Asparagus Officinalis aspar.

Homœopathic Materia Medica

William Boericke · Homœopathic Materia Medica · 9th edition

Common name

Common Garden Asparagus

General

Its marked and immediate action on the urinary secretion is well known. It causes weakness and cardiac depression with dropsy. Rheumatic pains. Especially about left shoulder and heart.

Head

Confused. Coryza, with profuse, thin fluid. Aching in forehead and root of nose. Migrainious morning headache with scotoma. Throat feels rough, with hawking copious tenacious mucus throat.

Urine

Frequent, with fine stitches in orifice of urethra; burning; of peculiar odor. Cystitis, with pus, mucus and tenesmus. Lithiasis.

Heart

Palpitation, with oppression of chest. Pulse intermits, weak, pain about left shoulder and heart, associated with bladder disturbances. Great oppression in breathing. Hydrothorax.

Extremities

Rheumatic pain in back, especially near shoulder and limbs. Pain at acromion process of left scapula under clavicle and down arm, with feeble pulse.

Relationship

Antidote: Acon; Apis.

Compare: Althae-Marshmallow--(contains asparagin; irritable bladder, throat and bronchi). Physalis Alkekengi. Digital; Sarsap; Spigelia.

Dose

Sixth potency.

A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica

John Henry Clarke · A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica · 1st edition (1900-02, three volumes); homeoint.org / Médi-T HTML digitization

General

A. officinalis. N. O. Liliaceæ. Tincture of young sprouts.

Clinical

Coryza. Diabetes. Dropsies. Heart disease. Urinary disorders.

Characteristics

Like other liliaceous plants Aspar . acts on the heart, kidneys, and dropsical effusions. Severe coryza and nasal catarrh, with profuse secretion of thin, whitish fluid from left nostril, afterwards right. Frequent violent sneezing. Copious discharge of tenacious mucus from the throat, not easily loosed, but brought up by hawking or paroxysms of cough. Frequent urination, with fine stinging in the meatus; followed by stitches out of the urethra. After urinating burning in urethra with sensation as if some were still passing. Increased urine beer-brown, without sediment. Urine strong-smelling; odour peculiar; deposits greasy sediment on sides of vessel; gravel. Prurigo pudendi. Fulness in chest; hydrothorax. Visible violent palpitation; while sitting; with anxious restlessness, increased by motion or ascending; with oppression of chest. Pulse weak, slow, irregular. Pain at left acromion process, under clavicle and down left arm. Constant desire to be carried about in the arms.

Relations

Antidoted by: Acon. (prostration, feeble pulse, pain in shoulder); Apis, Antidote to: Coffea. Compare: Conval. maj., Sarsap., Arn., Aur. mur., Cannab., Digit., Spigel.

Head

Vertigo in forehead; head confused, as during an attack of vertigo; dizziness in the forehead, followed by aching in the temples, chiefly the l. one; aching in the forehead over the eyes, or a sensation of confusion in the fore part of the head; aching in the temples, aggravated by pressure; weight in the forehead.

Eyes

Darting and tingling in the eyes; sight more piercing.

Face

Paleness of the face; increase of heat in the face; cheeks burning.

Stomach

Taste insipid, sweetish (as of copper); softness of the saliva, as if it were mixed with blood. ─ Thirst increased. ─ Eructations; flatulency in the stomach; nausea in the morning, on waking, followed by vomiting of food, mixed with bile and slimy matter; afterwards diarrhœa of bile and of fæcal matter.

Abdomen

Sensation of fulness in the abdomen, pinching in the umbilical region, at night, with painful sensibility to the touch. ─ Inflation of the abdomen; frequent emission of wind.

Stool and Anus

Bilious diarrhœa, with pain as of excoriation in the anus, colic, and dragging in the groins.

Urinary Organs

Urine straw colour, scanty, soon becomes turbid, with little white specks; afterwards (about four hours), a white flaky sediment; the urine deposits a fatty sediment on the sides of the vessel; urine brown, without sediment; clear, and of a fetid smell; a peculiar smell from the urine. ─ Urgent inclination to urinate; frequent and scanty emission of urine, preceded by a sensation as if a foreign body were introducing itself into the urethra, and followed by a burning sensation; diminished secretion of urine augmentation, in the last stage of experimenting; burning in the urethra fine stitches in the orifice of the urethra; sometimes incisive pains, sometimes with dragging in the groins, colic, diarrhœa, and pain in the anus, sometimes with a sensation as though there were more urine to pass. ─ Urine loaded with phosphates and the urate of ammonia (in renal dropsy). ─ Gravel passes in small quantities with the urine.

Male Sexual Organs

Excitation of sexual appetite; dartings in the glans penis.

