Syn: belladonna, crazy cherry, crazy berry, sleepy stupor.

The plant is poisonous!

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Flower formula

Belladonna flower formula: *CH5L5T5P2.

In medicine

Perennial tall herbaceous, very poisonous plant. Has important medicinal properties. It is used to obtain alkaloids atropine, hyascyamine, scopolamine, as well as for the preparation of drugs atropine, asthmamol, besalol, belloid, etc.

Contraindications and side effects

With systemic use of belladonna preparations, the following are possible: headache, nervousness, drowsiness, weakness, dizziness, ataxia, speech impairment, dry mouth, loss of taste, loss of appetite, constipation, as well as blurred vision and photophobia. This must be taken into account when prescribing atropine to people whose profession involves a high degree of responsibility, for example, drivers, pilots, etc. When applied topically, the following are often observed: increased intraocular pressure, visual impairment, paralysis of accommodation and photophobia. In case of an overdose of atropine, toxic phenomena may develop, manifested in motor agitation, blackouts, convulsions, and hallucinations.

All parts of belladonna are extremely toxic - consuming ten to twenty of its black, shiny berries, about the size of a small cherry, can be fatal. The alkaloid atropine contained in belladonna is contraindicated in glaucoma and breastfeeding, as it can cause deterioration in lactation. It is also contraindicated in intestinal atony, stenotic gastrointestinal diseases, acute ulcerative colitis, mechanical intestinal obstruction and atonic constipation. In addition, it is not recommended to take belladonna for benign hyperplasia prostate gland, acute pulmonary edema, pronounced atherosclerosis, tachycardia, arrhythmia, exhaustion and increased sensitivity to it.

In hot weather, the use of belladonna may contribute to heatstroke in the patient.

The dose of belladonna preparations, the frequency of their use and the duration of administration are always prescribed individually and depend on the indications, the age of the patient and the dosage form used.

Overdose

In case of overdose, patients experience: nausea, vomiting, tachycardia, myocardial ischemia, urticaria, decreased sweating, hyperthermia. Also possible: arrhythmia, hallucinations and other side effects. In case of overdose, urgent gastric lavage is prescribed and the patient is admitted to a hospital.

Classification

Belladonna or belladonna (lat. Atropa belladonna) is a species of the genus Belladonna (lat. Atropa) from the nightshade family (lat. Solanaceae).

Botanical description

Belladonna or belladonna has a multi-headed rhizome, with numerous thick branched roots. Succulent, branched, powerful stems, up to 0.5-2 m high, covered with dense dark green foliage. At the top they are divided into 3 branches, which then branch again in a forked or false whorl-like manner. It has entire, petiolate, bare leaves, the lower ones are alternate, and the upper ones are brought together in pairs. Large leaves are up to 22 cm long and up to 11 cm wide, and small leaves are 7.5 cm 3.5 cm, respectively. One of two pairwise leaves close together is always much larger than the other, while large leaves are usually elliptical, pointed, and paired leaves are small, ovoid. The flowers, located in the leaf axils, are drooping, solitary, quite large, five-membered, bell-shaped, regular, with a double perianth, have a brown-violet corolla, up to 20-30 mm long and 14-20 mm wide. The calyx is five-toothed, the corolla has 5 bent lobes, there are 5 stamens. Belladonna flower formula: *Х5Л5Т5П2. The belladonna fruit is a black, shiny, juicy, multi-seeded berry the size of a cherry. It has a sweetish-sour taste and is poisonous, like the whole plant. Belladonna blooms in June-August and bears fruit in July.

Spreading

Not large number species (4-5) are distributed in Europe, North Africa, Western Asia. In wild form, 2-3 species of belladonna grow in the mountain deciduous forests of the Caucasus and Crimea, and are also found in the middle part of the mountains of Transcaucasia, in the Krasnodar Territory.

For industrial use, belladonna is currently grown on large plantations in the Krasnodar Territory and Voronezh Region.

Regions of distribution on the map of Russia.

Procurement of raw materials

In medicine, leaves, grass, and roots are used as medicinal raw materials. In a warm climate and with good care, belladonna plantations can be used for more than 5 years. During the summer, the leaves are collected 2 to 5 times and dried in dryers. The leaves of wild belladonna are collected by hand. At the beginning of flowering, the lower leaves are collected before the stem branches, towards the end of flowering - from young branches, then in the process of seed formation, the plant is mowed at a height of 10 cm from the ground. The mown grass is chopped into pieces up to 4 cm long and then dried. The roots are dug up in the fall, washed, divided into pieces up to 10-20 cm long, if necessary, splitting them lengthwise and dried. Thus, three types of raw materials are obtained: leaves (pharmacopoeial raw materials), cut grass (used in galenic production) and roots (used in galenic production, sometimes for the extraction of atropine). The leaves and grass are dried quickly, in special dryers, at 40°C, and the roots are dried in air. The crop is grown in one place for 5-6 years. The shelf life of leaves is 2 years, roots - 3 years.

Chemical composition

Alkaloids - mainly atropine and hyoscyamine are contained in roots - 4%, leaves - 0.14-1.2%, stems - 0.2-0.65%, flowers - 0.24-0.6%, ripe fruits - 0.7%. Belladonna leaves also contain scopolamine (hyoscine), apoatropine, belladonine, as well as volatile bases: N-methylpyrroline, N-methylpyrrolidine, pyridine, as well as flavonoids, oxycoumarins. The roots contain the alkaloid cushygrin.

Pharmacological properties

The main alkaloid contained in belladonna, atropine, dilates the pupil by blocking the M-cholinergic receptors of the circular muscle of the iris. It also suppresses the secretion of almost all glands of the gastrointestinal tract (salivary, gastrointestinal, pancreatic), the secretion of sweat glands and relaxes the smooth muscles of the bronchi and stomach. Large doses of atropine can cause motor and mental agitation, affecting the cerebral cortex.

Use in folk medicine

In folk medicine, the use of this dangerous poisonous plant has now been abandoned. But in herbal books written in the Middle Ages, it was noted that belladonna grass, cut and applied, heals all ulcers and tumors, inflamed stomach and liver, while quenching fever. Also, belladonna extracts with wine and juices were taken both internally and as an external remedy for pain of various origins.

Historical background

The genus name Atropa is given in honor of the Greek goddess of death, Atropa, the eldest of the three moirae - goddesses of fate. According to legend, the first parka, named Clotho, held a spindle and the thread of fate in her hands, the second, Lachesis, took a ball from an urn to write on it everything that was coming in a person’s life. Atropa cut the thread of life with scissors. The specific name belladonna comes from the Italian words bella - “beautiful” and donna - “woman”. In ancient sources there is practically no mention of the use of belladonna in medicine, although there is no doubt that its poisonous properties were already known in those days. Belladonna is mentioned as a medicinal plant in De Materia Medica, written by Dioscorides in 40-90 AD. Only in medieval herbalists did detailed information about this medicinal plant appear, for example, in Fox's herbalism, published in the second half of the 15th century. In addition, already in those days people began to use belladonna as a source of poison. In the Middle Ages, women dropped the juice of this plant into their eyes, the pupil “dilated” and a special shine appeared in the eyes. The ladies rubbed the red juice on their cheeks. More recently, a drink was prepared from belladonna, and was also used as one of the components of the famous “sorcerers’ ointment” along with henbane and later dope. When this ointment was rubbed into the skin, the subjects fell asleep for twenty-four hours and felt like they were spinning in the air. When they woke up, they believed that they had really participated in a witchcraft Sabbath. German toxicologist Gustav Schenk himself was convinced that such a feeling of flight was the result of the action of henbane. He deliberately breathed in the smoke of the lit henbane seeds and immediately felt intense arousal, strange condition“bliss”, which he described as a crazy impression of weightlessness of the legs, increased in volume and separated from the body, as well as the euphoria of the state of flight. In 1813, many French soldiers of Napoleon's army were poisoned by belladonna berries while stationed near the city of Pirna in Germany, some of them died.

Literature

1. Blinova K.F. et al. Botanical-pharmacognostic dictionary: Reference. allowance / Ed. K. F. Blinova, G. P. Yakovleva. - M.: Higher. school, 1990. - P. 187. - ISBN 5-06-000085-0.

2. State Pharmacopoeia of the USSR. Eleventh edition. Issue 1 (1987), issue 2 (1990).

3. State Register of Medicines. Moscow 2004.

4. Ilyina T.A. Medicinal plants of Russia (Illustrated encyclopedia). - M., "EXMO" 2006.

5. Zamyatina N.G. Medicinal plants. Encyclopedia of Russian nature. M. 1998.

6. Kuchina N.L. Medicinal plants middle zone European part of Russia - M.: Planeta, 1992. - 157 p.

7. Medicinal plants: Reference manual. / N.I. Grinkevich, I.A. Balandina, V.A. Ermakova and others; Ed. N.I. Grinkevich - M.: Higher School, 1991. - 398 p.

8. Medicinal plants of the state pharmacopoeia. Pharmacognosy. (Edited by I.A. Samylina, V.A. Severtsev). - M., “AMNI”, 1999.

9. Medicinal plant raw materials. Pharmacognosy: Textbook. allowance / Ed. G.P. Yakovlev and K.F. Blinova. - SPb.: Special. Lit, 2004. - 765 p.

10. Lesiovskaya E.E., Pastushenkov L.V. "Pharmacotherapy with the basics of herbal medicine." Study guide. - M.: GEOTAR-MED, 2003.

11. Maznev V.I. Encyclopedia of medicinal plants - M.: Martin. 2004. - 496 p.

12. Mannfried Palov. "Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants". Ed. Ph.D. biol. Sciences I.A. Gubanova. Moscow, "Mir", 1998.

13. Mashkovsky M.D. "Medicines." In 2 volumes - M., Novaya Volna Publishing House LLC, 2000.

14. Novikov V. S., Gubanov I. A. Rod Spruce (Picea) // Popular atlas-identifier. Wild plants. — 5th ed., stereotype. - M.: Bustard, 2008. - P. 65-66. — 415 p. — (Popular atlas-identifier). — 5000 copies. — ISBN 978-5-358-05146-1. — UDC 58(084.4)

15. Nosov A.M. Medicinal plants in official and traditional medicine. M.: Eksmo Publishing House, 2005. - 800 p.

16. Plants for us. Reference manual / Ed. G.P. Yakovleva, K.F. Blinova. - Publishing house "Educational Book", 1996. - 654 p.

17. Plant resources of Russia: Wild flowering plants, their component composition and biological activity. Edited by A.L. Budantseva. T.5. M.: Partnership scientific publications KMK, 2013. - 312 p.

18. Sokolov S. Ya. Medicinal plants. - Alma-Ata: Medicine, 1991. - P. 118. - ISBN 5-615-00780-X.

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20. Turova A.D. "Medicinal plants of the USSR and their use." Moscow. "Medicine". 1974.

21. “Herbal medicine with the basics of clinical pharmacology”, ed. V.G. Kukesa. - M.: Medicine, 1999.

22. Chikov P.S. “Medicinal plants” M.: Medicine, 2002.

Belladonna, or sleeping stupor, has been known to the medical world since about 1500 BC. The Venetians called this plant "herba bella donna" because ladies consumed it in distilled water as cosmetic product. The plant, especially the leaves, contains the well-known atropine, as well as asparagine, then lime and other alkaline substances. The root also contains atropine, although in varying proportions. Belladonna is highly poisonous to humans, although herbivores eat it with impunity.

As a poison, Belladonna causes the following symptoms: eyes dry and bloodshot; the face is red, swollen and burning; the skin is scarlet-red in color or dotted with pimples, extremely similar to a scarlet fever rash; strong rush of blood, especially to the head; painful dryness of the mouth and throat, extending downward and causing frequent swallowing and suffocating spasms of the pharynx and glottis. Extreme thirst, but worse from water; dizziness, brain fog, hallucinations and finally numbness. The pupils are so dilated that the iris is almost invisible. Muscle twitching; convulsions. Such cases of poisoning are not uncommon in Europe, where the plant is native and where its berries are mixed with cherries. Here, too, there were cases of accidental and intentional (for the purpose of suicide) poisoning with this plant. As an antidote, a gastric pump, an emetic made from hot water with mustard and strong coffee without cream and sugar are used.

Belladonna has been known as a homeopathic remedy almost since the beginning of homeopathy. The symptomatology of this remedy, based on experiments and cases of poisoning, gives us the opportunity to use it with mathematical certainty if it is indicated in a given case. But like all polychrests, it is abused by hasty and inattentive doctors and is often given in cases where its similarity with the case being treated is only superficial and partial.

We have had to compare Belladonna with other remedies so often in previous lectures that you already have some familiarity with it. Therefore, many of its symptoms can only be listed briefly. But first of all, let me tell you a few words about the general character of Belladonna. It seems to be best suited for plethoric individuals, subject to flushes of blood, especially to the head more often than to any other part of the body, for individuals who are more corpulent and phlegmatic, somewhat similar to Calcarea ostrearum, but without the pallor characteristic of this last resort. Belladonna patients are affectionate and contented, cheerful when they feel well, but they become extremely irritable and intractable when they are unwell. Their courtesy and affection, which makes them seemingly so sociable, apparently turns into the opposite state when they fall ill. For Belladonna to be given to children, cerebral symptoms must be present. There must be irritation of the brain, as evidenced by twitching of the limbs, irritability in children, making them capricious, or complete inflammation of the meninges.

Belladonna is also indicated for inflammations that are severe, appear suddenly, and are almost overwhelming in their severity. We can remember it in abscesses, whether it be an abscess of the tonsil, a boil, or some other type of abscess, when pus forms with extreme rapidity. Therefore, we find it indicated for phlegmonous erysipelas, quickly turning into suppuration. The sore spots become very swollen, and pus makes its way into the tissue between the various muscles. The suddenness of the disease indicates Belladonna. The pain is quite consistent with the nature of this remedy. They appear suddenly, continue for a more or less long period of time and then stop as suddenly as they began. With this we will finish describing the general character of Belladonna.

Before we go any further, we need to understand the effects of Belladonna on the brain. In reviewing the symptoms of this remedy, I come to the conclusion that Belladonna does not so much cause inflammation of the meninges as the development of secondary symptoms of inflammation. Aconitum causes inflammation of the meninges with increased effusion; further, Bryonia causes inflammation with effusion of white blood cells and blood plasma, i.e. complete inflammation. Belladonna seems to cause predominantly congestion. The congested blood vessels are seen to rupture and give rise to small reddish spots or ecchymoses in the tissues, thus causing congestive irritation of the brain beneath its membrane. This congestive irritation is followed by an effusion of serum, precisely the kind of effusion that always occurs from venous congestion. This is a non-inflammatory effusion, rich in plasma, which is described in Bryonia, Apis and Sulfur, but not in Belladonna. However, Belladonna produces so many side symptoms of cerebral irritation that we find its use in this condition necessary. What special symptoms are they showing it? They are as follows: Rush of blood to the head. In a milder form, this may consist of a simple feeling of heat in the head, while the legs are cold. In other cases and in more severe forms we find the face red and the whites of the eyelids bloodshot. The patient complains of a severe headache. He may be drowsy or suffer from insomnia. Often these last symptoms alternate, that is, at times the patient is drowsy and falls into a deep sleep, and upon awakening he shudders, screams or shows signs of irritation of the brain, such as twitching of the limbs and individual muscles and, as this irritation intensifies, the eyes turn red and the whites of the eyes take on almost the color of raw meat. The carotid arteries beat so hard that their pulsation is clearly visible to the naked eye. This hyperemia precedes inflammatory irritation. We find a strong beating in the head with sharp shooting pains, forcing the patient to cry out or writhe, so strong are they. These pains appear almost like lightning and disappear as suddenly as they came. At first the patient cannot sleep. He is in that unfortunate position where he wants to fall asleep, but cannot. As symptoms intensify, especially in children, the head “burrows” into the pillow; the head is thrown back and the patient turns it from side to side. There is a slight squint. The pupils are dilated. Grinding of teeth. The face is bright red, or, if the hyperemia is very strong, it turns almost purple. If the patient is a child whose fontanelles have not yet closed, then they seem tense and protruding above the surface of the skull and beat with every contraction of the heart. Convulsions often appear, especially in children, very strong, distorting the body in all possible directions, with opisthotonus (convulsive backward curvature of the body) predominant. Urine is produced in scanty quantities or is retained. The various symptoms, subjective and objective, related to this condition are as follows: firstly, twitching during sleep and even upon awakening. When closing the eyes, the patient is very prone to visual illusions, which usually disappear when the eyes are opened. In other cases, the patient feels as if he is falling. The patient, if it is a child, suddenly wakes up, seeks air and trembles, as if from fear. Sometimes this symptom depends on dreams, and in other cases on a severe headache, which, due to its cruelty, frightens the child and wakes him up.

Sometimes we find patients with this irritation of the brain; lying in a daze. It can be very difficult to bring them out of this stupor, and when they wake up, they always become violent, rush about, fight with others, tear their clothes, show all the signs of excitement, which, if not dependent on real inflammation, then borders on it.

When there is inflammation of the brain or its membranes, Belladonna must give way to other remedies when there is an effusion, whether it be simple or tuberculous inflammation of the meninges. There is very little similarity between the action of Belladonna and tuberculous meningitis. Tuberculous meningitis has a slow course. We can use here Sulfur, Calcarea, Apis and other remedies that act more deeply and more slowly than Belladonna. Then, when effusion sets in, as indicated by the incessant tossing and turning of the head and sudden cries, we must resort to still other remedies, especially Apis. Bryonia is also often useful after Belladonna if the face is flushed, red, or alternately pale and red. At the slightest attempt to move, the child screams in pain. The pupils have difficulty reacting to light. The child makes chewing movements with his mouth, as if he is chewing or sucking. The similarity between these two means is so great that sometimes the choice can be extremely difficult. With both remedies the patient drinks water greedily, cries out in pain, is worse from movement, and with both there is constipation. Sometimes you will find it very difficult to tell the difference between the two.

