Berberis Vulgaris
(Barberry)
Pharmacy
berb. Berberis vulgaris. Barberry. N.O. Berberidaceae. Britain. Tincture of the bark of the root. Historical dose: Tincture and all potencies.
Clinical
- Aphthae
- Arthritis
- Bilious attack
- Bladder disorders
- Chills
- Colic
- Co-ryza
- Cystitis
- Diarrhea
- Duodenum catarrh
- Dysmenorrhea
- Dysuria
- Eczema
- Fevers
- Fistula
- Gallstone colic
- Gallstones
- Gravel
- Heartburn
- Hematuria
- Hemorrhoids
- Herpes
- Itching
- Jaundice
- Joint disorders
- Kidney colic
- Kidney disorders
- Kidney stones
- Knee pain
- Leucorrhea
- Liver disorders
- Lumbago
- Menstrual complaints
- Nausea
- Nephritis
- Neuralgias
- Ophthalmia
- Oxaluria
- Polyps
- Prostate enlarged
- Rheumatism
- Sacrum pain
- Side pain
- Spermatic cords neuralgia
- Spleen disorders
- Tonsillitis
- Tumors
- Urinary disorders
- Vaginismus
- Venous stasis
- Vertigo
Herbal
The usual preparations of Berberis vulgaris are made from the root bark. Affections of the liver and kidneys are strongly marked, but Berb. is a medicine of wide range.
Homeopathic
Berb. is often useful in arthritic and hepatic disorders with urinary, hemorrhoidal, or menstrual complaints. Venous stasis occurs in the pelvic region, causing hemorrhoids. It acts upon the urinary organs when there is a tendency to the formation of kidney stones.
Berb. causes inflammation of the kidneys with hematuria. Marked pain in the region of the kidneys, hence its use in kidney and bladder troubles. Severe pains from kidney stones. Gallstones and bladder catarrh. Sharp or tearing, bubbling pains in the region of the kidneys, worse stooping and rising again, sitting or lying, better standing.
Violent sticking pains in the bladder, extending from kidneys into urethra with urging to urinate. The emission of urine is frequently accompanied by pains in thighs and loins. During urination, burning in urethra or bladder, pressure in bladder, cutting, burning, or stitches in urethra.
Dragging or sharp pains in spermatic cord, extending into testes.
Affects the liver markedly, promotes the flow of bile. Useful for fleshy persons with good livers, but with little endurance. Gallstone colic, followed by jaundice. Sticking pain in the region of liver and gallbladder shooting up to left shoulder, worse by pressure.
Pains rapidly change their locality and character. Pains are radiating from one point, shooting outward or all over, sticking, burning, smarting, soreness. Pains may be felt all over the body, emanating from the small of the back. Spinal irritation. Cold feeling in prepuce, glans, testes, and scrotum.
Movement aggravates complaints (Bry.). Sharp pains are frequent and a bubbling sensation. Bubbling and sharp pains are characteristic. A bubbling feeling as if water were coming up through the skin. Tearing, burning pains or bubbling sensation in joints.
Rapid changes of symptoms. Thirst alternates with thirstless, hunger, and loss of appetite. Chills and fever. Coldness of body with hot face, commencing 11 a.m., burning heat in the afternoon, worse during the night.
Mind
The mental condition of Berb. is one of indifference, apathy. Aversion to the darkness. Melancholy, inclination to weep. Fretful humor with weariness of life.
Patient is mentally and physically tired, not inclined to do anything. Mental work requiring close thinking is very difficult; the least interruption breaks the chain of thought. Vanishing of thoughts when interrupted. Objects seem twice as large as natural.
Apathetic. Indifference and pensiveness, with disinclination to speak. Anxiety before sleep in the evening. Anxiety while sitting, standing, or moving. Sees terrifying apparitions in twilight, especially children. Desires death during menses.