Female Sexual Organs

Catamenia continue a day beyond the usual time.

Respiratory Organs

Frequent sneezing; hawking, with irresistible inclination to cough, but without power to detach mucus; paroxysms of coughing, which compel the patient to rise from his seat, abating after breakfast; violent cough, attended by oppression of the chest, and copious expectoration of mucus. ─ Violent cough, inducing retchings. ─ Abundant secretion of mucus in the throat; a constant rattling of mucus in the chest, with roughness in the throat.

Chest

Oppression of the chest, esp. when writing; dyspnœa brought on by motion, on going upstairs, and sometimes in the night-time, obliging the patient to sit up in bed. ─ Pressure on the chest, sometimes after breakfast, also with tension in breathing; feeling of emptiness within, with weight on the chest; shootings at different parts of the chest, esp. below the l. shoulder-blade; sometimes in the l. side, in breathing; severe shooting pain across the r. side when sitting down.

Heart

Palpitations of the heart, which are visible and audible even during very gentle movements, and which frequently recur, accompanied by agitation and anxiety during motion, and on ascending the stairs; violent when seated; irregular beating of the heart, rapid, redoubled, almost imperceptible. ─ Shooting pains in the region of the heart after a meal. ─ Pulse slightly accelerated; feeble.

Neck and Back

Pain near the shoulders on touching the part; rheumatic pain between the shoulders. ─ Sensation, as if something passed through the kidneys, and penetrated to the abdominal vertebræ, on the patient sitting down. ─ Pains in the region of the false vertebræ.

Lower Limbs

Pain, as of dislocation, in the right femoral joint, which causes lameness. ─ Shootings in the knees, at night, afterwards under the l. patella, on being seated. ─ Bruise-like pain in the l. thigh, with difficulty in walking, and esp. in mounting the stairs; internal pain, as of excoriation, on touching the part; also in the femoral articulation, and the knee, on bending the limb; the r. leg suffers more than the l., and is also much weaker. ─ Severe drawing pains in the calf of the r. leg, in the morning, on waking, and on extending the limb; cramps in both calves. ─ Drawing in the great toe, in consequence of a wound.

Generalities

Symptoms aggravated by motion. ─ Drowsiness, with yawning; yawning in the morning. ─ Increase of natural heat; pulse quick, small, easily stopped; rapid while seated. ─ Anxiety, with palpitation of the heart, and ill-humour; calmness of mind. ─ Rheumatic pains in the back and limbs. ─ Concretions of lithic acid in the joints. ─ Great languor and disinclination to physical or mental exertion.

The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica

Constantine Hering · The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica · 1879–91

General

Asparagus. Liliaceæ.
Introduced and proved in 1840 by Buchner, who proved sprouts ; later others made provings. Jeanes proved the root. The strongest effect must be obtained from the berries, and still more from the seed. Many symptoms may be added by practitioners if they meet with cases in which asparagus disagrees.

Mind

Cheerfulness ; serenity of mind ; the 5th day.
A peculiar anxiety, with palpitation and ill humor.
Fretful and peevish, disturbed by trifles ; constant anxiety and apprehension.

Sensorium

Vertigo : slight in afternoon ; in forehead ; with staggering.
Confusion of head.
Dulness of head.

Inner head

Dizziness in forehead, afterwards aching in temples, especially left.
Aching in forehead, with confusion.
Pressing pain in both temples, worse from pressure.
Heaviness, pressure in forehead, pain presses towards eyes.

Sight and eyes

Increased acuteness of vision.
Stitches and tickling in eyes.
Aching of brain near eyes.
Pains in eyeballs.
Drawing pain over eyebrows all across.

Smell and nose

Frequent sneezing ; after smelling tincture.
Coryza, with slight dryness and swelling inside, then impeded entrance of air ; gets violent, with frequent discharge of a thin white fluid from left nostril ; irritation to sneeze, and frequent sneezing.
Later with catarrh a pressing pain from root of nose to forehead ; next day, at 9 A. M., dry coryza ; later running ; want of smell ; violent sneezing ; 3d day discharge of mucus from right nostril.

Upper face

Increased heat of face.
Burning of cheeks.
Countenance pale, wax-like and bloated.
General expression of anxiety and distress. See 29 .

Teeth and gums

Painless cavity ; exfoliation of a carious molar.
Relieved toothache.

Taste, speech, tongue

Taste : sweetish, insipid ; coppery ; bitter-sweetish on tongue.
Smarting feeling on tongue.

Inner mouth

Saliva increased ; sweetish, as if mixed with blood ; diminished ; later more copious.