It is easier to separate Belladonna from Aconite. The fevers caused by these two remedies differ as follows: Belladonna does not cause fever primarily, acting on the sympathetic nervous system, but Aconitum does. Belladonna acts secondarily on the sympathetic, and primarily on the spinal-cephalic nervous system, and therefore it is prescribed only when this latter is affected, which in children occurs very early. In adults, the disease may begin with fever with cerebral symptoms; then Belladonna will be the remedy. At the onset of fever, Aconitum is preferred when there is great melancholy, restlessness, tossing, fear of death, dry hot skin, full, racing pulse, hallucinations, slight cries in sleep and muttering or slight delirium characteristic of fever. These brain symptoms are due to high fever rather than direct inflammation of the brain. But let’s assume that in this case it comes to complications on the part of the brain. Then the skin becomes so hot that it almost burns the examining hand and, if you lift the blanket, it seems that hot steam is emanating from the patient. This is the heat corresponding to Belladonna. In other cases, along with this fever there is hot sweat(which is not so common in Aconite), especially on the head and face. When you look at the patient, you see that sweat appears in drops on the forehead and he is hot. To make a still further distinction, we are guided mainly by the following brain symptoms: twitching in sleep, hallucinations, visions, and the desire rather than the fear of dying. This often happens with rheumatic fever. The whole organism seems to suffer; the result is a general fever with pain in the joints, moving from place to place. This fever is almost always accompanied by profuse sour sweat, which does not relieve the patient at all. It seems that all the patient's underwear is wet with sweat, and the more he sweats, the less relief he seems to feel. Aconitum does not do any good here, but Belladonna does.

When the fever has subsided somewhat and the sweat still continues, Mercurius will suitable means to replace the previous ones.

In typhoid forms of fever, Belladonna is sometimes indicated at the beginning of the disease, when cerebral congestion predominates. We find violent delirium with screams and strong attempts to jump out of bed or out of the house. The face is red, light or dark red, almost purple; the pupils are dilated and the eyes are bloodshot. The patient is afraid of everything, imagining that all sorts of accidents can happen to him. Urine is excreted in scanty quantities, usually bright yellow in color, with or without sediment. Feet get cold easily. The patient falls into a heavy sleep with snoring; This sleep is restless, because during it there are manifestations of brain irritation, such as twitching of muscles and limbs and screaming. No matter how deep this sleep may be, it is never a completely calm stupor, and if it is, then Belladonna will not be a suitable remedy. From this you will see that Belladonna does not show changes in the brain from poisoned blood, but changes depending on congestion or inflammation. When the disease has progressed so far that it has begun to cause changes in the fluids of the body, then Belladonna is shown the less, the more developed these changes are. Then you must resort to remedies such as Hyoscyamus, Rhus toxicodendron, Lachesis and many others.

Sometimes there is a condition different from that just described, and yet Belladonna can be a cure. This condition can often confuse the doctor. The face, instead of being red, is pale. But this indication is as characteristic of Belladonna as is the redness of the face. It is usually accompanied by irritation of the brain and shuddering during sleep. It usually occurs with summer diarrhea, during teething, with colic and similar diseases.

The pulse is either full and hard, as in Aconite, or slow. It is slow when the cerebral congestion is strong enough to produce pressure on the brain. Here again you have an example of the alternating action of Belladonna. The pulse may be fast for a certain period of time, then it becomes slow and thus changes alternately.

We have already seen how Belladonna can be indicated for inflammation of the brain. It is also a valuable remedy for inflammation of other parts of the body. For example, it turns out to be the best, although far from the only, remedy for inflammation of the middle ear (otitis media). This disease can sometimes confuse you. The symptoms are very severe. The child puts his hands to his head, and you may mistakenly conclude from this that the source of the disease is there. The pains are of a digging, drilling and tearing nature and are such, of course, due to the anatomical relations of the given area. They appear suddenly and are very strong. They seem to shoot in the other ear or in the head with ringing and noise in the ears. If you examine the ear, you will find that the eardrum is protruding outward, its blood vessels are greatly engorged with blood, in short, it shows all the signs of severe inflammation. Pus quickly forms, which makes its way either through the eardrum, or through the Eustachian tube, or through some internal opening. In the latter case it causes dangerous, if not fatal symptoms. It is your responsibility to recognize the disease as early as possible, when you can still save the ear. Belladonna is considered ours the best remedy in the early stages of this disease, later other remedies are indicated, such as Hepar and Tellurium.

Tellurium causes inflammation of the middle ear, with rupture of the eardrum and effusion of pus, which at first may be benign, but later becomes very offensive; its smell is similar to the smell of herring brine.

In inflammation of the eyes, such as inflammation of the connective membrane or sclera, Belladonna is indicated by the suddenness of the pain, the suddenness of the attacks and the intensity of the symptoms. There is also severe photophobia. The eye seems very swollen. The connective membrane of the eyes is bright red. These symptoms give you the complete picture of Belladonna. The disease appears to affect the right eye more than the left. In Belladonna eye diseases we are guided by the force of the tide (congestion); the same applies equally to neuralgia in the eye area.

Spigelia has many eye pains similar to those of Belladonna, but they are predominantly on the left side and there is no great hyperemia.

Amylnitrit is similar to Belladonna and is indicated when the eyes and face are red. Paris quadrifolia is excellent when there is pain, as if someone were pulling the eyes back with threads, the eyeballs seem too voluminous (as in Spigelia).

Prunus has a crushing pain or sensation as if the eyes are being squeezed, or sharp piercing pains through and around the eyes.

Belladonna causes inflammation of the throat. The tongue in such cases is usually bright red, its papillae are enlarged or elevated, which gives it the appearance of a strawberry (hence the name - strawberry tongue). Sometimes you notice a thin line on the back of your tongue. white coating, through which the enlarged red papillae are visible. As the disease progresses, this coating disappears, revealing a bright red, severely inflamed tongue. When testing Belladonna, the most dramatic effects are obtained in the throat. The inflammation that develops is very simple. Examining the pharynx, you find it inflamed and bright red; The tonsil glands are enlarged, especially the right one, but the disease tends to spread to the left gland. All these symptoms develop with the same rapidity, as we have noticed with regard to the symptoms of Belladonna in general. There is a strong constriction of the pharynx and larynx, so that every attempt to swallow is accompanied by a sudden constriction of the throat and an eruption of food through the nose and mouth. The patient tries to drink and the moment the water touches the throat, it erupts back and flows out from wherever it can. The patient appears to be worse when swallowing liquids, in fact worse than when swallowing saliva or solid foods. The tonsils quickly turn into suppuration; The external glands of the neck are usually also involved in the suffering and can be felt in the form of hard but very painful nodes on the neck. Sometimes you notice a pearly white exudate on the throat, which turns out to be composed of mucus rather than fibrin. Therefore, strictly speaking, there is no similarity between the inflammation of Belladonna and the inflammation characteristic of diphtheria or membranous croup, so that if Belladonna is given for diphtheria, the indication for it must be other than the existence of a filmy exudate in the fauces. The general characteristic of diphtheria, you must be sure that it is certainly applicable in this case, otherwise you will only waste valuable time. It can sometimes be used in early period illness, when its appointment requires the suddenness of the disease.

Here let me remind you that Lycopodium affects the right tonsil, causing high fever, crying out in sleep and waking from sleep in a moody and irritable state. These symptoms we find in Belladonna, and therefore, when giving this latter, you must be sure that Lycopodium is not indicated in this case.

Then look at Apis. Apis is an excellent remedy for diphtheria. Exudate is greater on the right tonsil; throat bright red or pink color; the tongue is red and the fever is very high; the skin is dry and hot, the pulse is rapid, and the patient is very restless.

But for inflammation of the tonsils or toad, Belladonna comes first among all other remedies. In terms of its therapeutic effect, in this case it is significantly superior to Apis, since it acts on the parenchyma of the organ. The inflammation caused by Apis is superficial, affecting only the mucous membrane. In throat diseases Belladonna forms an interesting little group with Hepar, Mercurius, Silicea and Sulfur.

When, after the administration of Belladonna, and despite its use, pus forms, as indicated by chills and sharp shooting pains with beating, you may proceed to Hepar. Even at this time, it is sometimes possible to prevent the development of an abscess.

Switch to Mercurius if pus has already formed and the tonsil is enlarged and protrudes above the neighboring parts and breathing is restricted. You notice that the pus has formed spontaneously, giving Mercurius in low divisions and repeated doses, a rapid opening of this abscess is obtained and thereby relief of all these symptoms. If you give Mercurius at the very beginning, you will significantly delay the course of your case.

Sometimes you have to resort to Silicea when an abscess has broken open but is not healing. The pus continues to form and becomes less and less benign, dark and smelly.

In some cases Silicea does not succeed, then several doses of Sulfur can be prescribed, which usually gives the desired effect.

In our city, another remedy was used several times, namely Amygdala persica. It causes a dark red swelling of the pharynx, uvula and tonsil glands, with sharp pains causing significant difficulty in swallowing; sometimes the pain is so severe that it makes the patient scream. For these symptoms, this anti-diphtheria remedy can be prescribed. I myself achieved a cure for this disease with Amygdala persica alone, when there was a dark redness of the throat, sudden sharp pains and a noticeable general loss of strength.

For inflammations in the abdominal area, Belladonna is also suitable, for example, for inflammation of the peritoneum, with or without inflammation of the uterus, regardless of whether this inflammation of the peritoneum is a postpartum disease or not. The symptoms that require its use are the following: beginning tympanitis; the abdomen is swollen like a drum and very sensitive to touch, to the point that the patient cannot even bear the weight of the blanket. The slightest noise in the room increases the patient's suffering. There is noticeable cerebral irritation. Postpartum cleansing may be scant or stop altogether.

Tilia europea is a remedy, it seems to me, that is little appreciated by doctors. It is useful for postpartum inflammation uterus, when severe pain is felt in the area of ​​this organ, there is also a sharp downward pressure, with hot sweat, which does not bring relief.

A remedy often used by allopaths is Terebinthina (turpentine). The symptoms actually produced by this remedy are the following: pressing down in the uterine region, burning like fire in the lower abdominal region, burning when urinating; urine is often cloudy and dark, with a muddy appearance. In these cases, the tongue is often dry and red.

Against this feeling of soreness in the uterus, Dr. Jeanes used a preparation of honey and salt, Mel cum sale. He prescribed it in the 3rd or 6th dilution. The key to choosing this remedy was the feeling of pain in the lower abdomen from one iliac bone to the other. This is an important indication for uterine displacement and the onset of uterine inflammation.

We now come to an analysis of the effects of Belladonna on the skin. It causes primarily erythema, a light crimson (scarlet fever) redness of the skin; the skin becomes extremely sensitive to touch. Sometimes this erythema consists of a uniform rash over the entire surface of the body, like the one we see with the Sydenham form of scarlet fever. In other cases it has an erysipelas character; it begins from some place and from there spreads in all directions in the form of ray-shaped stripes; its color is usually bright; swelling develops very quickly; also quickly affected subcutaneous tissue and in some cases pus is formed, which makes its way deep into the tissue. Thus, you have a complete picture of phlegmonous erysipelas. With these symptoms, the formation of blisters or pustules is rare. Instead, you see a smooth, shiny, and tense surface. The pain is very strong and acute. They are shooting and stabbing in nature and are usually accompanied by a strong beating, especially if the inflammation affects the deeper parts.

If erysipelas affects the face, it almost always begins on the right side and from there moves to the left. There is almost always a tendency towards cerebral irritation. The younger the patient, the more pronounced this tendency is. Do not confuse this brain irritation with the transfer of erysipelas to the brain. It is a simple irritation, arising from high fever, from very severe pains, or from poisoning of the blood, or perhaps from all these three causes together; but this is not a real metastasis (transfer) of the disease. If metastasis occurs, Belladonna may still be needed. If Belladonna fails in these cases, we have other remedies, such as Lachesis, when the cerebral metastasis is not inferior to the action of Belladonna and the face has a purplish or bluish tint rather than the bright or dark red color of Belladonna. . The patient is weaker, the pulse is faster and weaker, and the drowsiness is more pronounced than we observe with Belladonna.

Another suitable remedy is Crotalus, which is quite similar to Lachesis. The resemblance is so complete that I cannot tell you any difference between the two.

Cuprum can be used for metastasis if the symptoms are spasmodic and violent. The patient is at risk of seizures. There are strong contractions of the flexor muscles.

Returning now to the erythema of Belladonna, we see that this rash sometimes occupies the entire body, therefore this remedy can be used for scarlet fever. In this disease Belladonna is indicated, firstly, by a bright pink coloration of the whole body; secondly, with active irritation of the brain, the symptoms of which can be different, ranging from simple jumping up from sleep or twitching of individual muscle groups to the most violent delirium, with screams and jumping out of bed. The rash itself should be smooth. Belladonna does not cause milliary rash. Vomiting can be very strong. Belladonna causes the same violent vomiting as Ipecacuanha, and is indicated especially in cerebral vomiting. Throat symptoms come to the fore. In this case, there is a bright red swelling of the throat, the tonsil glands shine, the tongue has the appearance of a strawberry, or, if it is coated, the coating is thin and elevated papillae are visible through it. The pulse is full, strong and rapid; there is, as one would expect, severe anxiety. You may also notice swelling of the glands, especially those in the neck. There is urinary retention or excessive urination. Both of these conditions are characteristic of Belladonna. Drowsiness or sleep does not have the character of a clearly defined coma. There is no drowsiness or stupor that develops from blood poisoning, since then the brain receives so little oxygen that its activity weakens. This condition is not characteristic of Belladonna. Belladonna sleep may be deep; the patient may snore; he can sleep “like the dead,” but this sleep is not calm and passive. The patient screams in his sleep, the muscles twitch, the mouth makes constant chewing movements; teeth grinding. In a word, there are almost always symptoms indicating that this is an irritation of the brain of an active nature. When the patient awakens from sleep, he is violent, looks wildly around the room, and fights with those around him. When the disease from the very beginning takes a malignant form or develops into one, despite the use of Belladonna, then you should leave this latter as soon as possible. You should immediately choose another remedy, such as Lachesis, Rhus toxicodendron or Hyoscyamus.

Lachesis has in these cases many symptoms similar to those required by Belladonna. With both remedies we find crying out in sleep, restlessness, irritability on waking, strawberry-shaped tongue, redness of the entire surface of the body, retention of urine, sore throat and vomiting. How are they different from each other? They differ in the very essence of the disease. In the case of Lachesis, the disease is adynamic in nature and the blood poisoning is profound. The cerebral symptoms do not reach the level of Belladonna rage, but here torpor predominates. The skin does not have the bright erysipelas tint of Belladonna, but the rash appears either pale, irregular and poorly erupting, or purple and bluish. The throat represents not only an enlargement of the glands on the outside, but also swelling of the adjacent connective tissue, both in the tissues surrounding the pharynx and in it itself. Sore spots are more likely to be purple in color. If there is a tendency to form poor-quality pus, then Lachesis is even more indicated.

Rhus toxicodendron often surpasses Lachesis, especially in cellutitis, before the tissues take on a bluish coloration. The inflammation has a sluggish course. Rash of a milliary nature (also Hyoscyamus, Stramonium, Bryonia and Lachesis).

Returning again to Belladonna, we notice that it sometimes fails, although the symptoms seem to indicate it, and the case represents one of the Sydenham forms of scarlet fever. There are two remedies to consider in this case: Sulfur, which produces a smooth erythema over the entire surface of the body to exactly the same extent as Belladonna. Sometimes it may be indicated early in the disease.

Another remedy is Calcarea ostrearum, which is a complement to Belladonna, often complementing exactly what the latter only partially cures. Thus, in scarlet fever, this remedy is indicated when the rash appears under the influence of Belladonna, but begins to fade. The face becomes pale and puffy. Urine in scanty quantity or even retained; There may also be cerebral symptoms suggestive of Belladonna.

Another effect of Belladonna on the skin is the formation of boils or abscesses. You can give it for inflammation of the mammary gland (mastitis). It is shown here by the intensity of the symptoms, radiating redness, pulsation and tendency to become suppurative.

Belladonna can be given successfully for summer diarrhea in very young children. We find it healing if there is occasional crying and screaming for no apparent reason. It is also indicated for indigestion in children, accompanied by sharp pains, sudden screaming and bending backwards, but not anteriorly, as with Colocynthis. Sometimes the transverse colon is so stretched that it protrudes like a pillow in the umbilical region. This symptom sometimes occurs with lead colic. Then we find Belladonna also indicated for diarrhea. It is especially suitable for dysenteric diarrhea, that is, diarrhea with inflammation of the intestines due to a cold, in which the bowel movements are accompanied by considerable tenesmus (you must remember that Belladonna has a great affinity for the sphincters); stools are mucous and bloody. In summer diarrhea, the stools are yellowish or greenish in color and contain lime-like flakes, no doubt consisting of casein.

You must remember that Belladonna for this colic and diarrhea in children is a complement to Chamomilla.

Now let's look at the effect of Belladonna on the female genital organs. It can be used during childbirth if the uterine pharynx does not expand due to the spasmodic condition of the cervix.