Abdomen
Burning in or under the skin of abdomen. Rumbling in bowels. Colic pains from gallbladder to abdomen, worse pressure. Torn loose feeling in the epigastrium. Sharp pains in front of kidneys extending to liver, spleen, stomach, groins. Cramplike contraction in splenic region. Sticking deep in ileum. Pressure and tension in groins, as if a hernia would develop. Sharp pain in the region of umbilicus. Severe pain in inguinal region. Varicose veins near right inguinal ring.
Back
Back as if beaten, disabled, or stiff. Bubbling sensation in back. Tearing, sticking with stiffness, which makes rising difficult. Numbness, bruised sensation. Lumbago (Ant-I., Rhus-t.). Post-operative pain in lumbar region. Soreness with sharp pains, with frequent urination. Stitches in the spine. Constant pulsating, sharp pains in sacrum. Sharp pains in neck and back, worse respiration. Pustules. Pimples on scapulae. Inflammation of the glands of the neck.
Bladder
Cystitis. Burning pains in bladder region. Dysuria, frequent urination. Urethra burns when not urinating. Pain in the thighs and loins on urinating. Cutting and burning in urethra during and after urinating. Sensation as if some urine remained after urinating. Crampy, contractive, or aching pains in bladder, when bladder is full or empty. Burning in urethra during menopause. Constant urging, with pain in neck of bladder, mostly burning and scanty discharge.
Breasts
Pressure in breasts, especially at nipple. Sensation as if breasts were swollen after menses. Pressure behind left nipple.
Chest
Oppression of the chest, especially at night, with violent flowing of the co-ryza. Painful shootings in the left side of the chest. Sensation of excoriation in the chest. Tearing, sharp pains in chest and region of heart. Stinging, pulsating, pressing, or tensive pains in muscles of chest. Pimples on chest and scapulae. Itching, smarting, and burning in axillae. Itching returns after scratching, with smarting stitches or burning.
Constitutions
Acts well in fleshy persons with good livers, but with little endurance. Prematurely old and worn out men and women. Old gouty constitutions. Suited to bilious diathesis. Cases where kidney or bladder symptoms are prominent.
Ears
Itching with small pustules on the outer parts of the ears. Heat alternating with coldness of external ear. Sensation of coldness or bubbling in ears. Stopped up feeling with pressure. Beating or fluttering noise in ear. Nodes on auricle. Throbbing and roaring. Acute and shooting pains in the interior of the ear and in other parts. Sharp pains in the ear. Small tumor, size of hazelnut, under and behind ear. Enlarged gland.
Eyes
Conjunctivitis within the lacrimal caruncle. Dryness of eyes with burning and redness of conjunctiva. Aching and sensation of burning in the eyes. Eyes sunken with dark bluish circles around. Burning and dryness in the eyes, which are dull. As if sand between the lids and eyes. Eyes feel cold as from a cool wind with lachrymation on closing the eyes. Shootings in the eyes. Itching in the canthi, eyebrows, and eyelids. Ophthalmia. Painful eyes on reading by candlelight. Sensitive to the sunlight. Shuns light.
Face
Face hot and red. Sunken cheeks and eyes with bluish circles. Dirty gray, pale, sickly. Bilious. Greenish face, with blue rings and pink eyes. Sensation as if cold drops were spurted into the face when going into the open air. Dryness of the lips. Sensation of tingling on the lips. Burning in lips. Suppurating acne.
Female
Menses consisting of gray mucus or brown blood. Menses with pain in kidneys and chilliness, pain down thighs. Scanty menses of black drops of filthy slime. Menses, watery blood or brown. Gray mucus replaces menses. Dysmenorrhea with blood looking like gray serum.
Dysmenorrhea, with pains radiating in every direction. Leucorrhea, grayish mucus with painful urinary symptoms. Acrid leucorrhea, very prostrating. Neuralgia of ovaries and vagina. Pain changes sides. Vagina sensitive. Vaginismus. Vulva itching and burning. Pinching constriction in mons veneris, contraction and tenderness of vagina. Burning and soreness in vagina. Urinary symptoms with menses and leucorrhea. Cutting pain during sex. Enjoyment absent during sex. Prostration after sex. Desire diminished. Suppressed sexual desire with long delayed orgasm.