Palate and throat

Almost constant hawking, with a rough feeling in throat.
Copious discharge of tenacious mucus from throat.
Deglutition difficult. θ Hydrophobia.
Burning in throat.

Appetite, thirst. desires, aversions

Increased thirst.
Feeble appetite.

Eating and drinking

After breakfast : cough remitted ; pain in chest.
After eating : palpitation. See 29 .
Fulness and oppression after eating or drinking.

Hiccough, belching, nausea and vomiting

Belching of wind.
Nausea 5 A. M., on awaking ; vomited food taken evening before, with bile and much mucus, followed by a bilious diarrhœa ; after 15 minutes another attack of difficult vomiting.
Retching bringing tears into the eyes, when attempting to cough.
Nausea after each exertion.

Scrobiculum and stomach

Pain in region of cardiac end of stomach, extending thence to left shoulder.

Abdomen and loins

Sense of fulness in abdomen.
Griping in region of navel, which is painful when touched.
Drawing pains in both groins.

Stools and rectum

Discharge of much wind.
Insufficient stool in afternoon, notwithstanding a regular stool in morning.
Feces bilious after vomiting. See 16 .
Bilious diarrhœa, with colic.
A peculiar urging, with difficult, hard fecal discharge ; hemorrhoids bleed much more.
Burning and soreness at anus.

Urinary organs

(OBS :) Nephritis.
Nephritic colic.
Urging to urinate.
Frequent scanty discharge preceded by a sensation as if something was sticking in urethra, with slight burning.
Frequent urination, with fine stinging in meatus, followed by stitches out of urethra.
Urine scanty, straw-colored and offensive.
Cutting and burning in urethra.
Strangury.
Burning in urethra 6 A. M. ; eighth day.
After urination burning in urethra, with sensation as if some was still passing.
Increased urine beer-brown, without sediment.
Diabetes.
When urinating, particularly when voiding last drops, rheumatic, constricting pain in cardiac region, forcing him to cry out ; turns blue in face. θ Dropsy of chest.
Urine : bloody ; straw-colored, becoming turbid and full of motes, which settle as a white flocculent sediment ; of a peculiar odor ; of unpleasant odor ; strong smelling ; smells like cats' urine ; deposits a greasy sediment on sides of vessel ; reddish deposit on sides of vessel.
Lithiasis.
Gravel passing in small quantities with urination.

Male sexual organs

Sexual excitement.
Stitching on right side of glans penis.
Swelling of penis, with erection and urging to urinate.

Female sexual organs

Promotes flow of menses.
The flow continued a day longer than usual.
Relieved prurigo pudendi in woman, æt. 40.

Voice and larynx. trachea and bronchia

Continual hawking and hemming, with sensation of roughness in throat.
Talks in a nasal voice during coryza.

Respiration

Difficulty of breathing when moving or going up-stairs.
At night he was obliged to sit up in bed to relieve his breathing.
Great oppression ; breathing rapid, difficult, increased after being in bed some time.
Breathing : rapid, labored, sighing ; difficult when moving or ascending ; difficult at night ; must sit up in bed.

Cough

Hawking and inclination to cough ; mucus not readily loosened, paroxysms of cough, which brought it up.
Tickling and inclination to cough, but expectoration was difficult.
Cough, with inclination to vomit.
Cough distressing, with fulness of chest and copious mucous sputum.
Cough in paroxysms from mucus, which is not easily detached.
Cough remitted one hour after breakfast.
Less inclined to hawk and cough ; fifth day ; < rising from deep in throat.
Spitting blood.

Inner chest and lungs

Stitches, especially about left scapula, when inspiring.
Pains relieved by throwing chest forward and head backward.
Hydrothorax ; often with heart disease or gouty diathesis of old people.
Unusual fulness of chest.
Constriction of chest ; tension, increased by a deep breath.
Chest feels as if hollow, with external heaviness.
Sudden darting through right side of chest.
Stitching pains in region of chest.

Heart, pulse and circulation

Slight sensation of stitching in region of heart after eating.
Heart's throb visible, especially at night ; very strong and extended over an unnaturally large area ; throbbing carotids ; murmurs.
Palpitation ; while siting, leaves of book in his hand tremble ; with anxious restlessness, increased by motion or ascending ; with oppression of chest.
Heart's action weak ; pulse feeble. See 32 .
Heart's stroke twofold, irregular, quickened.
Pulse accelerated when sitting ; slow, weak ; irregular and feeble.

Neck and back

Rheumatic pains between scapulæ.
Fifth and sixth vertebræ pain.
Pains in loins at beginning of false vertebræ ; 4 P. M., fifth day.
Pain at acromion process of left scapula, also under clavicle and down arm, with exceeding feebleness of pulse.
Sensation when sitting as if something was darting through small of back towards sacral vertebræ.