If the uterine os is rigid, do not forget also Gelsemium.

Belladonna (according to Berwick)

Belladonna affects all departments nervous system, causing arterial hyperemia, agitation with violence, perversion of specific types of sensitivity, twitching, convulsions and pain. It has a pronounced effect on the vascular system, skin and glands. Belladonna is always prescribed for hot red skin, flushed face with shining eyes, pulsation of the carotid arteries, excited mental state, increased sensitivity, delirium, restless sleep, convulsive movements, dry mouth and throat with aversion to water, sudden onset neuralgic pains that also stop suddenly (Oxytropis). Heat, redness, throbbing and burning sensation. Works well on children. Epileptic spasms followed by nausea and vomiting. Scarlet fever and its prevention (in these cases, use in the thirtieth dilution). Exophthalmic goiter. Corresponds to the pathogenesis of “air sickness” in pilots and is used for its prevention. Lack of thirst, melancholy or fear. Belladonna is characterized by a strong and sudden onset of attacks.

Belladonna expresses the picture of thyroid toxemia to the highest degree.

Psyche. The patient lives in “his own little world”, which does not correspond to the surrounding reality, filled with illusions and ghosts. While his eyes do not perceive real objects, many visual hallucinations crowd around him and come to him from within his being. He is hypersensitive and driven to the point of insanity by the flow of subjective visual impressions and fantastic illusions. Hallucinations: monsters, ugly faces. Delirium, frightening pictures are seen, goes into a frenzy, flies into a rage, bites, fights, tries to escape. Cannot navigate the real world. Avoids talking. Tendency to tear everything up.

Heightened all senses. Changeable.

Head. Dizziness with falling to the left side or back. Sensitive to the slightest touch. Strong pulsation and heat. Rapid heartbeat echoes in the head, difficulty breathing. Pain, a feeling of fullness, especially in the forehead, but also in the back of the head and temples. Headaches arising from suppressed catarrhal discharge. Sudden shouts. The pain worsens from light, noise, sharp sounds, from lying in a horizontal position and in the afternoon; better from pressure and semi-elevation. He buries his head in the pillows: throws it back, turns and rolls it on the pillow from side to side. Moans constantly. The hair splits easily along the length, is dry, and falls out easily. Headache worse on right side and when lying down; worsens with colds, etc., even from cutting hair.

Face. Red, bluish-red, hot, swollen, shiny; convulsive twitching of the facial muscles. Swelling of the upper lip. Facial neuralgia with twitching of the facial muscles and a rush of blood to the face.

Eyes. Pulsation deep inside the eyeballs when lying in a horizontal position. Dilated pupils (Agnus.). The eyes feel swollen and bulging, burning and sparkling, the conjunctiva is red, photophobia, shooting pains in the eyes.

Exophthalmos. Optical illusions: flashes of light, flames. Diplopia, strabismus, eyelid spasms. Sensation as if eyes were half closed. Eyelids swollen. Congestion of the fundus.

Ears. Tearing pain in middle and external ear. Humming noises. Eardrum convex and injected. Swelling of the parotid glands. Sensitive to loud sounds. Hearing is very sharp. Inflammation of the middle ear. Ear pain provokes delirium. The child screams in his sleep: throbbing pain and pulsation deep in the ear, synchronized with heart contractions. Ear hematomas. Acute and subacute processes in the Eustachian tube. Autophony - hears one's own voice.

Nose. Senses non-existent odors. Pinching the tip of the nose. Red and swollen. Nosebleeds with red face. Runny nose: mucus mixed with blood.

Mouth. Dryness. Throbbing pain in teeth. Gingival abscess. The edges of the tongue are red.

Gunter's (raspberry) tongue. Grinding of teeth. The tongue is swollen and painful.

Stuttering.

Throat. Dry and shiny; rush of blood to the mucous membrane, as if it were irritated (Ginseng.), redness on the right is more pronounced. Enlarged tonsils: sensation of throat constriction, difficulty swallowing, especially when swallowing liquids. Feeling of swelling. Dryness of the esophagus: feeling of constriction. Throat spasms. Constantly swallowing. Scratching sensation.

Increased sensitivity of the swallowing muscles. Hypertrophy of the mucosa.

Stomach. Loss of appetite. Aversion to meat and milk. Spasmodic pain in the epigastrium. Contraction, pain spreads to the spine. Nausea and vomiting. Intense thirst with desire for cold water. Stomach cramps. Ineffective urge to vomit.

Aversion to liquids. Spasmodic hiccups. Afraid to drink. Uncontrollable vomiting.

Stomach. Bloated, hot. The transverse colon protrudes on the abdominal wall like a soft cushion: painful, swollen, pain, as if it were being squeezed from the outside with a hand; worse from shaking and pressure. Cutting pain in the abdomen: sudden sharp stabbing pain on the left when coughing, sneezing or touching the abdomen. Extreme sensitivity to touch, even to the touch of bed linen, etc. (Laches.).

Chair. Liquid, green, dysenteric, with chalky lumps. Trembling during stool. Stinging pain in the rectum; spastic constriction. Very sensitive hemorrhoids with back pain. Prolapse of the rectum (Ignatia; Podoph.).

Urinary system. Urinary retention. Acute urinary tract infection.

Sensation of movement in the bladder (like worms). Urination is scanty, with tenesmus; urine is dark and cloudy, contains phosphates. Sensitivity in the bladder area.

Urinary incontinence, drop after drop is constantly released. Urination is frequent and profuse. Hematuria in the absence of visible pathology. Prostate hypertrophy.

Male genital organs. Testicles are hard, tight, inflamed.

Genitals sweat at night. Leakage of prostatic juice. Sexual desire is reduced.

Female genital organs. A feeling that the internal organs are falling out through the genital opening. Dryness and heat in the vagina. Pulling sensation in the lower back. Pain in the sacrum. Menstruation increased, bright red, too early, too profuse.

Hot hemorrhages. Cutting pains running from one hip joint to the other. Menstrual blood and lochia are hot, with very unpleasant smell. Labor pains start and stop suddenly. Pain with mastitis, pulsation, redness, radiating red stripes - from the nipple to the periphery. There is a feeling of heaviness in the chest, the mammary glands are red and hard. Tumors of the breast, pain increases when lying in a horizontal position. Bleeding with an unpleasant odor, blood sometimes gushing out in a hot stream. Reducing lochia.

Respiratory organs. Dryness in the nose, pharynx, larynx and trachea. Tickling, hacking, dry cough, worse at night. Soreness of the larynx. Breathing is difficult, frequent, uneven. Cheyne-Stokes breathing (Cocain; Opium.). Hoarseness, loss of voice. Painless hoarseness. Cough, radiating pain to the left hip area. Barking cough, whooping cough with pain in the stomach before a coughing attack, with expectoration of blood. Stitching pain in chest when coughing. The larynx is very sensitive: it feels as if a foreign body is lodged in it, causing coughing attacks. High, squeaky voice. Moan with every breath.

Heart. Strong and rapid heartbeat, radiating to the head, with difficulty breathing. Increased heart rate with the slightest effort. Pulsation throughout the body.

Dicrotic pulse. Feeling of heart enlargement. The pulse is frequent, but weakened.

Limbs. Shooting pains along the limbs. The joints are swollen, red, shiny, with radiating red stripes. The gait is unsteady.

Flying rheumatic pains. Phlebitis white painful. Convulsive twitching of the limbs. Spasms. Involuntary limping. Extremities are cold.

Back. Neck stiffness. Swelling of the cervical lymph nodes. Pain in the back of the neck, as if it were breaking. Pressure on the back area is very painful. Lumbago with pain extending to the hip joints and thighs.

Leather. Dry and hot, swollen, sensitive; burning in bright red, smooth and soft places. Scarlet-like rash that appears suddenly. Erythema: pustules on the face. Lymph nodes are swollen, tender, and red. Boils.

Rosacea. Suppuration in damaged areas. Alternating redness and paleness of the skin.

Hardening after inflammation. Erysipelas.

Fever. High temperature without symptoms of toxemia. Burning, “damp” heat.

Feet as cold as ice. Expansion of surface blood vessels. The perspiration dries only on the head. Fever without thirst.

Dream. Restless with screaming and gnashing of teeth. Cannot sleep due to strong pulsation of blood vessels. Screams in sleep. Insomnia combined with drowsiness. Jumps up as soon as he closes his eyes, and also in his sleep. During sleep, puts hands under head (Ars.; Plat.).

MODALITIES. Worse by touch; concussions; noise; draft; in the afternoon; when laying down. Improved in a semi-elevated position.

RELATIONSHIPS. Antidotes: Camph.; Coff.; Opium; Acon.; Acet. ac.

Additionally: Calcarea, especially in semi-chronic and constitutional diseases. Calcarea is often indicated after Bell.

Compare: Sanguisorba officinalis (D 2 - D 6). Heavy, protracted menses, especially in nervous women with symptoms of congestion of the head and limbs. Venous bleeding during menopause. Chronic metritis. Pulmonary hemorrhages.

Varicose veins with ulcers.

Mandragora. Restlessness, irritability and physical weakness. Feels sleepy.

It is also a remedy against intermittent fevers - like Cetonia. Useful remedy for epilepsy and hydrophobia.

Hy os. The fever is less pronounced than in Belladonna, and the excitement is greater.

Stram. Increased excitability of the senses, frenzy.

Hoitzia. Useful for fever, scarlet fever, measles, urticaria, etc. High temperature in febrile diseases with rash. Dry mouth and throat, red face, injected eyes, delirium.

Atropine (Belladonna atropine alkaloid). Covers most of the neurological symptoms of Belladonna. Also significant dryness in the mouth and throat - he can hardly swallow, chronic stomach diseases with severe pain and vomiting of all the food he eats.

Peritonitis. All kinds of visual hallucinations, in contrast to Platina - all objects appear enlarged. Demotion stomach acidity, heartburn.

He grumbles about everything. When reading, words are confused, mixed, double vision, all objects seem elongated. Congestion of the Eustachian tube and tympanic cavity. Has an affinity for the pancreas. Increased acidity of gastric contents. Attacks of stomach pain, ovarian neuralgia.

BREEDING. From one to thirty and above. For acute diseases, it should be administered in frequent doses.

Belladonna (according to Kent)

Belladonna/Belladonna - belladonna belladonna. Planets - Mars, Sun, Moon.

Basic dosage forms. Homeopathic granules D3, C3, C6 and higher. Drops D3, C3, C6 and higher.

Indications for use. Remedy for acute, sudden and violent developing diseases with a rush of blood and high temperature, sore throat, brain lesions of all types with convulsions, delirium, paralysis. Gastritis, cholelithiasis and renal colic, bedwetting. The main remedy for the treatment of scarlet fever.

Chamomilla, Aconite and Mercurius are considered the main anti-inflammatory for children. Used with Hyoscyamus and Stramonium for mental disorders.

Especially indicated for patients with increased emotionality, hypersensitivity to all environmental factors, with a quick but short-lived, although deep and strong, reaction (artists, intellectuals). More often this is a woman or child with delicate skin, blue, clear eyes, a clear face, prone to convulsions, although there may also be full-blooded, phlegmatic subjects. According to Hufeland, “belladonna never works on idiots.”

Worsening - from the slightest external irritation, touch, draft, bright light, cold, etc., at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, at 11 o'clock in the evening, after midnight.

Improvement: rest, darkened room, heat.

This is a medicine for violent conditions that seriously upset all body systems. It is especially effective for full-blooded, energetic patients and people of an intellectual disposition. Complaints that suddenly arise in people of mental work, people who are completely healthy, although quite plethoric and have increased excitability of the vascular system. Belladonna's complaints arise abruptly, develop to a certain extent, and just as unexpectedly subside. Pain and other symptoms begin suddenly, with great force, and disappear just as quickly. Colds gain maximum power at high speed, are acute, violent, and suddenly disappear. Belladonna particularly affects the vascular system, heart, lungs, brain and nervous system.

Among the earliest and characteristic symptoms fever can be generated. The drug is characterized by inflammatory lesions of all organs, especially the brain, lungs and liver. Along with other organs, the intestines are often affected. Such inflammatory reactions are always accompanied by a sharp fever; this heat is something extraordinary. In Belladonna this symptom is more pronounced than in any other remedy. The heat can be so intense that when you touch a Belladonna patient, you immediately withdraw your hand, as if touching a red-hot furnace. Your palms retain the memory of this extraordinary heat for a long time after this. Such fever is usually accompanied by pain, inflammatory reactions, extreme suffering, nocturnal attacks of delirium, and sharp inflammatory attacks. It does not matter in which part of the body the inflammation develops, in any case the fever is of extreme severity. Its presence does not necessarily indicate Belladonna, and if the patient still has a persistent fever, then we can almost always say with complete confidence that we are talking about another remedy.

Belladonna never has a persistent form of fever. It is true that in old books one can find references to the fact that Belladonna is characterized by a sharp fever in typhus or in the case of other febrile conditions of a persistent type, but a detailed study of the drug from beginning to end does not confirm these statements; There is absolutely nothing permanent about Belladonna fever. It is characterized by remitting fever. Her complaints never come on gradually, as with typhus. Belladonna is not characterized by gradual rises and gradual declines, as with constant forms of fevers. I emphasize this again in order to make your work easier so that you are less likely to get confused. Hering, one of the most famous teachers of world renown, considered Belladonna necessary in cases of typhus fevers, when they occurred with delirium and fever reminiscent of Belladonna fever, but let me clarify this situation a little. When you give Belladonna for delirium in typhoid fever - a delirium which is similar to Belladonna delirium - you only achieve suppression of this symptom as such, while the rest of the disease continues to develop with the same force. You won't cure a fever, but you will suppress it vitality the patient himself. He will be sick longer, the state of prostration will be more pronounced than if you did not interfere at all and allowed the delirium to develop on its own. In fact, for the case described by Hering, in which he insists on the need for Belladonna, Stramonium is well suited. The main characteristics of the heat should be clearly imprinted in your head. Heat, intense heat, insane heat.

There is another feature of Belladonna which is seen in all inflammatory reactions and fevers. Inflamed areas, especially the skin, become very red and become darker as the inflammation progresses; when the fever develops, the face becomes covered with specks; but the first signs of Belladonna are a bright red color and a shiny face. All visible inflamed areas become red. When the lymph nodes become inflamed, the skin over them becomes covered with bright red spots. Red spots on the neck in the areas of projection of inflamed lymph nodes. Inflammation of the parotid glands, inflammation of the submandibular glands, inflammation of the cervical lymph nodes - all these conditions are accompanied by the appearance of spots on the skin, red as fire, in the areas of projection of the affected glands and lymph nodes. The throat and mucous membranes are inflamed and bright scarlet. After a while they darken and then become mottled; this reflects the character and peculiarities of the Belladonna constitution. Gradually, the condition develops according to the type of infectious process, as with scarlet fever or severe inflammatory lesions; At first, the disease goes through a stage of severe congestion, followed by vasomotor paralysis. Pronounced congestion and cyanosis; the color may also be purple with a mottled surface.

Another characteristic feature of Belladonna is seen in inflamed parts and painful areas. If there is one thing absolutely undeniable in the symptoms of Belladonna, it is a burning sensation; severe burning sensation. Belladonna's sore throat always burns like fire. Inflammation of the tonsils, burning as if from a flame. The skin burns, it feels burning and very hot, both by the patient and the doctor. Burning skin with scarlet fever. With jaundice or intermittent fever, patients often complain: “It burns so much, doctor, it burns so much.” With inflammatory lesions of the organs, the skin burns, a burning fever is noted, and the affected area burns on its own. Inflammation of the bladder with burning. Congestion of the brain, head burning. Throat congestion, throat burns. Locally, the expressed heat of the affected area is determined, subjectively this is perceived as a burning sensation. With gastritis, a burning sensation is also noted. Inflammatory liver lesions are also accompanied by a burning sensation in the liver area. Congestion of the liver with jaundice, a burning sensation is detected in the projection of the liver. Thus, we now know three leading characteristics; just don’t call them “key”, because that’s not exactly what I mean - heat, redness, burning. Next we will be able to trace how they form the basic structure of diseases, how they penetrate and fill the entire pathogenesis of medicine; we will find out what special meaning they will take on for us.

But that's not all. Belladonna is characterized by swelling. Inflamed areas quickly swell; very sensitive to touch; extremely painful with a burning sensation, pressing, stabbing and burning pain. Along with swelling, heat, redness and burning are noted in the inflamed areas. Swelling, tingling, burning, pulsation. The pulsation is very characteristic. All areas in which congestion and inflammation are detected pulsate. The affected areas and carotid arteries pulsate separately. In sick children with severe congestion of the brain, the head is often very hot. If they are old enough to express the sensations in words, they usually say that their head is “on fire.” Upon careful examination, you may notice pulsation. There is a sharp pulsation of the temporal and carotid arteries. The patient is shaking so much that the bed is shaking. Remember that if the patient is shaking, he most likely needs Belladonna.

Belladonna is one of the most painful medicines. It is extremely sensitive to pain. These patients are so sensitive that they suffer much more pain than others. And remember, pain arises suddenly, lasts for some time - longer or shorter - and just as unexpectedly goes away. Similar symptoms occur with neuralgia; for inflammatory diseases, for inflammatory lesions of individual organs and for any other conditions. The pain can be tearing, shooting, burning, scalding, pressing and sharp at the same time. All these manifestations seem to tie the complaints into a single knot, forcing the patient to suffer unspeakably.