Food
Appetite either increased or decreased. Excessive appetite, almost like bulimia. Very slow digestion. Acid, bitter taste, especially after a meal. Want of appetite, with bitter, bilious taste. Food appears insipid. Alcoholic drinks aggravate. Thirst and dryness of the mouth.
Head
Dullness of head, as from coryza. Confusion and heaviness of the head. Frontal headache. Cold sensation in right temple. Cold temples. Chilliness in back and occiput. Heat in head from exertion. Skin of head and face as if numb. Headache, worse by movement, better in open air. Headache with hepatic or rheumatic arthritic complaints. Headache with affections of urinary organs. Darting and shooting pains in the head after changing the locality. Sensation as if the head were becoming larger. Sensation of a tight cap pressing upon the whole scalp. Tearing pain in auricle and gouty concretions.
Pustules in the tissues of the head and in the face.
Heart
Squeezing with shooting pains in the region of the heart. Frequent palpitations. Sharp pains about the heart. Very painful contracting, shooting pain in the region of heart. Pulse becomes very slow. Pulse slow and weak. Pulse full, hard, and rapid.
Kidneys
Radiating, shooting pains from kidneys into bladder. Kidney colic from kidney stones. Pain from kidney, extending along ureter or to liver, stomach, spleen, arresting breathing. Bubbling sensation in region of kidneys. Kidney stones. Burning, soreness in kidney region. Stinging, burning, gnawing, on small spot near kidneys, worse hard pressure. Sensitiveness in region of kidneys so great that any jarring motion, riding in a wagon, jumping from it, was intolerable. Clear discharge from meatus before urinating. Urine with thick mucus, acid bright-red. Urine turbid, yellow. Urine red, mealy, sandy, or slimy sediment. Passes small calculi. Urine smells like coffee. Urine blood red.
Limbs
Bruised feeling in limbs. Rheumatic paralytic pain in shoulders, arms, hands, and fingers. Legs and feet. Swelling of joints. Neuralgia under fingernails with swelling of the finger joints. Sensation of cold on outside of thighs. Heels pain, as if ulcerated. Sharp pains between metatarsal bones as from a nail when standing. Pain in balls of feet on stepping. Intense weariness and lameness of legs after walking a short distance.
Liver
Liver troubles with sticking pains in region of gall bladder. Shooting, aching pains in the hepatic region, increased by pressure. Pressure in the liver. Gallstones. Sharp pain in region of gallbladder, worse pressure, extending to stomach. Gallstone attack with severe pains. Violent stabbing, in region of liver, taking breath, must bend over. Catarrh of the gallbladder with constipation and yellow complexion.
Lungs
Increased deep breathing, with dry cough. Shortness of breath when going up stairs. Obstruction of breath when raising arms. Gallbladder or kidney colic arresting breathing. Short, dry cough with sharp pains in chest. Expectoration of a quantity of thick, yellow, jelly-like mucus.
Male
Genitals cold and sweaty. Neuralgia of spermatic cord and testicles. Constricting pain in testicles. Testicles drawn up. Smarting, burning, stinging in testicles in prepuce and scrotum. Itching on scrotum. Pain changes sides. Prostate gland enlarged, with pressure in perineum. Prepuce and glans cold and numb. Penis hard and contracted, bends upwards. Suppressed sexual desire. Straining during and after ejaculation of semen.
Modalities
Better after urination. Better in open air. Worse from motion. Worse jarring. Worse stepping hard. Worse rising from sitting. Worse fatigue. Worse urinating. Worse twilight. Worse standing, it brings on, or increases urinary complaints. Worse deep pressure.
Mouth
Aphthae. Burning and acrid taste in the mouth. Bitter taste. Offensive metallic odor from mouth. Sticky, viscid, foamy saliva like cotton (Nux-m.). White, sticky tongue. Viscid saliva resembling soapsuds.
Diminished saliva. Ugly bluish-red spots in mouth. Gums dirty gray. Small white nodes in the gums. Teeth feel as if too long or too large.
