This is the medicine par excellence for worms. It may be repeated once a week, when there is a tendency in the patient to the development of worm symptoms, or, in other words, the breeding of worms. The idea held out by some that it is hurtful, or unimportant to remove the worms, in itself considered, is simply nonsense, and worse, for children are sometimes sacrificed to this idea.
Earache—Otalgia.
This may arise from various causes, but a common one is sudden cold. If it arises from cold, and there is general fever, or if the ear is red, or the side of the head and ear hot, Bell. and Baptisia should be given in alternation, every hour, or in a violent case, more frequently. These remedies will soon relieve such cases. Cloths wrung out of hot water should be laid over the ear, or the side of the head steamed, or it may be laid into water quite warm, with good effect.
Where the disease is a chronic affection, and the patient is subject to frequent attacks of pain in the ear, especially on a change of the weather, from dry to moist, Mercurius is the proper remedy, especially if it is worse at night, when warm in bed.
If it arises from a shock or blow, Arn. is to be used. In scrofulous persons, whether there is ulceration or not, Phosphorus and Pulsatilla are the remedies.
Children and even adults, not unfrequently suffer from earache, without any known cause sufficient to account for it. On examination into the ear you will often find either the cavity filled or nearly so, with a hard black substance, (the inspissated "earwax") almost as hard as horn, or else the ear will be quite empty, and the sides of the cavity dry and red, though perhaps not properly in a state of inflammation.
The natural condition of the cavity as it can be seen by straining the ear outwards and backwards a little in a strong sun light, is moist, the surface covered slightly with a yellowish, greasy, soft substance (the cerumen) "earwax." When this is wanting or in excess, or its character changed, it is evidence of disease, and pain is likely to occur. The
TREATMENT
for this condition is to remove the accumulation when that exists, as the first step. But this must be first softened by pouring some warm oil, pure olive oil, or good pure sperm oil, into the ear, and repeat it two or three times a day for several days, until it is so far softened as to be easily removed with the probe end of common small tweezers, having a spoon-bowl point.
When there is dryness, moisten the surface with oil. In either case, it is best, for a while, to protect the delicate surface from the air, by putting oiled wool into the external ear.