All pains are aggravated by movement, by light, by sharp shocks and by cold. The patient wants to be warmly covered, he becomes worse from any opening or from a draft. The headaches correspond to the general characteristics of the other pains, as if the brain were bobbing up and down; every step of the patient, as well as every movement of the eyes, is felt in the head by a tearing and burning pain, the same thing happens when turning the eyeballs, and when climbing stairs, and when the patient gets up from a sitting position or, conversely, sits down; any movements provoke sharp pain; The characteristic feeling is as if the head is about to burn or the eyes are being squeezed out of the skull. When moving in the affected organs, a pulsation of the heart is felt, which, in turn, increases the pain, which the patient calls “pounding.”

The patient cannot stand touching sore spots. When touched, pulsation occurs or intensifies. If the patient is uncovered, he becomes worse. His condition worsens even from floor vibrations caused by other people's steps. Shaking the bed, if the patient is in bed, aggravates all cases of Belladonna. When you approach the bedside of a patient suffering from inflammatory liver disease, do not be surprised if he does not allow you to place your hand on the headboard; even such a minor shaking can cause him additional pain. A similar symptom is observed with abdominal pain, inflammation of the uterus, and during childbirth. This aggravation from concussions is a very characteristic feature of the remedy and is not necessarily accompanied by inflammatory reactions. It is often a manifestation of nervous hyperesthesia. In women giving birth, in the absence of any inflammation or any threat to life and health, similar hyperesthesia is often observed; they ask to close the windows so that there is no air movement; they don’t want to be touched or the bed moved; any, even minor, concussion worsens their condition; they are very sensitive to shock, even in the absence of any local hypersensitivity. When you encounter such a case, know that without Belladonna you have unusually difficult and painful work ahead of you. Prescribing Belladonna will instantly relieve all these symptoms, this medicine acts so actively and quickly. The patient's reaction to bed shaking can often guide you to the right choice. A patient with biliary colic, accompanied by sharp pain, will not allow you to approach and touch his bed. His face is red, his skin is burning, he cannot stand being touched because it causes him excruciating suffering, and he will definitely let you know about this even before you approach. These symptoms are hard to miss. The patient warns: “Don’t touch the bed, doctor.” This is a very specific sign - marked aggravation from concussion.

Spasms - general and local. Spasms of individual small ducts, circular fibers, tubular organs, as in the example I already mentioned about biliary colic. In the communicating bile ducts, compression occurs, or a similar situation can be observed in the renal ducts, when the annular fibers seem to capture the passing pebble and do not allow it to come out. The duct remains wide enough, and the pebble still tries to come out, but local irritation causes a spasm, the muscle structures seem to slam shut around the foreign body and do not allow it to budge. After one dose of Belladonna under the tongue the spasm disappears, the stone is able to pass out, and the patient no longer experiences any anxiety; after fifteen minutes there is no trace left of biliary colic. With such colic homeopathic treatment always turns out to be effective. Belladonna is not the right choice in all cases, but if such hypersensitivity is present, do not hesitate to prescribe Belladonna.

"Convulsions in children." They are sharp and usually combined with cerebral congestion. Signs of fever are always visible on the skin. Seizures are triggered by bright light, cold air streams, or simply the child freezing. This is often observed in nervous, smart and plump children, with decent head sizes, in boys with large heads; especially common in boys, but also possible in girls with “boy” head sizes. It is common for seizures to occur when placed in a cold environment. Such convulsions can occur under the influence of light, movement or cold. In the Belladonna patient, like Bryonia, all complaints are aggravated by motion. Movement causes convulsions and provokes pain; increases the work of the heart and, as a result, causes pulsation; movements are responsible for many complaints and increased suffering. Keep these general characteristics in mind when considering Belladonna. Such signs should always prevail. No matter how many small symptoms you find, these characteristics should always come first.

The mental symptoms of Belladonna are very interesting to study, but extremely painful to observe in practice. Mental manifestations are observed with severe fevers, manic agitation, and delirium. The theme of excitement runs through the entire pathogenesis of the drug. All mental symptoms are unusually sharp. They are always very active, never passive. Passive delirium is not characteristic of Belladonna. It's always some kind of wild state. The patient fights, hits everything around him, tears things up, behaves unusually, strangely, unexpectedly. He is in a state of pronounced excitement. The mental symptoms are characteristic and usually occur during fevers, delirium and excitement, and are usually relieved by a small amount of light food. This sign of Belladonna is not very well known, but it is quite specific. Be aware also of the typical severity of the symptom, and if you come to the bedside of a patient with severe delirium, do not forget the heat, redness and burning.

The pathogenesis of the drug is replete with various fantasies. The patient sees ghosts, spirits, bailiffs, various passions and horrors. In the early stages of fever, delirium is very sharp, accompanied by severe agitation, but after some time the patient seems to fall into a half-sleep, semi-comatose state. Apparently he is dreaming and screaming. Horrifying dreams. He sees something in a dream and talks about it. Dreams of violence and cruelty when actually asleep, when simply resting or half asleep; nightmares. Sees fire. The patient is delirious and in pain. At times he becomes sharply stupid; he appears to be losing consciousness. He loses his memory of all events, which drives him into a wild rage. Delirium develops while the patient appears to be asleep. Similar symptoms often occur with cerebral congestion, severe cerebral congestion in children. If they are old enough to express their feelings in words, they will complain of pounding in the head. Belladonna children often fall into a state of deep stupor, which is usually accompanied by congestion of the brain; pupils dilate; skin is hot and dry; face is red; pulsation of the carotid arteries. As stupor increases, children turn pale, the neck arches back, which is explained by the involvement of the base of the brain and part of the spinal cord in the pathological process, contractures of the posterior cervical muscles occur, pulling the head back, the head falls back; the gaze is fixed, the pupils are dilated. A similar mental state is observed with scarlet fever or cerebrospinal meningitis.

The mental state of Belladonna resembles acute mania, when the patient can bite off a spoon; bark like a dog; commit rude and inexplicable acts; even jump out the window. He needs to be restrained, put in a straitjacket. The face is red, the skin is hot, at times the patient complains that the whole body is burning, and the head seems very hot. Throughout the illness, the feet remain cold. Hot head, cold feet, or feet and hands as cold as ice. It seems as if all the blood has collected in the head. Various types of illusions and hallucinations are intertwined with the state of acute mania: ghosts, terrible monsters, strange visions, deformed objects. Fear of imaginary things, patient wants to run away and hide.

With Belladonna delirium, the patient is able to jump out of a window, run away, or hide from his caregivers. It seems to him that those around him are going to harm him. Any manifestations, including acute mania and delirious state, are characterized by extraordinary strength and sharpness. Destructiveness. The Belladonna patient in the acute stage should be observed, controlled, restrained, sometimes even restrained. The text describes this state as “rage, frenzy.” The patient experiences a craving for rude and cruel acts. “Moans.” Instead of eating, he bites the wooden spoon, chews the plate, growls and barks like a dog. A boy who suddenly fell ill runs in circles around the room laughing madly.” The medicine is characterized by crazy laughter. Loud, boisterous laughter. “He throws pieces of bread, which he mistakes for stones. He tosses and turns in a rage and rolls on the bed. Aversion to noise and company." Aversion to light; better in the dark. At times, such attacks of rage alternate with a calmer state. Periods of activity are always accompanied by such frenzy; but sometimes the patient behaves more passively when he sits or lies in bed and tears the bed linen or breaks objects that he can reach with his hands; If a stick or twig is in the hands, the patient breaks it into many pieces.

In the picture of all the complaints described above - both with delirium and with fever or pain - shuddering is noted. Startles in sleep, as if from an electric shock. While falling asleep, the patient's body seems to be pierced electric shock. “Shudders in fear when strangers appear. He is afraid of imaginary objects and wants to run away from them.” The theme of “severe anxiety” runs through the entire pathogenesis of the drug. When a patient recovers from an attack of delirium or convulsions, fear is usually written on his face. The patient is in a state of pronounced agitation; his circulatory system also characterized by significant arousal; the same goes for the heart; movements and emotions increase the beating of the heart.

From all that has been said, we can conclude that Belladonna is also characterized by severe hypersensitivity; state of hyperesthesia; increased tissue irritability. There is also increased excitability of the nerve centers. Therefore, such patients have the ability to subtly evaluate taste, smell, and perceive sensory stimuli; stimulation of all senses. Sensitivity to impressions. Sensitive to light, noise, touch, shock. The sensitive area is extremely excitable. Excessive nervous excitability seems to be one of the most characteristic features of Belladonna, in contrast to Opium, which, on the contrary, depresses the patient's sensitivity. Belladonna has marked congestion and excitability. In Opium there is also an increase in congestion, and excitability is greatly reduced. And yet these drugs are similar in many ways: in the expression of the face and eyes; in characteristic pathological conditions. If we were faced with the task of distinguishing between these two drugs based on the characteristics of pathological conditions, the presence of cerebral congestion and the appearance of the patient, but without taking into account the intensity of certain signs, then it would be extremely difficult, almost impossible to do. Opium and Belladonna are often found to be antidotes. When making a differential diagnosis, you should not rely on pathology; pay attention only to individual symptoms after their careful individualization.

“Dizziness” combined with increased excitability. Dizziness is triggered by turning in bed or moving the head. "Objects rotate before your eyes." "Vertigo with throbbing." Head movements increase throbbing and dizziness. The patient is bedridden and cannot even raise his head. This, in turn, further enhances sensitivity, especially in the skull. Similar symptoms are more common in women. She can't tie her hair in a bun. In such cases, Belladonna patients often do not do their hair or even comb their hair; “let down their hair”; The sensitivity of the scalp increases so significantly. “It feels like her hair is being pulled. She doesn’t want her hair to be touched.”

Some other drugs are also characterized by an increase in irritability in very sensitive people; for example, in the case of Hepar, the patient faints from pain, Nitricum acidum cannot bear noise coming from the street, as it brings terrible suffering; Coffea is aggravated by the sound of footsteps; this remedy is so sensitive to pain that his suffering is greatly increased if someone enters the house while the patient himself is on the third floor and no one else in the house is able to hear these sounds. In Nux vomica, the sound of footsteps increases pain throughout the body. A similar sensitivity to pain is characteristic of Belladonna. In this medicine, the indicated symptom is, as it were, part of the general sensitivity; worsens the condition of the whole body. The Chamomilla patient also has an increased sensitivity to pain, but he usually does not need sympathy, he fights the disease on his own. Whereas the Belladonna patient, the Pulsatilla patient, and the Nitricum acidum patient need pity.

An unusual feature of the drug is its ability to react quickly. The reaction to the prescription of a medicine can be so rapid that before I even have time to return to the patient’s bed, he already says: “This medicine made me feel much better.” Many people experience a slow reaction to the drug, but for Belladonna, on the contrary, it is extremely intense. The same is observed in the cases of Nux vomica and Zincum. Such sensitivity is typical for very acute cases, but is sometimes noted in chronic situations. Cuprum also has similar sensitivity. Everything about him is sensitive - skin, polyps, etc.; he is so sensitive in his reactions that some of the remedies indicated simply will not work, because the general sensitivity of the patient is so acute that his reactions may become perverted. Very small doses, medium doses and simple doses are too strong, so the aggravation can be caused by anything. Odors worsen the condition; Correctly selected medications do not cure, but, on the contrary, cause deterioration. Cuprum is able to soften and reduce such sensitivity, so that well-chosen drugs regain their ability to heal, act deeply and lastingly. Cuprum is ineffective in cases of severe congestion - in this it is not like Belladonna; Cuprum is not characterized by the presence of hypersensitivity in cases of acute fever and congestion with pulsation and circulatory disorders; hypersensitivity of this medicine occurs in cases chronic diseases. Women and children are so sensitive that they rarely evoke sympathy - we are not talking about hysterical individuals, but about those people who cannot restrain themselves. This is Cuprum. There are medications that are indicated for particularly sensitive patients and especially women. Sensitive to odors and all possible irritants. The doctor who is able to help these unfortunate little sufferers, who understands the nature of their illness, comprehends their characteristics, alleviates suffering, will become a magician in the eyes of the whole society, unlike those doctors who came before him. He should not evaluate other people by himself; he himself can be anything, even a thick-skinned elephant, but he must be able to recognize the sensitivity of his patients.

A similar sensitivity is found in most Belladonna headaches. They are sharp, pulsating, shooting; always combined with congestion. They are always sensitive to movement, to every shock, even to the blinking of the eyes; to the light; to a draft. It is correct to prescribe Belladonna when the head is in constant motion - the patient shakes his head, because the pain is so severe that he cannot bear it calmly, although movement in turn increases the headache. Children lie in bed, constantly twist and shake their heads, there is cerebral congestion, cerebral screaming, and an unexpected high-pitched squeal. After a short rest, the child wakes up, begins to move his head again, and every few minutes makes this piercing brain scream; gradually the patient plunges into a stupor, his neck arches, his face, which was red until this moment, turns pale. At times there is a stupor, during these periods the child cries. In case of all diseases of the brain, it is necessary to be careful about overeating and periodically cleanse the stomach, since at this time the stomach is very weak. The body is not able to digest large amounts of food; food must be well selected and easily digestible.

Marked heaviness in the head area. The head feels heavy and is pulled back. Sometimes throwing back the head is associated with contractures of the cervical muscles and involvement of the membranes of the upper parts of the spinal cord in the pathological process. Here again it is appropriate to repeat that the Belladonna patient throws his head back, because this often relieves violent headaches. The pain is not so severe as long as the patient's head remains tilted back. Worse from bending the head forward, trying to sit, stand or bend. In this case, it may feel as if the brain will fall out or be squeezed out of the skull. Headaches can become so intense that they become like turning a knife inside the head or develop into pounding pains. These expressions are often used by patients to describe the nature of pain. Sensation of scratching nails or hammering, cutting or tearing pains; but pressure and pulsation are always present in the description. When rising from a sitting position, these sensations intensify. Flutter; pulsation, as if hammers were knocking from inside on a painful skull; patients describe this condition as if everything inside the skull was one painful surface and there was a hammering and pulsation everywhere. Sometimes the pain subsides a little, especially when sitting or lying quietly; but then, when the patient gets up, the hammers begin their work again.

"Dilation" is a term often used by patients and researchers. Sensation of expansion, as if the head had increased in size; feeling of pressure from inside to outside. All headaches described are relieved by pressing on the head. Sharp touching or pressing usually makes it worse; and pressure, which increases gradually and is carefully distributed over the entire surface of the head, usually improves the condition; An example would be a tight bandage or a tight cap. All headaches are provoked by the action of cold air; occur after being exposed to the cold with your head uncovered. Sometimes headaches begin after cutting your hair. Congestion of the head continues for several days, with beating and pulsation; after a haircut. The head is so sensitive to cold that after a haircut or after being exposed to cool air with the head uncovered, other complaints may arise, for example, related to the ears, diseases of the chest organs, and rheumatic manifestations. With this medicine all complaints, starting in different parts of the body, pass through the head and go down.

Complaints from the lower extremities, rheumatic affections of the joints with marked redness and swelling, which occur after exposure to the air with the head uncovered, after blowing the head, after sweating the head or during a cold acquired in the shower. There is one complaint that will really surprise you if you come across it - you won't even know what exactly I'm talking about. It is known that all Belladonna complaints are relieved by rest and aggravated by movement; but sometimes there is a special kind of restlessness with tearing pains running down the thighs, which greatly disturb the patient, forcing him to walk all the time. It is at the moment when the patient is about to rest that the pain returns. Sometimes they shoot down, sometimes they are tearing and spread down the nerves; similar symptoms occur either after being exposed to the air with your head uncovered, or after getting your feet wet. The complaints of Aconitum and Pulsatilla also arise from getting the feet wet, and tend to spread upward, affecting the feet, and then rising to involve the head. Belladonna complaints arise from bare head, extend downwards; the pathological focus is sometimes localized in the head, sometimes in the chest, sometimes in the stomach, sometimes in the abdominal area, sometimes in the area of ​​the uterus and ovaries. The Rhus patient complains after getting wet, but the symptoms occur in the parts that got wet. If your feet get wet, then rheumatic lesions of the feet occur. There are many differences between these medications, which should be taken into account in each individual case.

Homeopathy is generally based on an individual approach, this also applies to the question of the order in which complaints appear. Sometimes symptoms begin on the right side and only then move to the left side. Some symptoms first appear in the upper parts of the body and then gradually move downwards. This is precisely the pattern that can be seen in Belladonna. With some medications, headaches are triggered by contact of the feet with ice; cold or draft (Silicea), but in Belladonna this situation ends in headache or neuralgia of the lower extremities. Thus, pain occurring during rest is an exception for Belladonna. This once again confirms the need for a reasonable distinction between general and specific characteristics. Without knowing the “general” and “specific” symptoms, you will not be able to make the right prescription. The patient's condition and his general characteristics improve with rest. All symptoms, which the patient describes himself, improve with rest, but neuralgic pain in lower limbs, described above, on the contrary, decrease from movement and resume with the same force during rest. I do not mean to say that all pain in the lower extremities is relieved by movement; with rheumatism, for example, they become smaller with rest and increase with movement. During rest, it is precisely these tearing pains that arise, descending from hip joints, which are not characterized by swelling. In the pathogenesis of any drug we find many phenomena that go beyond the usual; Understanding this, it is very easy to realize the significance of those features, without which correct appointment is impossible.

In all symptoms of Belladonna there is a component of a rush of blood to the upper parts of the body. “Rush of blood to the head. Cold extremities." Cold feet, cold hands; hothead.