Nose
Dryness in the nose. Crawling and itching in nostrils. Pricking pain in tip of nose. Coryza with the yellowish serum discharge, afterwards of purulent. Obstinate catarrh of left nostril. Catarrh whitish, yellowish, or greenish mucus, especially in the morning. Titillating irritation to sneeze. Drops of blood from left nostril.
Perspiration
Everything excites sweat.
Rectum
Constant urging to stool. Diarrhea painless, clay-colored. Burning and smarting in anus and perineum. Bearing down pain in anus and in sacrum. Changing stools. Scanty, thin-formed stool, hard or soft. Hard stools like sheep dung, with burning in the anus. Stools are dirty gray, smarting tough, watery with jaundice. Tearing pain around anus. Fistula in anus, itching with chest complaints. Copious hemorrhage from anus after increased exercise. Hemorrhoids. Herpes around anus.
Skin
Itching, burning, and smarting, worse scratching, better cold applications. Small pustules over the whole body. Eczema of anus and hands. Eruptions leave a brown stain. Circumscribed pigmentation following eczematous inflammation. Red marbled spots changing into brown spots. Boils, hastens suppuration and prevents return. Flat warts.
Sleep
Sleepiness during the day. Restless sleep, disturbed by burning itching of the skin or by anxious dreams. Frequent waking, and fatigue, as from want of sleep. Sleep greatly prolonged. Unrefreshing sleep. Difficult awaking in the morning, followed by headache, exhaustion, and want of recollection. Anxious dreams.
Stomach
Bitter eructations. Heartburn. Eructations, without bad taste or smell. Bilious risings. Frequent eructations alternating with yawning. Nausea before breakfast, better after. Pains from stomach to back, or the reverse. Shiverings in the epigastrium. Burning, shooting pains in the stomach. Sticking or whirling pain in gastric region.
Teeth
Teeth as if too long or too large. Pain as if gums were torn, or teeth pulled out. Scraping, gnawing pains. Tearing pain in left upper molar. Piercing pain in hollow tooth of lower jaw. Sharp pains. Gums dirty gray. Small white nodes in gums. Dingy red edges of gums. Gums bleed easily. Sore gums during dentition.
Temperature
Chilly. Cold sensation in various parts, as if spattered with cold water. Cold single parts. Chills as if in bones, with warmth of skin. Chills before dinner, with ice-cold feet. Chills in region of kidneys. Warmth in lower part of back, hips, and thighs. Heat in the hands and head in the afternoon, continuing for several days. Typhoid and putrid fevers.
Throat
Inflammation of the tonsils and pharynx, with swelling and fiery redness. Hoarseness with soreness. Sensation of plug in the side of the throat with dryness. Scratching and burning as from sand in throat. Tonsillitis. Pain in tonsils, when speaking or swallowing. Polyps of larynx.
Tongue
Tongue feels scalded. Vesicles on tongue. Painful pimple on tip. Tongue smarts when touched. Slimy furred tongue.
Vertigo
Vertigo, with sensation of fainting and great weakness.
Vision
Dim vision.all objects looking dark, as if lhrough a veil. or running together. Dim vision with itching around eyes and in face, preceded by incipient catarrh, succeeded by itching on legs.
Comments
There is great weakness like fainting after a walk, with perspiration and heat on the upper part of the body, cold, pale, sunken face, and oppression of breathing. Great retaliation with disinclination to do anything. Great sleepiness during the day and after dinner. Vertigo and heaviness.
Heat of head after dinner or in the afternoon. Puffy feeling in head, as if it were becoming larger. Scalp tense. The face is pale with a dingy gray tinge, sunken cheeks. Deep-set eyes, surrounded with bluish and black-gray border. Mouth dry and sticky, painful white blisters on the tip of the tongue.
Darting and shooting pains often changing their localities, worse movement, better open air. Changeable pains. Dry mucus membranes. Discharges or skin is dirty gray. Cold feeling in the bones, eyes, ears, etc. Numbness insensible to extreme heat and cold. Metatarsus and metacarpus feel sprained. Neuralgia under fingernails.
