Different approaches in study of materia medica

Dr Chandan 

Aim : To identify the different approaches of study of Materia Medica

Introduction :

Dr Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann has explaining about Materia Medica in aphorism 143 that is “ If we have thus tested on the healthy individual a considerable number of simple medicines and carefully and faithfully registered all the disease elements and symptoms they are capable of developing as artificial disease-producers, then only have we a true materia medica – a collection of real, pure, reliable1 modes of action of simple medicinal substances, a volume of the book of nature, wherein is recorded a considerable array of the peculiar changes of the health and symptoms ascertained to belong to each of the powerful medicines, as they were revealed to the attention of the observer, in which the likeness of the (homoeopathic) disease elements of many natural diseases to be hereafter cured by them are present, which, in a word, contain artificial morbid states, that furnish for the similar natural morbid states the only true, homoeopathic, that is to say, specific, therapeutic instruments for effecting their certain and permanent cure”.

During the study of Materia Medica many Authors have written various types of it, according to their own understanding or fashion, different view points and ideas in order to make the drug easily comprehensible.

The various approaches to the study of Materia Medica are as follows:

• ANATOMICAL SCHEMATIC METHOD
• KEYNOTE METHOD
• PICTURE TYPE OF STUDY
• COMPARTIVE METHOD
• THERAPEUTIC METHOD
• PHYSIOLOGICAL METHOD
• GROUP STUDY METHOD
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF PROVING
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF CLINICAL MATERIA MEDICA
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF REPERTORY
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF PAINTING OR DRAWING
• AUDIO-VISUAL SEMINAR METHOD
• COMPUTER SOFTWARE METHOD
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF HERBARIUM SHEETS,SLIDES OF PLANTS ETC
• BIOCHEMIC WAY OF STUDY
• POETRY TYPE OF STUDY
• METHOD OF COMBINED STUDY
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF MIASMS
• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF SURFACE MARKING OF SYPTOMS

Anatomical Study
First Time In Homoeopathy Dr. Hahnemann Has Studied Homoeopathic Drugs In This Way. After Proving, He Collected And Arranged All Symptoms Organ Wise From Head To Foot. This Is Called Anatomical Schematic Presentation. It Is A Very Systematic Way Of Studying Materia Medica From Which We Can Understand The Whole Remedy In A Very Simple Manner. Here Each Drug Is Studied Organ Wise. This Method Is Later Followed By Dr. William Boericke.

• • Schematic (Anatomical) Homoeopathic Materia Medica are
• Materia Medica Pura – Dr. Hahnemann
• A Dictionary Of Practical Materia Medica – Dr. Clarke
• Textbook Of Materia Medica – Dr. Lippe
• Encyclopedia Of Pure Materia Medica – Dr. T. F. Allen
• Hand Book Of Materia Medica Of Homoeopathic Therapeutics – Dr. T. F. Allen
• The Guiding Symptoms Of Our Materia Medica – Dr. Hering

KEYNOTE TYPE OF METHOD :
In This Type Of Study One Can Understand The Characteristic Symptoms Of Each Drug. In This Method We Can Study Peculiar Striking And Very Much Important Symptoms.

• • Keynote type of materia medica are
• Key Note Of Leading Remedies – Dr. H. C. Allen
• A Primer Of Materia Medica – Dr. T. F. Allen
• Characteristic Materia Medica – Dr. Burt
• Key Note And Red Line Symptoms Of Materia Medica – Dr. Lippe

PICTURE APPROACH :
In This Type Of Method One Can Understand And Grasp The Knowledge About Drug Very Easily Because Drug Symptoms Are Presented Through The Picture, By This Materia Medica Becomes Very Much Comprehensive And Easy To Study. Here The Pathogenesis Of Drug Is Presented In A Synthesized Manner So That The Personality Of The Drug Becomes Distinct And Clear And Aims At Holistic Approach Of Describing .

• Picture Type Of Materia Medica are
• Homoeopathic Drug picture – Dr. M. L. Tyler
• Lectures of Materia Medica with New Remedies – Dr. J. T. Kent
• Homoeopathic Materia Medica of Graphical Drug Pictures – Dr. Pulford.