Upper limbs

Rheumatic pains in region of right axilla.
Pain in region of shoulder on touching it.
Pains on tip of left shoulder.
Pain at acromion process of left scapula, under clavicle and down left arm ; pulse feeble.

Lower limbs

The right leg and foot are the weakest.
On awaking and stretching cramps in left calf, > from rubbing.
While walking, pain as from dislocation in neck of right thigh bone.
Muscles in middle of thigh feel bruised, < ascending, sore pain on touching it.
Drawing in left toe, which had been cut with an axe years ago.

Rest. position. motion

Sitting : breathing > ; pulse accelerated.
Throwing chest forward and head backward : pains better.
Coughing : retching and lachrymation.
Exertion : nausea worse.
When urinating : pain in cardiac region.
Moving or ascending : difficult respiration ; palpitation increased ; pain in thigh muscles.
Inspiration : stitches about left scapula.
Stretching : cramp in calf.
Walking : pain in neck of right femur.
Motion aggravates most pains.
Compelled to throw chest forward and head backward to find relief of pains in loins and elsewhere.

Nerves

Great languor and disinclination to physical or mental exertion.
Very much prostrated, pulse irregular.

Sleep

Sleepiness and yawning.
Sleep uneasy and disturbed by oppressed breathing.

Time

At 5 A. M. : nausea on awaking.
At 6 A. M. : burning in urethra.
At 9 A. M. : dry coryza.
Afternoon : slight vertigo ; insufficient stool.
At 3 P. M. : some fever ; weak and drowsy.
At 4 P. M. : pains in loins.
Evening : urging to urinate.
Night : orthopnea ; heart beats visibly.

Fever

Slight chilliness with some sleepiness.
Slight fever ; weak ; drowsy.
Increased warmth.
Suppression of sweat.

Locality and direction

Right : mucus from nostril ; stitching side of glans penis ; darting through side of chest ; pains in axilla ; leg and foot weak ; pain in neck of femur.
Left : ache in temple ; thin discharge from nostril ; pain cardiac end of stomach ; pain in shoulder ; stitches about scapula ; pain tip of shoulder (acromion process), under clavicle, and down arm ; cramp in calf ; drawing in toe.
Symptoms go from right to left.
Below upward : pain from root of nose ; pain cardiac end of stomach.
Above downward : pain in left shoulder.

Sensations

As if something was sticking in urethra ; as if urine was still passing after urination ; as if something was darting through small of back towards sacral vertebræ ; chest as if hollow.
Cutting : in urethra.
Darting : through right side of chest ; through small of back towards sacrum.
Stitches : in eyes ; out of urethra ; in glans penis ; about l. scapula ; through chest ; in cardiac region.
Stinging : in meatus.
Griping : in region of navel.
Burning : of cheeks ; in throat ; at anus ; in urethra.
Smarting : on tongue.
Soreness : at anus.
Aching : in temples ; in forehead ; of brain.
Pressure : in temples ; in forehead ; towards eyes from forehead ; from root of nose to forehead.
Drawing pain : over eyebrows ; in groins ; in left toe.
Rheumatic pain : in cardiac region when urinating ; between scapulæ ; in right axilla.
Dislocating pain : in neck of right femur.
Bruised feeling : in muscles of thigh.
Constricting pain : in cardiac region.
Constriction : of chest.
Cramps : in left calf.
Undefined pain : in eyeballs ; in chest ; in cardiac end of stomach to left shoulder ; at acromion process of left scapula ; under clavicle and down arm ; in loins.
Roughness : in throat.
Fulness : in abdomen ; of chest.
Heaviness : in forehead.
Heat : of face.
Tickling : in eyes.

Tissues

(OBS :) Gout.
Dropsies. See Hydrothorax, 28 .
(OBS :) Anasarca.

Touch. passive motion. injuries

Touch : umbilical region painful ; pain in shoulder ; pain in thigh muscles.
Pressure : pain in temples worse.
Rubbing : cramp in calf better.
(OBS :) Soothes the pain occurring in a dislocated limb.
Numbness of the bitten part, extending over the whole arm. θ Hydrophobia.
Constant desire to be carried about in the arms.

Stage of life, constitution

Man, æt. 74, after Digit. θ Dropsy of chest.

Relations

Antidote : Acon . (prostration, feeble pulse, pain in shoulder) ; Apis .
Is antidotal to Coffea .
Side relations : Convallaria maj., Medeola virg., Trillium cer., Sarsap .
Compare : Arnic., Aurum mur., Cannab., Digit . (dropsy) ; Spigel .