Lumbago, pains extend from back, around body, down leg, with red sediment in urine. Many old troubles in the back. Sufferings worse by fatigue. Aching in small of back, worse sitting or lying in the morning on awakening.
Chest affected after operations, hemorrhoids, fistula, etc. The pit of the stomach is puffed up. Gnawing pain in right hypochondrium, shooting up to left scapula. Pains shoot down from tenth rib to navel. Burning in either inguinal region (especially right). Constipation, stool like sheep-dung. Diarrhea. Hemorrhoids with itching or burning, particularly after stool, which is frequently hard and covered with blood. Anal fistula with painful pressure in perineum, extending deep into pelvis (left side).
Nephritis, acute kidney infections, kidney pain from passing a stone, kidney colic from polynephritis. Numbness, stiffness, and lameness in kidney region. Great sense of weakness in kidney region, after exertion. Kidneys are worse walking, especially down stairs, worse jar, bubbling sensation.
Bladder infections with achy kidneys, burning on urination, worse motion (Bry.). Cramping pain while urinating with urinary infection. Profuse amount of urine alternating with little urine.
Frequent urging to urinate. Urine is dark yellow and red, becoming turbid, copious, mucus sediment or transparent, jelly-like or reddish, bran-like sediment. Urine slimy when passed, depositing copious foamy yellowish sediment. Greenish urine depositing mucus.
A liver remedy and gallstone colic with the same pain as passing a stone from the gallbladder. Sharp pain that radiates.
Gallstone colic with jaundice. Absence of pleasurable sensation during sex, in women. Uterine symptoms and leucorrhea associated with painful urinary symptoms. Dysmenorrhea, pains radiating in all directions down thighs, etc. Vagina intensely painful, reddened. Violent pain in bed, with menses, which are too scanty.
Guernsey admirably summed up Berb. "Affects particularly the lumbar region, kidneys, uterus. The patient is sometimes unable to tell the exact locality, but the pain is somewhere in the back and shoots up the back or into the spermatic cord or testes, bladder, buttocks, or legs."
"The pain may shoot up or down or both ways. Pains may be felt all over the body, emanating from the back. The pains are of a sticking, pricking, sharp or jerking character, flying about now here and there. There is often a bubbling sensation in the region of the kidneys."
On the indication "tumors and sessile growths," Ozanam cured a case of polyps of the vocal cords, red with a sessile base. Thuja had failed. Berb. 200c was given at first with good effect, the potency being gradually reduced with increasingly good effect until the growth disappeared entirely under the Ix.
B. Simmons verified a symptom of Berb. A gentleman of 52 complained of rheumatic pains in his legs and loss of walking power. After he had walked a short distance, he was compelled to stop from a feeling of intense weariness, heaviness, lameness, and stiffness of the legs, which felt sore as if bruised. A single dose affected a complete cure, improvement commencing on the fourth day.
Stuart Close recorded the cure with Berb. 200c of a woman who had cutting, burning pains in the balls of the feet on stepping. On standing with most of the weight on the heels, she had no pain. On rising in the morning, there was a sensation in soles as if stepping on needles.
Relations
- Antidotes: Camphor, Bell.
- Antidoted by: Camph., Bell.
- Antidote to: Aeon. Compare: (1) Ipomea, Aloe, Lye, Ox-ac., Nux-v., Sars, Xanthorrhea arborea, Xanthorhiza apifolia. (2) Aloc., Ant-t., Ars. (3) Calc-p.
- Fistula in ano, chest symptoms, especially after surgical operation. (4) Canth., Carb-v., Cham., Chin., Lye., Nat-m., Nit-ac., Nux-v., Puls., Rheum. (5) In burning and pricking pains in anus: Lye., Thuj. (6) In duodenal catarrh: Chin., Lye., Hydr., Poto., Ric., Mere. (7) In aversion to darkness: Stram., Am-m., Calc., Carb-an., Stroph., Valer. (8) In pains in feet on stepping: Cycl. (9) Podo., Caul., Berb-a. Complementary: Mag-m. Follows well: Bry., Kali-bi., Rhus-t., Sulph.
References
Boericke, Clarke, Murphy.