THE COMPARATIVE STUDY :
Symptom Level – General Or Particular. Common Or Uncommon.Organ Level – Many Remedies Have Action Over The Same Organ example Bryonia, Chelidonium And Lycopodium Have Their Action On Liver. Disease Level – While Applying The Drugs Therapeutically, The Disease Condition Becomes A Source Of Comparison. Action Level –  Symptoms Are The Same But The Remedial Action Is Different. Or Action Of Remedies Is Almost The Same But Symptoms Have Different Modalities. E.G. Ambra Grisea Is An Depressing Irritant As From Tobacco. Gelsemium Has Paralytic Catarrhal Congestion Like Am-c Or Zinc.Typological Level – Here The Comparison Is Made At The Constitutional Level. E.G. Lean, Thin Constitution Of Calc phos, Phos Or Sil.

• • Comparative Materia Medica :
• The Comparative Materia Medica – Dr. E. A. Farrington
• Comparative Materia Medica – Dr. Gross
• Leaders In Homoeopathic Therapeutics – Dr. E. B. Nash
• A Regimen Of Comparative Materia Medica Dr.J.G.Malcom

THERAPEUTIC METHOD OF STUDY:
Here Is Propensity Of Some Drugs In Terms Of Their Action Towards Some Specific Organs As Well As Some Specific Diseases. For Example, A Continuous Fever Such As In Enteric Fever Is Covered By Bryonia, Baptisia Etc. Hence They Are Popular As Typhoid Remedies.

• • Therapeutic type of Materia Medica
• Homoeopathic Therapeutics By Dr. Lilienthal
• Practical Homoeopathic Therapeutics – Dr. Dewey

PHYSIOLOGICAL APPROACH:
In This Type We Can Study The Drug By Observing Physiological Actions Of A Particular Drug On Healthy Human Being. This Is Very Basic And Helps To Understand Any Remedy In A Very Simple Manner.

• Materia Medica of Physiological Action :
• A Manual Of Pharmacodynamics – Dr. Hughes
• Physiological Materia Medica – Dr. William Burt

GROUP STUDY APPROACH:
In This Type Of Materia Medica,the Drugs Are Grouped Together Based On Certain Criteria Like The Family Of Origin,the Position Of A Mineral In The Periodic Table & Their Common As Well As Differentiating Features Are Described.

• Group study Approaches
• Haemorrhages Of Dark Decomposed Blood,
• Foetid Discharges,
• Increased Excitability Of Nervous System Etc

STUDY ON BASIS OF PROVING :
In This Method , We Study The Symptoms In Order Of Their Appearance During The Drug Proving With The Name And Number Of Provers Who Experience It.In This Method, Evolution Of The Disease Picture Becomes Clear Under The Action Of The Given Drug.

Also The Duration Of Each Symptom Produced In The Prover Is Ascertained.

• STUDY ON BASIS OF PROVING
• Materia Medica Pura By Hahnemann.S
• Condensed Material Medica By Hering.C

STUDY BASED ON THE BASIS OF CLINICAL MATERIA MEDICA:
Clinical Materia Medica Provides a  Source Of information Required In Clinical Practice Like,Clinical Application Or Therapeutic Utility, Characteristics With Clinical Cases, Causation Of , Pathogensis, Relationship Of Medicines, Etc.

It Helps Easy Selection Of Medicine In Clinical Practice.

• STUDY BASED ON THE BASIS OF CLINICAL MATERIA MEDICA
• A Dictionary Of Practical Material Medica By J.H
• Pocket Manual Of Homoeopathic Materia Medica By W
• A Clinical Materia Medica By Farrington.E.A
• Special Pathology And Therapeutic Hints By Raue.C.G

STUDY ON THE BASIS OF REPERTORY:
Repertory Is The Index Of The Symptoms From The Materia Medica.Repertory Simplifies And Strengthens Our Selection Of Medicine With Its Relative Importance To Gradation.

It Makes The Studying Of Materia Medica Extremely Interesting And Reveals More And More About The Unknown Symptoms And Lowers The Burden Of Memorising The Full Pathogenesity Of Each Medicine.

• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF REPERTORY are
• Repertory Of The Homoeopathic Materia Medica And A Word Index By J.T.Kent.
• Boenninghausen’s Characteristic And Repertory By Boger.C.M
• Repertory Of Hering’s Guiding Symptoms Of Our Materia Medica By Knerr,calvin .B
• Synthetic Repertory By Barthel
• Synthesis Repertorium By Schroyens.F

STUDY ON THE BASIS OF PAINTINGS OR DRAWINGS :
In this method study the materia medica on the basis painting or drawing the whole picture on the basis we have study the materia medica

• STUDY ON THE BASIS OF PAINTINGS OR DRAWINGS :
• Expressive Drug Pictures Of Materia Medica By Chauhan.R.K
• Illustrated Cum Rhymed Materia Medica By Khera.A
• AUDIO VISUAL APPROACH:

Power Point Presentation

Seminar Which We Do Take In Colleges.