Inflammatory eye lesions. “Brilliant eyes. Pupil dilation. Rush of blood to the face. Pronounced redness of all affected areas of the body." Inflammation of all tissue components of the eyes, eyelids, all parts of the eyeballs; characterized by very sharp pain. Heat, burning and redness. These three distinctive signs, which have left their mark in all manifestations of the medicine, are also found in eye lesions. Throbbing, tissue thickening and lacrimation; severe pain; all complaints are aggravated by movement and bright light. Photophobia is extremely pronounced. "Flashes of light and flickering before the eyes." As you read, the lines bend and merge. "Decreased vision or complete blindness." Marked congestion and feeling of fullness in all parts. “Retinal apoplexy. Semi-ptosis, exophthalmos, fixed gaze.” This can often be observed in children who are in a stupor; eyes half-closed; congestion of the brain; the face is bloodshot, very hot; the head moves along the pillow from side to side; and if this condition persists for several days, the face turns pale, the neck arches back. In this state of congestion, the patient most often lies with his eyes half-closed; hardly blinks. “Orbital neuralgia. Exophthalmos with dilated pupils. Inflammatory lesions of the optic nerve and retina. There is congestion and redness in the eyes."

Another fairly common eye symptom is strabismus. The characteristic cases are not those in which this symptom arises gradually and requires surgical correction, and those that are accompanied by congestion of the brain and are combined with symptoms characteristic of congestion - dilated pupils, rolling the head from side to side, a rush of blood to the face, pulsation of the carotid arteries and severe fever. After one or two days, the eyes begin to converge and the child develops strabismus. Such a situation requires the immediate administration of Belladonna. Belladonna is also indicated in cases where the congestion has already regressed, but strabismus still persists. All such cases, which are based on circulatory disorders, can and should be cured with the help of medications. You should not resort to surgical methods. A well-chosen medicine can help even in cases where such symptoms persist for a long time. Homeopathic medicines are less effective if these symptoms increase gradually or are congenital. It is worth treating only those spasmodic manifestations that accompany cerebral congestion or are its direct consequence. Among the eye symptoms, I will add jaundice of the sclera in combination with liver congestion and inflammation of the duodenum.

For inflammatory lesions of the ears leading to suppuration, Belladonna is used quite rarely. It is necessary to look for a more deeply acting medicine. To prescribe Belladonna, pain, tension, hypersensitivity, and all signs of inflammation must be present; but remember that cases calling for Belladonna rarely result in suppuration.

Let us now turn our attention to the mucous membranes of the nose, mouth, throat, larynx, chest, mucous membranes lining the ear cavity and passing through the Eustachian tube; the characteristic features of Belladonna are everywhere noted, which determine the condition of all these membranes. Severe dryness, feeling of dryness. Dry nose, mouth, tongue, throat, chest; Because of this, a dry cough and spasmodic phenomena often appear. Dry mucous membranes are found everywhere and are a common characteristic, and therefore nasal symptoms appear and then intensify, acute rhinitis, throat symptoms, cough. Similar features can be observed in Phosphorus. When Phosphorus has a sore throat, there is often a dry mouth, tongue and airways. Similar symptoms are common to all respiratory tracts. Acute rhinitis with frequent sneezing is also characteristic. "Tingling, burning in the nose." Feeling of heat in the nose. The general condition of the body is often accompanied by redness of the face, severe fever and acute rhinitis; hot head, cold extremities; we can say that such important symptom, like headaches, is to some extent determined by the general dryness of the mucous membranes. Dryness itself is often the direct cause of pain, which is associated with impaired production normal amount fluids from mucous membranes. Belladonna has a typical relationship - decreased secretion leads to fever. Retention of discharge with fever, heat, redness and burning; facial redness, facial burning; heat in the face and head, coldness of the extremities. The text contains the following expression: “maddening headaches when suppressing catarrhal inflammation.”

In climatic conditions such as ours, when the hot summer season gives way to the cold winter, many people are susceptible to some degree of ailment, in particular mucous secretion from the nose, eyes or respiratory tract. When discharge begins, the condition of such patients usually improves. Suddenly the discharge stops, all mucous membranes become dry; the disease enters the next stage. Horrible, maddening, throbbing headaches come first. Do not use Belladonna for old catarrhal inflammations where there is a copious flow of thick, yellow mucus. The catarrh for which Belladonna is indicated consists only of increased secretion of whitish mucus. Belladonna is unlikely to help in cases where there has been a thick and yellow discharge, which then ceases under the influence of cold, after which acute coryza develops. Always remember that for suppressed catarrhal manifestations, you should choose drugs that cover previously suppressed symptoms. Possible medications with thick yellow-green discharge there may be Mercurius, Sulfur or Pulsatilla. Here is a range of drugs from which you need to choose a remedy that can restore the flow of secretions, while simultaneously providing a therapeutic effect on the condition of the tissues and improving the general condition of the patient.

Sharp facial pain. Rending, tearing pains in the face; throbbing pain in the face. Pain in the face, more on the right side; worse from shaking; with marked fever; with pulsation of the carotid arteries; with a hot head; occurring after exposure to a cold wind or from riding in a cold wind. Belladonna is good in cases of paralysis, but Causticum is still the better known and most commonly used remedy for facial paralysis following travel in cold and windy weather. Facial muscle spasms. Unusually severe facial twitching. Erysipelas on the face; the bright red color gradually gives way to purple, especially if the condition is accompanied by fever. With neuralgic pain, there is always, to one degree or another, congestion of the face with sharp pain, the face is always bright red. In the case of infectious diseases, when the febrile state becomes deeper, and signs of an infectious process are revealed in the blood, the previously dark face suddenly becomes covered with specks, as in the case of Baptisia, and it must be said that Baptisia will be shown here more than Belladonna. "Red face with burning heat." Pain in the teeth, congestion and aching pain of a congestive nature are often noted. Teeth are very sensitive.

The tongue should be dry, since this characteristic is common to all mucous membranes. Dry mouth; dry tongue; swollen tongue; the tongue hangs out of the mouth, is dry and swollen, and feels like skin. Loss of sensation; loss of taste; weakness of the tongue; inability to speak are all features characteristic of Belladonna. “Paralytic weakness of tongue; the tongue trembles when protruded.” Movements in the tongue are weakened. After a few days of Belladonna fever, the patient's body is depressed, significantly exhausted, and almost paralytic weakness increases. When the patient raises his hands and tries to hold them in this position for some time, trembling in them becomes noticeable. Thus, the tremor observed in the tongue is only a component common feature. Trembling from congestion of nerve centers. The papillae of the tongue become enlarged and the tongue becomes bright red. Bright red tongue with scarlet fever. Bright red tongue with hypertrophied papillae in the presence of cerebral congestion.

While analyzing Arum triphyllum, I mentioned the “raspberry tongue” characteristic of the drug. The same thing can be observed with Belladonna. The tongue appears as red as a raspberry or strawberry, the papillae rise above the surface like small growths. “A red stripe in the middle of the tongue, wide and widening towards the tip. The tongue is white in the middle and red around the edges.” A white tongue is not common in brain lesions. "Dry mouth with great thirst." "Dry mouth without thirst." Belladonna is often thirsty; We'll talk about this more when we look at stomach symptoms. Sometimes Belladonna requires large quantities of water, sometimes very little, just enough to wet the mouth, as in the case of Arsenicum. Like Arsenicum, a common symptom of Belladonna is the desire to drink frequently, but little by little, simply to moisten a parched tongue, mouth and throat. Dryness of the posterior parts of the mouth, the patient spits out thick and viscous mucus secreted in the posterior parts of the oral cavity, this mucus is not much, it is white; its color may change, then it becomes bloody.

So far I have not mentioned the spotting or bleeding of this medicine. However, when you study it more, you will realize that it is truly hemorrhagic, characterized by the rapid occurrence of bleeding from various departments body. Bleeding of the eyes, bleeding from the nose, from the nasal cavity, from the larynx, bleeding in the chest, in the bladder, and uterine bleeding are possible. All ulcers bleed. This applies even to tiny sores in the throat, no larger than the head of a pin. Small aphthous areas can also bleed.

Aphthous inflammatory lesions of the throat; Most complaints are caused by redness and dryness of the throat. Marked swelling. Increased sensitivity; severe swelling; inability to swallow. Significant pain when swallowing, with increased sensitivity of the adjacent mucous membranes, combined with sore throat and inflammatory lesions of the throat. Inflammation and swelling of the tonsils caused by cold, with redness of the face, intense heat, pulsation of the carotid arteries, high fever. All visible parts of the pharynx and pharynx are very red. The soft palate and tonsils are swollen. Swallowing, especially liquids, is painful. The voice is hoarse. "Feeling of a lump in the throat" due to swelling of the tonsils. Constant sore throat with coughing. The pharynx and larynx are often in a state of spasm; this occurs partly from dryness, partly from a marked increase in the sensitivity of the nerve endings in this area. Constriction in the throat when falling asleep, when coughing. Spasms of the esophagus. "Spasmodic constriction of the throat." Narrowing of the larynx, pharynx, throat. Belladonna is characterized by pain in the areas of constriction, reminiscent of the sensation of squeezing with fingers. Spasms and a feeling of constriction may also occur in the uterus. Similar symptoms can affect the liver, brain, and throat. Trembling and twitching of muscles, with sharp pains in the affected areas. This is a very clear sign of Belladonna. Patients sometimes find it difficult to describe this condition and say: “Doctor, it’s as if something is grabbed in this place.”

The described narrowing occurs in a sore throat when trying to swallow liquid or solid food, repeated efforts lead to food and liquid entering the nose and sometimes coming out of the nose. Some drugs also have a similar paralytic condition, where the muscles involved in the act of swallowing are paralyzed and cannot work normally to push food into the esophagus, causing the food to be refluxed into the nose; Possible choking. In acute conditions, the inflammatory lesions and spasms of Belladonna are different from those of Lachesis, which is characterized by a paralytic state after diphtheria, or from Alumina, which has spasms of the esophagus. Similar pathological manifestations with these drugs occur more slowly and later than with Belladonna. The early stages of fever are characterized by an irritation phase, while the later stages are characterized by a relaxation phase. Aphthous lesions quickly form in the tonsil area. Along with the soreness of the throat, which has already been mentioned, inflammation and enlargement or soreness of the tonsils, in the submandibular region or in other parts of the neck are often noted. The typical Belladonna condition is characterized by a sensitive and sore throat.

A very peculiar feature observed in absolutely all Belladonna fevers is the insatiable desire for lemons and lemon juice. Sometimes patients want lemonade too. In acute illnesses, this strong desire for lemons is beneficial to patients. In general, they often passionately want something to eat. You should not show your strength of character and somehow especially interfere with the patient if he suddenly wants beer. “The thirst for water gives way to the thirst for beer.” Craving foods that may even be harmful to health. "Extreme thirst for cold water."

The stomach and intestines are also affected by the inflammatory process, which affects the entire gastrointestinal tract. Pain, burning, irritation, stretching; sensitivity to shocks, to the slightest movement and even slight pressure. "Pain in the stomach, radiating deep and to the back." Inflammatory diseases of the stomach after chills, with intense heat; with a pronounced burning sensation. Characterized by sharp colic, intense spasmodic pain in children. The face is red and hot; The pain decreases somewhat only when bending forward. In exceptional cases, relief may occur by bending the torso back; in this respect the drug resembles Dioscorea. Mothers notice that when they hold their baby in their arms, the colic decreases somewhat. Belladonna is a bit like Colocynth in this regard; but Colocynth is characterized by the presence of pain in a specific place without significant fever, without special thirst, there is colicky pain in the abdomen, which decreases when bending in half, when bending around some hard object. Therefore Colocynth can be successfully prescribed for such symptoms.

“Severe pain in the ileocecal area; cannot stand any touch, not even the slightest, not even the touch of bed linen.” In some cases, Belladonna can be used to treat appendicitis.

Dysenteric symptoms are also noted in the pathogenesis of Belladonna. Diarrhea with scanty liquid stools, noticeable weakness, but along with this there is a blush on the face. Heat, redness and burning in the face and head. Cold extremities, hot head. The abdomen is greatly distended, but despite this, stool is scanty. “Spasmodic constriction of the anal sphincter; hemorrhoids are formed." These nodes are very painful, sharply red in color, significantly inflamed and enlarged; significant degree of severity of the inflammatory process; it is impossible to touch varicose nodes; the patient is forced to lie with his legs wide apart; painful hemorrhoids, severe burning sensation.

There is no other medicine that is characterized by such severe irritation of the bladder and the entire urinary tract as Belladonna. The patient is bothered by a constant urge to urinate. Urine comes out drop by drop, and a pronounced burning sensation is noted throughout the urethra. The entire urinary tract is in an irritated state. Belladonna can cure inflammation of the bladder. Along with irritation and congestion, there is also sensitivity to pressure - a symptom with which we have already repeatedly encountered in other diseases typical of Belladonna; sensitivity to shock. The above symptoms are accompanied by increased irritability of the psyche and the entire nervous system. “Bladder tenesmus. After passing urine, the patient continues to push,” this is accompanied by painful sensations. The amount of urine is reduced, the urine is bloody, sometimes mixed with pure blood, sometimes with small blood clots. “The urine looks as if it were mixed with brick dust; contains red veins. Very caustic." Both spasmodic urinary retention and involuntary urine discharge may occur. Urine comes out in drops in patients with brain diseases. Leakage of urine during sleep. The patient may dream of urinating or that urine comes out involuntarily. Retention of urine after shock, from congestion of brain tissue, or after childbirth. The bladder is full; very painful; very sensitive. Urine leaks involuntarily when the patient stands or walks; Sometimes urine leaks out abruptly during normal movements. The urge to urinate is sharp and sudden; occur when there is only a small amount of urine in the bladder. The bladder neck is most susceptible to pathological effects; spasmodic phenomena are often observed in this area. The patient feels spasmodic contractions. Spasm of the bladder neck can occur during and outside of urination, and can be the result of stress, cold, anxiety, or due to mental anxiety. Women leak urine, as in Dulcamara and Causticum, in old age, during chills or in very cold air. This may occur during sleep and the patient wets the bed. Frightening dreams may cause urge and the patient wets the bed. When falling asleep, a sensation of electrical discharge passes through the entire body, which entails urination right in bed.

Belladonna has many of these unusual little peculiar symptoms; but they all merely reflect the general spasmodic state and general irritability which are so characteristic of the Belladonna constitution. Such special symptoms as irritability are observed with this remedy in all parts of the body, but especially where there are sphincters, for example, the circular fibers in the neck of the bladder are narrowed; circular muscles of the mouth and vagina; spasms occur in all tubular structures of the body according to the same principle. Contraction of the uterus. Here we see the same specific sign relating to the neck of the bladder. All this brings more concern to women than to men, since the symptoms relate mainly to the female genital organs, mammary glands, and appear during childbirth or during breastfeeding. In general, this period in a woman’s life is fraught with numerous problems, many of which may require the use of Belladonna. This is a very important medicine for nervous and sensitive women, women with increased irritability of muscle fibers.

There are very few significant symptoms regarding the male genital organs; but women have many of them, and some of them are very serious indeed. They can cause severe suffering to patients and are characterized by increased irritability. All parts of the body are extremely sensitive; the uterus and ovaries are in a state of congestion, painful when touched, sensitive to shock. The uterus is irritated with such force that it becomes enlarged and painful; pain occurs in response to any touch. Sometimes such symptoms are residual effects after childbirth. Or the uterus remains slightly enlarged and painful after each menstruation. She doesn't come back to normal condition, but remains in a state of congestion, and during the entire intermenstrual period the woman retains the sensation as during menstruation. Feeling like after a blow; sensitivity to shocks. Menstrual flow is heavy, with clots of coagulated blood.

The most striking symptom of Belladonna is uterine bleeding. It occurs as a result of congestion, with spasms, with marked sensitivity. The uterus contracts sharply, thus spasmodic contractions are characteristic. Severe pain, with profuse discharge of bright red liquid blood, in which clots are sometimes found - this is a discharge characteristic of Belladonna. In this sense, Belladonna is a bit like Sabina. In these two remedies the symptoms described above are greatly expressed. The uterus is filled with clots, which are expelled by spasms resembling contractions; for some time after this, a copious amount of liquid blood is released; then contractions, similar to contractions, begin again, clots come out again, this is followed, as before, by liquid discharge. The blood clots quickly, bleeding is accompanied by severe exhaustion. This condition can occur for no apparent reason. Such bleeding sometimes occurs after miscarriages. Belladonna is indispensable in stopping bleeding after miscarriages, abortions, or in cases where the cause of bleeding is unknown, but to prescribe this medicine, hypersensitivity to touch is necessary; to concussions; the patient herself is also in a state of irritable sensitivity, enormous nervous excitement, manifested both in the waking state and in sleep; often such symptoms are accompanied by fever. Bleeding accompanied by fever; often the bleeding seems to replace the fever, and when bleeding occurs, the fever decreases.

The medicine is also very effective for bleeding after childbirth. The blood feels hot. Bleeding during uterine contractions like an hourglass. Such bleeding is extremely rare and occurs in cases where, as a result of contractions, the uterus takes the shape of an hourglass, the placenta is pinched in the middle, torn in this and other places, in such cases blood is usually released from the posterior sections; its quantity can be very significant. Belladonna miraculously reduces such uterine contractions.

