubric nearer to the symptom observed. This rubric listed only 2 drugs Arn. and Muriatic Acid, both in low type. I tried Muriatic Acid 200 and later 1000 one dose a week followed by Sac Lac till 10.10.67 but got no where. So on 16.11.67 I searched further. I gave the patient something to write. As he was writing I noticed that the cramps were most marked in the thumb i.e. as soon as the patient held the pen in between the thumb and the index finger, his thumb refused to write because of the cramps. I consulted Kent’s Repertory again and was surprised to find the symptom under rubric “Cramps thumb writing, while (page 973). The drugs mentioned were 3 Amyl N., Brachyglottis and Cyclamen. The last drug was in italics. On looking up these drugs in Boericke’s Materia Medica, I found under Cyclamen “Cramplike contraction of right thumb and index finger.” I gave Cyclamen in 1000 Potency 1 dose followed by Sac Lac for a week.

After a week the report was most encouraging. I went on repeating this prescription. On 9.3.68 the patient said that he was 75% better. Few doses of Cyclamen 1M repeated at monthly interval completely cured him.

About Sub-editor

Top related spiritindia.com articles

1. Writer’s Cramp :: Brain abnormalities found in people with writer’s cramp
2. Homeopathic Medicine :: CYCLAMEN
3. Dystonia :: Musician’s cramp may run in families
4. Botox :: Botox injections to cure Writer’s cramp
5. Homeopathic Medicine :: Cuprum Metallicum – Copper
6. Significance of rubrics in Kent and other repertories