COMPUTER SOFTWARE METHOD:
It Makes The Study Of Materia Medica Very Easy And Comprehensive.There Is No Need To Collect A Number Of Books On Materia Medica As Everything Is In The Reach Of A Button.Some Softwares Which Shows Live Materia Medica Which Shows Pictures And Live Expression Of Symptoms Of A Particular Drug

• COMPUTER SOFTWARE METHOD
• Hompath Classic By Jawar Shah
• Polycrests Of Dolphin Cybernetic System Pvt.Ltd
• Radar

STUDY ON THE BASIS OF HERBARIUM SHEETS SLIDES OF PLANTS
It Provides Information Regarding The Physical Appearance Of Drug In Its Natural State.Sometimes It Follows The Rule Doctrine Of Signature.

Examples

• Thuja Is A Common Garden Conifer, It Has Resinous Callosities Resembling Oozing Along Its Stem Warts
• Viscum Album Is Parasitic Plant And Is Used In Cancer

BIOCHEMIC WAY OF STUDY:
Here We Can Study The Action Of Medicine At The Molecular Level.

This Is According To Biochemic Theory which Was Given By Dr Wilhelm Heinrich Schuessler.According To Biochemic Theory, Health May Be Considered To State Characterised By Normal Cell Metamorphosis And Disease Is The Result Of Disturbance Of Molecular Motion Of One Of The Inorganic Tissue Salts.

The Idea Upon Which Biochemic Therapeutics Is Based Is The Physiological Fact That Both The Structure And Vitality Of The Organs Of The Body Are Dependent Upon Certain Necessary Quantities Of Its Inorganic Constituents.

EXAMPLES

• The Twelve Tissue Remedies Of Schuessler By Boreicke.W And Dewey W.E
• The Biochemic System Of Medicine By Carey.G.W

POETRY TYPE OF STUDY:
In these Books , Drugs Are Described In A Poem Fashion In The Form Of Stanza.

Example:

• A Song Of Symptoms By Patersimilas
• Illustrated Cum Rhymed Material Medica By Khera.A

STUDY ON THE BASIS OF MENTAL STATE:
Homoeopathy Gives Prime Importance To Mental State  And Disposition Along With Physical Symptoms .Almost Every Medicine Has Its Own Mental State Along With Physical Symptoms.

• Pine – Feelings Of Guilt, Unworthiness
• Red Chestnut – Fear For Others
• Rock Rose – Extreme Fear, Nightmares
• Rock Water – Self Punishment, Rigidity
• Scleranthus – Indecision, Inability To Choose, Balance
• Star Of Bethlehem – Shock, Trauma, Accidents
• Sweet Chestnut- Extreme Anguish, Despair

Books: Bach Flower Therapy By Mechthild Scheffer

METHOD OF COMBINED STUDY:
In This Type We Can Study A Particular Drug From Various Angles At A Time.

• Anatomical Schematic Presentation
• Comparison Of Symptoms
• Physiological Action
• Keynote Symptoms
• Picture Type Of Study
• Therapeutic Application

STUDY ON BASIS OF MIASMS:
There Are Mainly Three Miasms Psora , Sycosis And Syphilis

Medicine Can Be Studied By Dividing Its Symptoms Under Different Miasms.

In This Way We Can Easily Distinguish Different Symptoms According To Miasms.

It Helps To Find Out Miasmatic Tendency Of Chronic Cases And Hence Constitutional Medicine.

STUDY ON THE BASIS OF SURFACE MARKING OF SYMPTOMS :
This Is A New Concept Of Studying Materia Medica.In This Method, Different Color Dots Are Marked On The Body Surface To Denote The Location And Gradation Of Symptoms Covered By The Particular Drug .In This Way We Can Easily Frame A Picture Or Get An Impression In Our Mind About The Drug Regarding Which Part Of  Body Is Most Affected By It And In Which Intensity It Is Affected.

Examples: Surface Marking Of Keynotes Dr.Azad Rai

BIBILOGRAPHY

• Fundamentals Of Homoeopathic Materia Medica By Dr.L.K.Nanda
• All In One Homoeopathic Materia Medica By Dr.Niranjan Mohanty
• Homeopathy Resource By Homoeobook.Com

Dr Chandan
PG Scholar
Organonn of Medicine and Homoeopathic philosophy
Government Homoeopathic medical college and, Hospital Bangalore