Severe dysmenorrhea is also characteristic. Pain resembling contractions. Spasmodic cramping pain. Belladonna has frequent spasms of the orbicularis muscles. All fibers simultaneously take part in contraction with the same force, which leads to a breakdown of connections between the work of individual components of a single system. Belladonna is characterized by a sensation as if a thick rope is wrapped around the uterus, which causes its narrowing and cramping pain. Perhaps a patient suffering from dysmenorrhea will formulate her complaints in this way. There are sharp contractions of the circular fibers, which the patient can describe as if the uterus is tied with a rope, as if it is being squeezed tightly. In the pathogenesis of Belladonna there is much spasm, much bleeding, states of increased irritability, soreness and increased sensitivity to pain; The patient herself is very nervous and shocked by the pain she is experiencing.

In addition to what has already been said, I would like to note the characteristic pain in the ovaries. Belladonna generally has an affinity for the right side. You can often notice that the right ovary is more painful than the left, or that the right one is completely affected, while the left one is completely healthy. The same predominant damage to the right side is also observed in diseases of the throat. Sometimes the entire right side of the body is affected. “Pain in the ovaries that occurs before menstruation. Pain in the pelvic area that suddenly appears and disappears just as unexpectedly.” The pain characteristic of Belladonna appears suddenly, persists for a few seconds or sometimes several minutes, and just as suddenly goes away. Pain resulting from congestion of the uterus. Acute inflammation of the uterus. "Enlargement of the uterus with periodic spasms, as during contractions." Relaxation in the affected organs is also characteristic. The uterus is filled with blood, enlarged, heavy; ligaments weaken, stretch and lengthen; the stretched and overcrowded uterus, in turn, puts pressure on the ligaments, hence the pulling sensation often described by patients - the feeling that the uterus may fall out. This is sometimes described as a sensation of the uterus “leaking out” through a narrow opening. These are the words used by patients to formulate their complaints when the uterus prolapses. This type of relaxation is common in cases of ergotamine poisoning. The uterus descends and is located approximately in the area of ​​the labia. A characteristic feature of similar situations there is a feeling that all the internal organs have come out; the patient always gets worse from the concussion.

The uterus is very painful and seems heavy. I saw a patient who was forced to sit with her legs wide apart due to increased sensitivity of the cervix, which protruded from the vagina. “The patient cannot lie down.” Many Belladonna patients are unable to lie down due to tension in the abdominal muscles. If they do lie down, they always bend their legs to relax these muscles a little. They are forced to sit or take a bent position. Pronounced sensitivity. Pressure and pushing in the genital area. There are differences in the characteristic postures, improvements and aggravations in Belladonna, depending on which particular muscles are affected. Some patients find it easier to lie down than to sit. Some people find it more comfortable to sit with their legs spread wide apart. For others, it gets worse when they lean forward too much. A patient sitting in a chair cannot bend forward very much, but she cannot lean back either without increasing her suffering. This is due to increased sensitivity and swelling of the affected areas. She feels worse from movements, from shaking, from emotional excitement, from slamming doors, as all this causes her muscles to contract. Such symptoms clearly illustrate how the body’s irritability increases. In the area of ​​the external and internal genital organs, ovaries, burning, twitching and severe heat are noted. Tearing pain is often observed. These pains usually appear with intensification of characteristic grasping and contractions; they are called spasms, especially if they occur in the circular muscles.

Belladonna can be prescribed to pregnant women who are very sensitive, plethoric, who react to hypothermia with congestive reactions and who are characterized by pain; the medicine eliminates the threat of miscarriage or helps during or after miscarriages if bleeding occurs. Belladonna is especially indicated for red-faced, full-blooded, strong women who have married and become pregnant in adulthood, when by the day of the expected birth all the orbicularis muscles are in a tense state. The uterus does not relax. The woman's face is covered with blush, she is hot, in an excited state, sensitive to touch and shock. Following the prescription of the medicine, relaxation necessarily occurs. Such women do not have easy contractions, because when they get married at 28–30 years old or later, they usually suffer from prolonged contractions.

The distinguishing feature of Belladonna bleeding and all discharges is that the flowing blood appears hot. During childbirth, streams of “hot” blood flow out. Lochia that feels hot, combined with tenderness and soreness in certain areas of the body. Increased sensitivity to pressure. Inflammatory diseases of the mammary glands after childbirth. Milk fever. The breasts become red and very painful when touched. The patient cannot turn over in bed and cannot tolerate shaking of the bed; the face is red, pulsation of the carotid arteries is noted; fever; sensitivity increases throughout the affected organs and tissues. Pronounced compaction; breasts hard as stone. Belladonna will relieve pain for a few hours, stop congestion and relieve all complaints.

In cases where the mammary glands become inflamed without any attachment common symptoms, for isolated inflammation of the glands, prescribe Phytolacca.

Inflammatory lesions of the larynx. Characteristic sensations of compression and suffocation. The disease begins with hoarseness in the throat, sharp pain and a scratching sensation are observed, and a small amount of mucus is formed. Soreness in the throat and coughing persist for some time, then a small amount of secretion is released; but before a strong cough begins, the throat usually becomes dry. Sharp pain and loss of voice are observed. At the moment when the patient begins to fall asleep, his throat closes and he awakens. Characterized by hoarseness, pain and a tight feeling in the throat. Laryngitis with hypersensitivity. "Sudden attacks of hoarseness"; every movement, the slightest attempt to speak, attempts to use or touch the larynx increases the patient's suffering. Leaning the head back or moving the head from side to side causes pain and coughing. Swallowing worsens the condition. When swallowing, a pronounced painful sensation occurs in the larynx. The voice is changeable. Now he is like this, but in a minute he changes. Sometimes the voice becomes completely hoarse, sometimes too high or creaky. A complete loss of voice is possible, when the patient is unable to utter a word. “Spasms in the larynx as in croup. Spasms of the glottis. All symptoms of croup,” but without films. There is only a dry, bare larynx with severe soreness and rawness; signs of inflammation are observed. The symptoms described above are characteristic of acute laryngitis; the disease begins suddenly. Breathing is short, rapid and painful. Often asthmatic. Asthmatic symptoms with spasmodic breathing. These symptoms can gradually involve the entire chest in the pathological process. Feeling of tightness in the chest. Asthma in hot and dry weather.

Belladonna cough is caused by constriction of the larynx. Sensation as if a small grain of sand were stuck in the larynx; The patient coughs after a little dust, or a piece of food, or a drop of water enters the larynx. "Dry, spasmodic cough" Severe cough. Cough at night. The cough occurs when the patient is lying down; more at night than during the day. The cough is spasmodic, barking, and jerky. The medicine is effective in cases of whooping cough when there is spasm in the larynx, causing coughing attacks and difficulty breathing. As a result, after a long cough, a small amount of blood or some thin white mucus is coughed up, which is the result of irritation of the respiratory tract. Belladonna has a very peculiar cough. As soon as a small amount of mucus is coughed up as a result of enormous effort, the cough calms down for a while and the patient is able to rest. During this quiet period, the larynx, trachea and the rest of the airways become drier and drier; then rawness and spasm begin again, it seems that all the respiratory tracts are involved, an attack of whooping cough occurs, the patient begins to choke, and sometimes even vomiting occurs. Then the patient coughs up some mucus, and the cough subsides for a while. The next interval comes, the patient again receives a break. A similar picture continues further, very reminiscent of whooping cough, but during the breaks between attacks the respiratory tract is dry all the time. This cough is called paroxysmal.

Tightness in the chest. Rawness in the chest. Sensitivity and feeling of inflammation in the chest. Feeling the urge to cough, Belladonna children begin to cry, because they already know what is coming to them. The chest is so painful that children are afraid to cough and cry. By crying you can understand that a new coughing attack is coming. As in Bryonia, Hepar and Phosphorus, in which this character is also pronounced. There is a burning sensation in the chest; pronounced congestion of the chest. Along with complaints from the chest, this dry, tiresome, spasmodic cough is determined; worse at night.

The medicine helps well in cases of pneumonia and pleurisy. I am sure that everyone present is familiar with the pictures of pneumonia and pleurisy characteristic of Belladonna. I am sure you already have a good idea of ​​the patient himself, so I will not dwell on a detailed description of his condition, with congestion, red face or burning; I just want to tell you one secret regarding pleurisy. Belladonna prefers to amaze right side. Severe pain; severe pain in certain areas; the patient cannot lie on the painful side; worse from shaking the bed - these are the signs that will tell you the right choice in the case of Belladonna. Bryonia also prefers right-sided lesions, but the Bryonia patient, on the contrary, is forced to lie only on the right side; he needs pressure, he is not so sensitive to shocks; it does not have intense heat, pronounced pulsation and burning. You should try to find individual approach in every case you encounter. Homeopathy cannot be treated differently.

Remember, along with signs of inflammation, there should always be pulsation, heat, redness, burning, pain when touched and sensitivity to shaking. The Belladonna patient cannot lie on the inflamed side, while in the case of Bryonia he, on the contrary, feels better lying on the sore side.

Pulsation of all arteries. Marked congestion. Increased excitability of the vascular system. All symptoms of congestion and inflammation.

Belladonna is effective in vascular rheumatism, when all or many of the joints are swollen, red and hot. With rheumatism, there is heat, redness and burning; at the same time, the already known increased sensitivity of the whole organism and the sensitivity of the joints to bed shocks are characteristic. The patient wants to lie absolutely still, his condition worsens from movements, and there is a significant fever. Sometimes, when the fever of inflammatory rheumatism becomes very severe, delirium may develop. The most typical signs are swelling of the joints with redness, severe sensitivity to movement and shock. The medicine is especially suitable for patients who are sensitive to cold, who cannot stand even short openings, drafts, are very sensitive to the movements of the blanket covering them, and who get better from heat. As in other conditions, in such rheumatic affections all the features and symptoms of Belladonna appear. It is the descriptions of the patients that make it possible to identify the typical features of Belladonna, known from trials, it is the patients who give the disease its special character, and only compliance with the law of similars when selecting a remedy allows one to overcome the symptoms of the disease.

Inflammation of the joints resulting from external influences for each separate joint. The joint becomes inflamed after contact with cold. A symptom that localizes itself. One or all joints may be affected. The most common cause of such illnesses in the case of Belladonna is direct contact with cold in plethoric patients. In chronic cases, the consequences of exposure to cold are clearly localized or cause damage to the entire body, which manifests itself in the very weak point. Strong people catch a cold, which is reflected in their nasal symptoms, which quickly pass. Weakened patients should be explained that “a cold attacks your weakest point. If you suffered from liver damage, then the cold would be localized in the liver area” and so on; “But when you recover, your colds will proceed like those of all healthy people, with damage to the nasopharynx.” Absolutely healthy people rarely catch colds, but they are so rare that they almost never catch our eye; their runny nose, sneezing and nasal discharge are quite easy and pass quickly.

In the limbs we again see cramps as part of the general condition. Cramps in all the muscles of the limbs and throughout the body. In children they are associated with damage to the head, with congestion of the brain, with irritation of the brain. Convulsions during a cold in full-blooded, plethoric children, who have the greatest readiness of the limbs for convulsive muscle contractions. Severe spasms. All limbs are in a state of convulsive movement. The convulsions are at times clonic, at times tonic; may be in the form of sudden pulling and throwing; can involve the entire body with bending backwards, in the form of the so-called opisthotonus, or with bending it forward, in the form of emprosthotonus. Most Belladonna complaints are relieved by rest. Nagging pain, throbbing, inflammation force the patient to strive for peace and avoid movement. Intolerance and aversion to motion are common to Belladonna and are quite pronounced, as in Bryonia. Belladonna is sensitive to movement and even to talking, as the vibration of the vocal cords reverberates in sore spots. It would seem that such symptoms should be more pronounced in men with a strong, low voice, but nevertheless, the most intense (of those that I have observed) such symptoms of aggravation from movement and from shaking were in women whose voice hit the sore spots as if hammer. Inflammation of the uterus, ovaries, intestines; the patient does not want to speak, because her voice hits the sore spots. This is just one example of extreme sensitivity to motion and shock. Sensitivity to shock is just an enhanced form of sensitivity to movement, a manifestation of increased general sensitivity.

In examining the nerves we find a huge collection of specific nervous symptoms, such as general nervous sensitivity, aggravation from shocks; spasms; various disorders of the nervous system as a whole; twitching, contraction; trembling, etc. Spasms and convulsions in children. Seizures appear completely unexpectedly. In most cases of convulsions due to long-acting drugs and drugs for infectious conditions, the patient’s health will not be good at the end of pregnancy, but in the case of Belladonna, health remains until the birth itself or even until its end and there is no sign of complications. Although her face isn't even too red, she suddenly develops violent cramps from head to toe. Congestion of the brain with excitement. Intense heat; everything is very sharp, strong, unpredictable. Suddenly, during labor, contractions stop and convulsions develop. If you look closely, you will notice that the patient has developed all the types of hypersensitivity described earlier. Sudden cessation of pain. Blood rushes to the head. The face turns red. Congestion develops rapidly. Convulsions of an epileptic nature.

Belladonna is not suitable for recurrent complaints; it relieves only one particular attack. It doesn’t matter what kind of attack it is - whether it be convulsions, or headaches, or congestion of the brain - they cause excitement, congestion of the head, force you to stay in bed and bury your head in the pillow. You can give the patient Belladonna and she will feel better. But, please note, this is only one attack, and we do not know if there will be others. You have relieved the patient's condition, but it may worsen, and then Belladonna will help less. After two or three attacks, Belladonna ceases to work altogether, and you find yourself in a worse position than you were in the first place. Therefore, after the cessation of the first attack, the doctor should always remember that this could only be the first attack and Belladonna will not be suitable in this case. Often such patients need Calcarea, mind you, often, but not always. Symptoms must be analyzed before the attack recurs, since repeated attacks can kill the child, and acute medicine works within one or two, or at most three seconds. It has no depth or breadth of action. It cannot affect the structure of the body deeply enough. Its effect wears off quickly; frequent repetitions are necessary. The patient should be monitored and monitored for recurrent seizures. Belladonna will not be a good remedy for recurrent symptoms, as the remedy has little periodicity and equally little duration of action. Even if the first attack resembles the Belladonna condition, the medicine will not prevent the appearance of exactly the same one soon after. Belladonna is necessary in situations where there is no tendency to recur, when the condition can end either in death or in recovery. Repeated symptoms will only be blurred.

The medicine is characterized by congestive sleep, stupor; a sleep full of dreams, full of nightmares. He wakes up in horror from what he saw in his dream. Cramps and twitching during sleep. "Restless sleep." Moans in his sleep. Various manifestations of violence. Delirious in his sleep. “Jumps up in sleep as if frightened.” Sometimes in a dream the patient begins to talk, speak quickly and loudly, the head becomes hot, the feet become cold, all this is accompanied by a piercing scream. “Restless tossing and turning in sleep. Icy coldness of feet during sleep. Hot head in a dream. Wakes up feverish and excited." The symptoms are very similar to the typical Sydenham fever associated with scarlet fever. This is perhaps the most commonly used medicine for scarlet fever. At least at certain times of the year, this disease affects many people, and most of these cases will be cases of Belladonna, with a bright red face and shiny skin. Vivid redness, intense heat, severe congestion; in a short time, if Belladonna is not prescribed, the face darkens. Above the whole picture are three key words: heat, redness and burning. Burning everywhere. The heat which I have described among the general symptoms is so marked that you will feel it on the tips of your fingers for several hours after touching a patient with scarlet fever of the Belladonna type. This scarlet fever is quite different from the cases of Apis, where there is a rough rash. Belladonna's skin is smooth and shiny. The Apis patient strives for cold, wants to open up, he has no thirst; the Belladonna patient craves warmth, a warm room; lack of thirst is an exception; the patient really wants to drink cold water - often, in small sips. Severe dryness of mucous membranes and skin. Cold extremities with heat in head. Scarlet fever Arum triphyllum is distinguished by the fact that the patient constantly picks the mouth area; urine scanty or absent; the skin is pale, only in some places there is a small rash; itching in fingers, toes, nose, lips. Do not forget also about Baptisia with a special mental state when the patient seems to be falling apart into separate pieces and is trying to “collect them.” When we do not see any special rash, to make a diagnosis there are only spots or, in general, only the very fact of a similar disease in the family; the child greedily drinks ice water, which spews out as soon as it warms up in the stomach; no one will stop us from prescribing Phosphorus to such a child.

This way, at the patient's bedside, we do not forget about other drugs and can see the signs of each of them. For Belladonna it will be heat, redness, tossing. Remember that the medicine is not suitable for persistent fevers, for typhoid conditions. Belladonna in these cases may relieve the fever and calm the delirium for one night, but what about the next? All symptoms will return with renewed vigor, and the patient will become even worse. This medicine is not capable of maintaining its effect for a long time; it is not suitable for this. In its pathogenesis there are no long-term and recurrent symptoms. We must turn to those remedies which are for persistent fever and choose from them when we are faced with a typhoid condition. Previously, homeopaths relied only on what they saw at a given moment, and only later did they understand that periodicity itself is a symptom. Each medicine has its own rhythm, its own time of deterioration and improvement. This is also true for Belladonna. Symptoms usually worsen after 3 p.m. Worse at night. Complaints begin around 3 p.m. and continue until three in the morning or midnight. So at night the fever reaches its peak. It appears and grows very quickly to high numbers, sometimes above 40 degrees, and then drops almost to normal; although the temperature still remains low-grade. The medicine is not suitable for symptoms with “full” periodicity, when the temperature becomes completely normal after some time.

