Prescribing on the basis of Clinical Investigations

Ordinarily selection of the Simillimum depends upon guiding symptoms, causations, suppressions, miasms etc., but in recent years clinical investigations had played a very important role in treating the cases where there was paucity of symptoms. Clinical investigations helps in determining the: 

• Etiological Factors of the Disease 
• Various Biochemical and Biophysical changes in the Body

Etiological Factors of the Disease

Etiology is the science of causes. The homoeopathy etiology in its true sense should be studied from the angle of cure but not simply for explanation arrived by clinical investigations. Homoeopathic etiology may be categorized into:

Patient Etiology

Patient etiology is very important as it will investigate everything regarding causative factors of the disease. Homeopathically it can be studies in the following manner:

1. Maintaining causes: These are causes which maintains as well as operate whole disease process from behind. Unless these causes are removed cure cant be achieved permanently. Dr. Boenninghausen paid high importance to maintaining causes of the disease and was the first homoeopath to realize its importance. He has given these symptoms under heading "Concomitant Symptoms".
2. Fundamental Cause: These are the causes which derange the fundamental qualities of life thereby derange the human organs from the very interior i.e. from the central or dynamic surface to the physical surface through the mental surface. It fundamentally declines the decorum of the human body by disturbing the harmonious flow of life maintaining mechanisms. In homeopathy it is known as "Miasmatic Causes" ( Psora, Syphilis, Sycosis). Though modern clinical investigation methods has nothing to do with miasmatic causes but in homeopathic treatment for chronic diseases understanding miasmatic causes is very essential.
   
3. Exciting Cause: These causes explode the underlining disease conditions, manifesting an acute series of signs and symptoms. In fact a little excitement in these, causes the latent disease conditions to come on the surface. Clinical investigations provide us a clear understanding about the disease and its stimulus.
   
4. Family Background: Sometimes properly selected homoeopathic remedies fails to provide cure. In such cases family background of the patient plays a vital role in identifying the inherited disease miasms. 
   
5. Diet: Clinical investigations always provide clues to the homoeopath about the diet of the patient according to the disease and medicine. For example, patient of albuminuria and diabetes will never improve unless they are advised to stop taking salt and sugar, respectively in their meals.

Disease Etiology

When primary or the predisposing factors make favorable circumstances for the foothold of the disease producing specific, secondary microorganisms, then these enter in the body and starts their action. Homoeopathy no where opposes the truth regarding the existence of secondary microorganisms but it strictly defies and object the ideas that microorganisms are the sole causes of the diseases. Homoeopathy teaches us to understand diseases from treatment and cure point of view but not from analysis by sophisticated clinical equipments. Clinical investigations always plays a supportive role to the dynamic theory of homoeopathy.

Biochemical and Biophysical changes in the Body

These changes are not the beginning of a disease but are the products of the disease. Clinical investigations helps us in detecting these changes to enable homoeopath to make differential diagnosis, prognosis of the disease and its management.

As a general principle the more advance the disease - the presence of more marked pathological changes. Less advance the disease - the less pathological picture is available and hence, presence of more characteristic symptoms homeopathically.

By clinical investigations one can detect the exact biochemical and biophysical changes of the disease, its exact location, its stage and its intensity. Therefore, these sort of clinical investigations are essential for carrying out the proceeding of normal homoeopathic treatment.

Conclusion - Dr. Sahni BS

In many cases, it has been seen that only symptomatic treatment is not sufficient to provide a complete cure. For example, in a case of falling hairs with chronic constipation and weight gain most of the times homeopaths not even think that this may be a case of hypo or hyperthyroidism. The same way tingling & numbness sensation in upper & lower extremities may be a case of Vitamin B12 deficiency; non responding loose motions to homoeopathic medicines may be a case of Folic Acid deficiency, presence of large renal stones produce sciatica like symptoms, cervical spondylitis produce pain like angina etc...In such cases unless and until a clinical investigation is being done proper cure can not be achieved.

All the case reports presented in Case Report Section are mostly based on the clinical investigations.

Updated on: 01 Feb 2010