Heat, redness and burning accompany most skin symptoms. There is a bright rash, not rough, but bright, scarlet, shiny. Inflammation of the skin, deep, phlegmonous inflammation. At first bright red, then it becomes purple or purple or mottled; there will be heat, a rush of blood and a burning sensation. Usually the medicine is not suitable for erysipelas of the skin and deeper tissues, accompanied by a vesicular rash; this picture corresponds to Rhus. Individual blisters can still be an exception in Belladonna, but if they cover the inflamed areas abundantly, then this is Rhus. Rhus is also characterized by inflammation with heat, redness and burning, but as soon as Rhus inflammation occurs, vesicles filled with serous fluid immediately appear. Almost any inflamed area of ​​Belladonna skin is covered with a red rash. The red, shiny, glossy rash is accompanied by a high fever, but it is not necessarily a scarlet fever rash, nor is it just a normal rash. Similar rashes often occur with cerebral congestion, with bile fever, when the doctor makes a diagnosis skin disease, while dealing with a combined lesion. The skin of Belladonna is passively hyperemic, so that the doctor, by pressing on it, can write almost his entire name on it. When pressed, the skin turns white. This is one of the old ones diagnostic signs scarlet fever, when there is a typical, characteristic of this disease, passive congestion of the skin. So here we have a symptom from the pathogenesis of Belladonna, which is also a pathognomonic symptom of scarlet fever. But we should not prescribe medicine based on one symptom.

Previously, no homeopath could even think of prescribing a medicine “to make the pulse slower” or “to lower the temperature.” They prescribed medicine for a specific patient. True, when the right medicine is prescribed, the temperature decreases, but if you focus only on this temperature, nothing good will come of it. A homeopathically minded doctor will never prescribe a medicine to eliminate any symptom, but he will study all the symptoms and find a cure; it does not matter which of them he will take into account. And if he chooses correctly, the symptom will go away. From the outside it looks like the medicine was for the symptom that was eliminated. So try to constantly keep in mind the most important principles of homeopathy in order to think rationally and get rid of a huge number of “hereditary” thinking patterns. These stereotypes can lead you down the wrong path.

"Yellow discoloration of the skin due to inflammation of the liver and duodenum." When the patient is overloaded with quinine, which he takes for every cold (and he gets a cold from any sneeze), inflammation of the liver may suddenly develop, with great soreness, jaundice of the skin, all kinds of sensitivity characteristic of Belladonna; this medicine can cure such a case.

Next are the remedies following Belladonna for chronic conditions. Belladonna is suitable for acute situations, but when the periodicity I have already mentioned occurs, natural adjuncts to the remedy are needed, and Calcarea is one of them. You will meet at the reception large-headed loose, full-blooded, precociously developed boys, often catching colds with headaches and congestion; schoolchildren with headaches who were first helped by Belladonna; later, upon closer examination, these may turn out to be cases of Calcarea. These medications often follow each other. It is common nowadays to encounter patients with a dry, hacking cough, especially when they are in the hands of doctors who are fond of prescribing Lachesis. This remedy is often prescribed to hypersensitive women, and it does relieve many problems, but it causes this dry, harsh, sleep-depriving cough that lasts for many weeks. Sometimes the cough appears after the first sleep, usually around 11 p.m.; dry, hacking cough, worse from lying down. Belladonna cures the known effects of Lachesis - nervousness, irritability and cough. Belladonna can serve as an antidote to Lachesis in acute cases, while Calcarea is its antidote in more chronic situations. When Belladonna is abused, Calcarea also serves as one of its natural antidotes.

Belladonna (after Grangeorge)

Belladonna (in feverish delirium)

One of the most frequently used remedies (after Aconitum) in acute pathological cases. The febrile state usually begins around 20:00 with a purple face, dilated pupils, and a headache, aggravated by tremors. We can talk about sore throat, otitis, sunstroke and any other inflammation that has such symptoms. The child often raves, sees monsters, grinds his teeth, and bites. There is sweating of the head with icy feet. Often the day before the child was exposed to cold, he left the house with wet hair. Often this medicine can be used for children whose main medicine is Calcarea carbonica. Sometimes we are talking about children who are prone to biting (Mercurius, Stramonium).

Atropa belladonna L.
Taxon: family Solanaceae ( Solanaceae)
Other names: belladonna, belladonna, sleepy stupor, mad berry, mad cherry
English: Belladonna, Atropa, Deadly Nightshade, Death's Herb, Dwale, Witch's Berry

The name “belladonna”, which was given to the plant by C. Linnaeus, translated from Italian (“ bella donna") means "beautiful woman". It is explained by the fact that the mydriatic effect of the main alkaloid of the plant, atropine, was widely used by women of Ancient Rome, and then Italy and Spain to enhance the shine of the eyes and dilate the pupils. And if the juice of the berries was rubbed on the cheeks, a blush appeared on them.
The Latin name of the plant comes from the Greek words " atropos», « atropa"(literally translated - “unyielding, irrevocable”). That was the name of one of the three Moiras - the ancient Greek goddesses of fate, who cut the thread human life, regardless of age and gender. It is believed that this name indicates the poisonous nature of the plant.

Botanical description

Perennial herbaceous plant 60-130 cm high (up to 2 m). It has a thick, multi-headed rhizome. The stem is green or dirty purple, straight, succulent, forked at the top, glandular-pubescent. Leaves are up to 15-20 cm long, short-petiolate, ovate or ovate-elliptic, pointed, entire, alternate in the lower part of the stem, on flowering shoots - close together in pairs, one of them is larger. The flowers are single, large, drooping, located in the axils of the leaves on glandular-pubescent pedicels. The calyx is five-parted, slightly enlarged near the fruits. The corolla is tubular-bell-shaped, 20-35 mm long, brown-violet or red-brown (less often yellow), with five short, mostly blunt lobes. Blooms in June-August. The fruit is a spherical, two-locular, shiny, juicy black berry with purple juice.

Geographical distribution

In its wild form, belladonna is distributed in Western and Southern Europe, on the Atlantic coast and in the Mediterranean, in the Balkans, and in Asia Minor. Found from Great Britain to the Eastern Carpathians, from Spain, Yugoslavia, Greece, Romania in the south to Denmark in the north. In addition to Europe, belladonna grows in the Caucasus, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan (up to the Himalayas), North Africa, and is introduced into the USA. In Ukraine, it grows wild mainly in the Carpathians (Transcarpathian region), sporadically in the Carpathian region. It grows in small groups in beech forests, in clearings, lawns, clearings, edges, along river banks, among bushes at an altitude of 300 to 1000 m above sea level. Belladonna is also found in the forests of the Podolsk Upland of the Crimean Mountains. The plant is listed in the Red Book of Ukraine.

Belladonna cultivation

Due to the fact that the natural raw material base is limited, belladonna is cultivated as an industrial crop in many countries of Europe, Asia and America, including Ukraine (Crimea) and Russia (Krasnodar Territory). Belladonna is a heat-loving plant, and as a perennial crop it can only be grown in areas with mild winters and constant snow cover. During snowless winters, it freezes when the temperature drops to 10–15°C below zero. If the snow cover is sufficiently thick, plants can withstand temperatures down to -30°C. When grown in the shade, belladonna leaves become thin and tender and contain significantly less alkaloids than the leaves of plants that are cultivated in sunny areas.

Collection and preparation

The leaf is used in medicine ( Folium Belladonnae) and roots ( Radix Belladonnae) plants. The leaf is harvested while the plant is flowering. After preliminary drying, it is dried in the shade or in dryers at a temperature of 30-40°C. The roots are dug up in the fall or spring, washed in cold water, cut into pieces 2-3 cm long (thick ones are split) and dried under a tent or in heated rooms.

Chemical composition

The leaves and other parts of belladonna contain biologically active tropane alkaloids, mainly atropine and hyoscyamine. Atropine and hyoscyamine are esters of the alcohol tropine and tropic acid. In addition to them, the plant contains hyoscyamine N-oxide, hyoscine (scopolamine), apoatropine (atropamine), belladonine, tropine, chelaradine, and traces of nicotine. Hyoscyamine makes up 83-98% of all belladonna alkaloids. Atropine is found in trace amounts in belladonna and is formed during the extraction process of the raw material from hyoscyamine.
Belladonna leaves also contain free tropic acid. In addition to tropine derivatives, norpseudotropine alkaloids - calistegins - accumulate in the roots of belladonna vulgaris. Belladonna roots also contain the pyrrolidine alkaloid cushygrin (bellaradine). In addition to alkaloids, belladonna roots contain volatile nitrogen-containing compounds in the form of bases (N-methylpyrrolidine, N-methylpyrroline, pyridine, tetramethyldiaminobutane). They are believed to be intermediate compounds in the biosynthesis of tropane alkaloids.
The alkaloid content in leaves harvested as medicinal raw materials must be at least 0.3%, usually ranging from 0.15 to 1–1.2%. The roots of the plant contain 0.4–1.5% alkaloids, the stem - 0.05–0.65%, the flowers - 0.24–0.6%, unripe berries - 0.19%, ripe berries - 0.21–0.7%, in seeds - 0.23–0.33%. The maximum amount of alkaloids in belladonna leaves accumulates during budding and flowering of the plant.
Belladonna leaves contain steroids (β-sitosterol), phenolcarboxylic acids and their derivatives (chlorogenic acid), oxalic and leucatropic acids, flavonoids (7-glucosido-3-rhamnosyl glactosides and 7-glucosido-3-rhamnosyl glucosides of quercetin and kaempferol, methyl kaempferol, 7 -methylquercetin), aliphatic hydrocarbons (n-nonacosane), alcohols, tannin. Spirostane-type steroidal glycosides have been isolated from belladonna seeds.

History of use in medicine

The plant has been known since ancient times. Very little is known about the medicinal use of belladonna in ancient times. Belladonna was known as a poisonous plant, especially in the territory of its natural distribution. The healing and poisonous properties of belladonna were pointed out by Theophrastus (about 372–287 BC) and Dioscorides (1st century AD), who called it “Strychnos manicos”, which means “crazy plant”.
The ancient Germanic tribes had berserker warriors who dressed in bearskins and before battle drank a drink containing belladonna, which grows in the beech forests of Western Europe. The warriors developed a state of strong excitement, and they frantically marched towards the enemy.
In the medicine of eastern countries, belladonna was used as a narcotic along with Indian hemp, even 2500 years ago.
In one of the scientific treatises, dated 1504, belladonna was called “ Solanum mortale", which means "deadly nightshade." The first botanical description of a plant called " Solanum mortiferum"appeared in 1542 in the herbal book of Leonard Fuchs (1501–1565). The Polish physician and botanist Szymon Serenski (Sireniusz, 1541–1611) wrote about her. In the Middle Ages, belladonna juice was often used as. There are cases in history when the Scots destroyed the Danes with the help of belladonna juice. As they retreated, they left barrels of beer poisoned with belladonna juice for the invaders. Having decided to celebrate the victory, the Danes drank the trophy drink and fell into a state of deep sleep. The Scots returned and easily dealt with their enemies. In the 18th century In Austria, cases of belladonna poisoning occurred so frequently that the government was forced to issue several circulars detailing the plant. Belladonna berries poisoned soldiers of the Napoleonic army, who in 1813 were stationed near the German city of Pirna.
Due to its hallucinogenic properties, belladonna, like henbane, was considered a magical herb and was included in witchcraft ointments and drinks. Especially popular in Europe in the 13th–14th centuries. There was a “witches ointment” that was made from the juice of belladonna fruits. Women who considered themselves witches drank such a drink or rubbed themselves with ointment, after which they experienced extraordinary sensations (flight, rapid movement in space, visual, olfactory and auditory hallucinations) and were confident in their reality; they believed that they were really taking part in the Sabbath. This transformation was masterfully described by M. Bulgakov in the novel “The Master and Margarita.” The German toxicologist Gustav Schenk, who inhaled the smoke of burning plant seeds, was convinced from his own experience that such sensations are the result of the action of belladonna.
The famous alchemist and physician Paracelsus (1493–1541) believed that belladonna could cause madness. Nevertheless, already in the Middle Ages, this plant began to be used in fairly small, almost homeopathic doses for insomnia, epilepsy, bedwetting, cholera, gout, whooping cough, gastrointestinal diseases, skin and venereal diseases. In 1677, Faber described in detail the use and effect of belladonna, which he called “ Solanum furiosum" In the sixteenth century. Italian doctor and botanist Mattioli conducted life-threatening experiments with belladonna on criminals. Around the same time, a plant called " Herba Belladonnae"(belladonna herb) was used by the women of Venice to enhance the shine of their eyes.
In the 18th century belladonna was the subject of many scientific treatises, in particular by Petrus Dar (1776) and Monch (1789), which indicates an increased interest in the extraordinary properties of this plant. The mydriatic effect of belladonna was described in 1802, but its analgesic properties were discovered only in 1860.
In 1831, Maine, and in 1833, independently, Geiger and Hesse isolated hyoscyamine and its isomer atropine from the roots of belladonna in crystalline form. It was found that they are the main active ingredients that determine the pharmacological properties of belladonna. In 1879, atropine was synthesized from atropic acid and tropine. At the end of the nineteenth century. Ladenburg established the structure of atropine and identified it with hyoscyamine.
As a plant recognized by scientific medicine, belladonna was included in the first Russian Pharmacopoeia in 1866.
Back in 1868, Trousseu considered atropine one of the most effective drugs for bronchial asthma. Over time, the arsenal of anti-asthmatic drugs, in particular bronchodilators, has expanded significantly, and atropine has faded into the background. But in the 70s of the last century, works appeared on the bronchodilatory effect of atropine and its derivatives when administered by inhalation.
At the end of the nineteenth century. A resident of the Bulgarian city of Shipki, Ivan Raev, created a cure for Parkinson’s disease, which created a real sensation. The Italian Queen Elena had to pay four million lire for the secret of this remedy. This remedy began to be used in hospitals to treat patients with encephalitis. In 25% of cases, patients recovered, in 40% their condition noticeably improved. However, this remedy did not find widespread use, since side effects were noted with its use.
Long before the discovery of atropine, ointments from belladonna extract were used for strangulated hernias.
In the past in Bohemia, belladonna root was added to beer to give it intoxicating properties, and sometimes it was added to vodka. In Australia, belladonna was added to the feed of oxen to give them smooth coats. Traditional medicine also recommended belladonna for rabies, syphilis, impotence, bronchial asthma, and pulmonary tuberculosis. An alcoholic tincture of belladonna berries was used to treat bloody diarrhea. Fresh juice of the leaves of the plant, diluted with vodka, was recommended for chronic inflammation of the eyes in humans and animals. Applications and poultices of belladonna leaves are recommended in folk medicine for infiltrates and for the symptomatic treatment of breast cancer.
Nowadays, in folk medicine, belladonna tincture is used for paralysis with loss of speech, arthritis, radiculitis, rheumatism, and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. In France, it is used for neuroses, neuralgia of the facial nerve, pain tics, epilepsy, constipation, hysteria, chorea, tetanus, pain in the stomach, intestinal, liver and renal colic, enuresis. The root extract is used as an anesthetic for gout, rheumatism, neuralgia, and the fruit tincture is used for dysentery.

Use in medicine

The use of belladonna preparations in medicine is due to the pharmacological properties of its highly active alkaloids, in particular atropine. Use total galenic preparations and preparations containing purified individual chemical compounds, isolated from a plant, or in the form of total and complex products.
Belladonna and atropine preparations are used as parasympatholytic, antispasmodic and for peptic ulcers of the stomach and duodenum, chronic hyperacid gastritis, pylorospasm, for diseases of the biliary tract and gallbladder, for pancreatitis, spastic and ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis, as well as for cholelithiasis and urolithiasis, intestinal colic and other diseases accompanied by spasms of smooth muscles. Since spasms usually lead to pain, atropine, along with the antispasmodic, has an analgesic effect.
The priority of introducing atropine into the treatment of gastric diseases belongs to the famous Russian therapist A.P. Voinovich, who back in 1891 reported positive results of treating stomach ulcers with atropine. The analgesic effect of atropine occurs due to the elimination of gastrospasm and inhibition of increased gastric motility. The therapeutic effect in these cases is also a consequence of a decrease in secretion under the influence of atropine. Atropine has not lost its relevance in gastroenterology today. For gastric and duodenal ulcers, it should be administered orally in an effective, individually selected dose (until mild dry mouth appears). Depending on sensitivity to atropine, the dose may be 6–8–10–12–15 drops of a 0.1% solution taken 2–3 times a day. Prescribed 30–40 minutes before meals or an hour after. When the disease worsens, atropine is first administered subcutaneously.
For pain associated with smooth muscle spasms, atropine is often administered simultaneously with analgesics (promedol, morphine, etc.).
Belladonna preparations are widely used in the form of ointments and suppositories for spasms of the smooth muscles of the uterus, sphincters and canals of the genitourinary system and as an analgesic during childbirth, in the postpartum period, for metritis and pelvioperitonitis.
Belladonna preparations and its alkaloids are prescribed for bradycardia of vagal etiology, atrioventricular block and angina. Nevertheless, it should be remembered that under the influence of atropine, the heart rate increases significantly, and a functionally defective conduction system may not be able to cope with the transmission of impulses at an accelerated frequency, then a paradoxical reaction is possible - an increase in the degree of atrioventricular block.
Belladonna preparations and its alkaloids are also used in the treatment of bronchial asthma and spasmodic cough. In this case, they can be administered in the form of a fine aerosol (0.25 ml of a 0.1% solution is inhaled for 2–3 minutes). The anti-asthmatic effect of belladonna preparations is based on the ability of atropine to eliminate spasm of bronchial smooth muscles and at the same time inhibit the secretion of the bronchial mucosa. The latter circumstance is of great importance, since attacks of bronchial asthma depend not only on spasm of the bronchial muscles, but also on rapid swelling of the bronchial mucosa, accompanied by vasodilation and thick secretion of mucus. Therefore, atropine is especially effective for bronchial obstruction of non-allergic nature.
In the 50s, a method of treating patients with schizophrenia with atropine comas was proposed. High doses of atropine and atropine-like drugs obviously act on those brain structures that are directly involved in the formation of hallucinatory phenomena. The main mechanisms of therapeutic action are considered to be vegetative-protective mobilization and a diffuse, massive and prolonged state of protective inhibition. The ability of atropine comas to eliminate or significantly mitigate hallucinatory symptoms and weaken the phenomena of resistance to neuroleptics has made it possible to recommend this method of treatment for implementation in psychiatric practice. However, to date, due to severe toxicity, it has not found widespread use in psychiatry.
When administered in small doses, atropine causes, on the part of the central regulation of autonomic functions, a significant autonomic mobilization of protective mechanisms in the form of shifts towards increased tone of the sympathetic department of the central nervous system. Protective inhibition was less profound and appeared in the form of doubtfulness. The use of atropine is effective in the treatment of depressive states of circulatory and involutional origin, resistant to other types of antipsychotic therapy.
In neurological practice, the vegetotropic drug “Belloid”, which contains the sum of belladonna alkaloids, is widely used for the treatment of vegetative-vascular disorders. Under its influence, the disturbed balance of the functions of both parts of the autonomic nervous system is restored. The high effectiveness of this drug has been noted for vegetative-vascular disorders in children, especially with sympathetic-adrenal paroxysms (Ismagilov M. F. and Alyavetdinov R. I., 1984).
The amount of belladonna alkaloids in the complex drug “Bellazon” is used for Parkinson’s disease and parkinsonism against the background of encephalitis and atherosclerosis. Widely used for parkinsonism, spastic paresis and paralysis (including cerebral palsy, paralysis due to damage to the extrapyramidal system) synthetic analogue atropine tropacin in connection with more active influence on central cholinoreactive systems.
Atropine is sometimes prescribed for hypersecretion of the sweat and lacrimal glands.
In ophthalmic practice, atropine (0.5–1% solutions) is used to dilate the pupil with diagnostic purpose(to establish true refraction, fundus examination, etc.), in the treatment of acute inflammatory diseases (iritis, iridocyclitis, keratitis, uveitis) and eye injuries. Atropine-induced relaxation of the eye muscles provides functional rest and helps eliminate the pathological process. The therapeutic value of pupil dilation for iris disease is that it prevents its fusion with both the posterior surface of the cornea and the anterior surface of the lens.
A clinical study of the specific therapeutic effectiveness of soluble therapeutic films containing atropine sulfate in patients with chronic recurrent aphthous stomatitis was carried out. Biomicroscopic studies confirm the clinical effectiveness of atropine films. Already 2 hours after applying the biofilm, a significant improvement in the functional parameters of microcirculation appears.
As an antidote, atropine is prescribed for poisoning with various cholinomimetics (acetylcholine, carbacholine, muscarine, etc.) and anticholinesterase agents (proserine, physostigmine), including organophosphorus compounds (including household insecticides, for example chlorophos) and mushrooms, as well as for poisoning with morphine and others analgesics, depressants (chloral hydrate). In case of poisoning with cholinomimetic and anticholinesterase substances, a 0.1% atropine solution is administered intravenously, if necessary, again. It is proposed to use atropine sulfate also in the form of inhalations. Atropine is often prescribed concomitantly with narcotic analgesics (morphine) to reduce side effects associated with vagal stimulation.
In anesthesiological practice, atropine is used for premedication before anesthesia and surgery and during surgery to prevent broncho- and laryngospasm, limit the secretion of the salivary and bronchial glands, and reduce other reflex reactions and side effects that may occur due to stimulation of the vagus nerve.
Atropine is also used for x-ray and endoscopic examination of the gastrointestinal tract, when there is a need to reduce the tone of the stomach and intestines.
In homeopathy, fresh belladonna extract is used for spasms of blood vessels and muscles, externally and internally - for mastitis, erysipelas, scarlet fever, sore throat, respiratory infections, laryngitis, headaches, neuritis of the facial and trigeminal nerves, otitis, conjunctivitis, rheumatic scleritis, iritis, iridocyclitis , dacryocystitis, optic neuritis, retinitis, gynecological diseases, nephritis, urinary tract diseases, convulsions, chorea, epilepsy, dysentery.
The therapeutic effect of belladonna root extract on African trypanosomiasis is described.
In veterinary medicine, belladonna preparations are used as an anesthetic.

Medicines

Belladonna tincture(Tinctura Belladonnae)
Prepared from belladonna leaf (1:10) in 40% alcohol, contains 0.027–0.033% alkaloids. Available in dropper bottles of 5 and 10 ml. Prescribed orally, 5-10 drops per dose. Belladonna tincture is included in many other combination forms.

Belladonna extract thick(Extractum Belladonnae spissum)
Included in a number of combined dosage forms. Contains 1.4–1.6% alkaloids. Single doses - 0.01–0.02 g.

Belladonna extract dry(Extractum Belladonnae siccum)
In the manufacture of dosage forms, the dry extract is used in twice the amount relative to the thick extract due to the lower content of alkaloids (0.7–0.8%). Maximum doses for adults orally: single - 0.1 g, daily - 0.3 g.

Belladonna Burger(Ysatfabrik, Germany)
Extract of fresh belladonna leaves, 5 ml (1 scoop) of which contains 0.5 mg of total alkaloids. Used for gastrointestinal spasms, spastic constipation, parkinsonism, vagotonia, hypersecretion, for premedication before anesthesia. Take 1/4–1 scoop 30 minutes before meals.

Atropine sulfate(Atropini sulfas)
Available in ampoules and syringe tubes of 1 ml of 0.1% solution, in tablets of 0.5 mg, as well as in powder form, 1% eye ointment and eye films in plastic cases of 30 pieces containing 1 atropine sulfate, 6 mg per film.
Atropine is prescribed orally, parenterally and locally (in the form of eye drops). Orally prescribed to adults in powders, tablets and solutions (0.1%) at 0.25–0.5–1 mg per dose 1–2 times a day. 0.25–0.5–1 mg (0.25–0.5–1 ml of 0.1% solution) is administered subcutaneously, intramuscularly and intravenously. Children are prescribed 0.05–0.5 mg per dose depending on age. The maximum single dose for adults orally and subcutaneously is 1 mg, daily dose is 3 mg.

Kellathrin tablets(Tabulettae "Khellatrinum")
Contains 0.02 g of papaverine hydrochloride, 0.02 g of kellin and 0.25 mg of atropine sulfate. They are used as a vasodilator and antispasmodic for spasms of the coronary vessels and abdominal organs, and bronchial asthma. Prescribe 1 tablet 2-3 times a day.

Kelliverin tablets(Tabulettae "Khelliverinum")
Contains 0.02 g of papaverine hydrochloride and 0.01 g of kellin. Used as a vasodilator and antispasmodic. Prescribe 1 tablet 2-3 times a day.

Bevisal tablets(Tabulettae "Bevisalum")
Contains 0.015 g of belladonna extract, 0.25 g of basic bismuth nitrate, 0.25 g of phenyl salicylate. They are used as an antispasmodic, antisecretory, antacid, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and astringent for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (gastritis, gastric and duodenal ulcers, enteritis, colitis) and urinary tract (pyelitis,). Prescribe 1 tablet 2–4 times a day.

Bellalgin tablets(Tabulettae "Bellalginum")
A complex preparation containing 0.015 g of belladonna extract, 0.25 g of analgin, 0.25 g of anesthesin and 0.1 g of sodium bicarbonate. Prescribed as an antispasmodic, antacid and analgesic, 1 tablet 2-3 times a day, mainly for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract accompanied by high acidity, smooth muscle spasms, and pain. The maximum single dose for adults is 3 tablets, the maximum daily dose is 10 tablets.

Bepasal tablets(Tabulettae "Bepasalum")
Contains 0.012 g of belladonna extract, 0.3 g of phenyl salicylate and 0.03 g of papaverine hydrochloride. Prescribed for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, 1 tablet 2-3 times a day.

Bellasthesin tablets(Tabulettae "Bellastesinum")
A complex preparation containing 0.015 g of belladonna extract and 0.3 g of anesthesin. Take 1 tablet 2-3 times a day as an antispasmodic and analgesic for spasms of the stomach, intestines and other abdominal organs, esophagitis, and cholelithiasis.

Candles "Betiol"(Suppositoria "Bethiolum")
Contains 0.015 g of thick belladonna extract and 0.2 g of ichthyol. Used for hemorrhoids and anal fissures. Belladonna extract exhibits an antispasmodic effect, reduces intestinal motility, ichthyol has anti-inflammatory and local anesthetic properties. Apply 1 suppository into the rectum 1-3 times a day. If necessary, you can use it more often, but not more than 10 suppositories per day. Contraindicated in glaucoma, porstate adenoma.
Side effects: possible thirst, dry mouth, palpitations, mydriasis and temporary blurred vision, psychomotor agitation. The drug should not be used when driving a vehicle or performing work that requires special attention and precise coordination of movements.

Candles "Anuzol"(Suppositoria "Anusolum")
Contains 0.02 g of belladonna extract, 0.1 g of xeroform, 0.05 g of zinc sulfate and 0.12 g of glycerin. Used for hemorrhoids and anal fissures.

Corbella tablets(Tabulettae "Corbella")
Contains dry extract of belladonna root (0.001 g of alkaloids calculated as atropine). Used for Parkinson's disease and parkinsonism against the background of chronic epidemic encephalitis, atherosclerosis, chronic manganese poisoning and other intoxications, 1 tablet before bedtime with a gradual increase in the dose to the most effective for the patient.

Urobesal tablets(Tabulettae "Urobesalum")
Contains 0.015 g of belladonna extract, 0.25 g of phenyl salicylate and 0.25 g of hexamethylenetetramine. Take 1-2 tablets 2-3 times a day for cystitis, pyelitis, pyelonephritis, colitis, enterocolitis.

R. V. Kutsik, B. M. Zuzuk, A. T. Nedostup, T. Petsko
Ivano-Frankivsk State Medical Academy

Photos and illustrations

Its history stretches from ancient times to the present day. But today, people have mastered this plant and learned to use it in folk medicine. A tincture using belladonna has valuable medicinal properties and can help with various diseases.

The name of the plant Belladonna is translated from Italian as “beautiful woman.” That’s what the girls called it, who used it to make eye drops and ointments to look more attractive. The plant is also known as “Beshenitsa”, “Krasukha”, “Demoiselle”.

Belladonna is a very insidious plant. It can give beauty and take life. All this is due to the substance atropine, which is a potent poison. The entire plant is filled with this substance, not just its fruits.

The plant looks beautiful. It has fairly large yellow-violet flowers, about 3 cm in size. They come out of the axils of the upper leaves and look like a bell. They bloom from spring to autumn. And from July, black berries begin to appear on Krasukha.

Belladonna can be seen in the mountains of the Carpathians, Crimea and Kazakhstan. Also in Asia, Pakistan and America. It can be found anywhere - growing alone on the outskirts or in clearings in the forest. In Russia it is even listed in the Red Book.

Only leaves and roots are used to prepare medicines. These components are harvested during the flowering period. The plant has many medicinal forms, but the simplest of them is a drug.

Recipes

Recipe No. 1

Ingredients:

• Belladonna leaves (10 g);
• Alcohol (96%).

Preparation:

1. Pour 10 g of Belladonna leaves with 1/2 cup of alcohol.
2. Let it brew for a week in a dark place inaccessible to others.
3. Then strain the product and then it will be ready for use.

This remedy will help people suffering from kidney stones and cholecystitis. You need to take the drug 5-10 drops. It has an analgesic effect.

Recipe No. 2

Ingredients:

• Belladonna leaves (10 g);
• Alcohol 40% (100 g).

Preparation

1. Take the leaves of the plant and pour alcohol into them.
2. Let it brew in a place inaccessible to others.

This medicine is taken externally in cases of tumors and breast cancer. And for diarrhea or colic, 5-10 drops taken orally will help. It will also help with insomnia.

Properties

Belladonna contains many macroelements and microelements. Its leaves contain ash, and its roots contain scopolamine. The plant contains hyocyamine and atropine. Atropine has neurogenic and antispasmodic properties. It relieves the tone of smooth muscles (uterus, bronchi, intestines). It also acts on the pupils, dilating them, increases the pressure inside the eye, and improves the functioning of the cardiovascular system.

Application

Tincture of common belladonna will help as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent. It works well for ulcers of the digestive system, tuberculosis, muscle pain and even epilepsy. Ophthalmologists use Belladonna substances to treat eye diseases. The infusion can also help with poisoning from poisonous mushrooms.

This medicine is also characterized by a decrease in various secretions of the body, for example, salivary, lacrimal or sweat glands. It also has a beneficial effect on the function of the pancreas.

In homeopathy, this drug has been used for quite a long time. In this case, it is taken with three tablespoons of water - one drop. Can be used for nervous diseases, diseases of the genitourinary system and respiratory tract. Belladonna can cause tachycardia, and the substance that its roots contain can help in the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

Contraindications

Pregnant and breastfeeding women should not take medications containing Belladonna. Keep your children away from places where belladonna may grow, and prohibit them from even touching it. Two of its berries are enough to get poisoned and die.

You should not take belladonna infusion if a person has an individual intolerance to its substances. It should not be taken if a person has hypertrophy with impaired urine outflow and closed form of glaucoma.

If you are taking the drug, remember that while under its influence you should not engage in work that requires good vision, high concentration and driving. If you have increased intraocular pressure, also stop taking the medicine.

Video

The plant Belladonna vulgaris has been known in the world of medicine for many centuries. People often call it “sleepy foolishness”, “wolf berry”, “krasava”, “dog cherries”, “crazy cherries”. It was not for nothing that it received such unique names.

The flowers are purple, large and beautiful. The berries of this plant are very dangerous to human health, leading to severe poisoning, and animals and birds feast on them without consequences.

In appearance, the berries resemble wild cherries, the same round dark purple fruits. They taste sweetish and have a lot of seeds inside. But the most useful part of the plant is the leaves; they are the ones most often used by people for medicinal purposes.

Belladonna leaves look elegant, oval in shape with pointed tips, dark green in color. They are collected during the period of active flowering - in August or September, very carefully, since they are also very poisonous. You can meet belladonna in open clearings near forests; it is most widespread in Central Asia, in the mountains and America.

Useful qualities

Its properties are due to the content of alkaloids in it - atropine, atropamine, hyoscyamine, which have a wide spectrum of action. The herb has the following effects on the human body:

• bronchodilator;
• analgesic;
• antispasmodic;
• stimulating for the heart;
• normalizing the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and urinary system.

But since the plant extract is very poisonous, it should be taken only according to the permissible dosage. Any excess may lead to difficulty or cessation of breathing.

Medical use

Belladonna is used to prepare tinctures, tablets, and extracts. These drugs are often prescribed to relieve symptoms of the following conditions:

1. Inflammation of internal organs, stomach and intestinal ulcers, epilepsy, muscle pain;
2. In ophthalmology for the treatment of eye diseases. Contraindication: increased intraocular pressure;
3. To reduce sweating, improve the secretion of the salivary glands;
4. Helps restore urinary tract peristalsis and bile excretion;
5. To treat asthma, a collection containing belladonna and henbane leaves is used.

Homeopathic properties of belladonna

Belladonna has been used in homeopathy for a long time; it is part of the treatment for:

• rheumatism;
• gastrointestinal diseases;
• respiratory diseases;
• treatment of diseases of the genitourinary system;
• for neuroses and other problems with the nervous system.

When using, you should strictly observe the dosage: one drop of tincture per 60 ml of water. An increased dosage can be used to treat enuresis, migraines and epileptic seizures - in the proportions of 30 drops of water per drop of belladonna.

Magical properties of the plant

In ancient times, this amazing plant was part of the “witch’s” ointment, which had magical properties. With her help, the witch was able to fly on a broom. And sorcerers effectively used this composition to cast deadly spells.

According to another belief, belladonna helped in the fight against witchcraft. It was believed that if you wear a wreath of leaves of this plant on your head, a person will be protected from magical effects. They also gave protection to domestic animals by making collars and putting them on. This made it possible to protect the animal from the control of magicians.

Women recognized as witches found salvation with the help of belladonna. Before burning, they drank the plant extract and passed into another world without suffering. Interestingly, in ancient times another poisonous plant, aconite, was used to treat belladonna poisoning. You can read about this in ancient recipes.

Preparation of belladonna products

Medicinal infusions are easy to prepare at home, but all safety precautions must be observed. Decoction and tincture of the herb are most often used.

1. To prepare the tincture you will need: 10 grams of leaves, 100 ml of pure alcohol. Place the mixture in a glass jar and put it in a dark place for a week. After which the tincture is filtered. For kidney pain or cholecystitis, take 5-10 drops of the product diluted in water. For diarrhea, colic and sleep problems, you can take 5-10 drops. Also, problem areas with tumors and infiltration are rubbed externally with the tincture.

2. Belladonna decoction is prepared from the roots. To do this, you need to take 10 grams of the product and pour a glass of boiled water. The composition is heated over a fire for half an hour, after which it is cooled for 10 - 15 minutes and filtered. If your joints hurt, you can make decoction-based compresses: gauze is soaked in liquid and applied to the sore spot.

Experts advise to be very careful when using such treatments to avoid poisoning. If this does happen, you must immediately drink a solution of potassium permanganate and induce vomiting. And be sure to consult a doctor!