PLEURISY. 125 



move away and in the act of turning round the animal very fre- 

 quently grunts with pain. The individual peculiarity of the 

 cough in pleurisy is marked by the evident effort of the animal to 

 suppress it by trying to break off in the middle of the act. 



Treatment. — In the first stage, when the febrile symptoms 

 initiate the invasion of pleurisy, a few doses of Aco?nte 3X may 

 be administered with great advantage; but when the disease is not 

 discov^ered until the recognized indications of pleurisy are dis- 

 tinctly observable Bryonia 3X alone may be confidently relied on, 

 a dose every three or four hours; this is due to the fact that 

 Bryonia exercises a specific action upon "such membranes as those 

 of which the pleura is a notable example; these membranes differ 

 entirely from the so-called mucous membranes that line the in- 

 ternal parts of the digestive and other organs; in the first place, 

 they occupy a different position anatomically, being located ex- 

 ternally, as a covering to the organs they protect; and, secondly, 

 their functions differ materially from mucous membrane; they are 

 called serous membranes and are capable of producing a fluid or 

 exudation, hence the excessive quantity of fluid formed in a case 

 of pleurisy when this membrane is inflamed. 



Apis mellifica ix. — In long-standing cases, where the reabsorp- 

 tion of the fluid in the chest is not fullj^ completed, this remedy 

 will often prove effective in bringing about the desired result; it 

 doubtless exercises a specific action upon the serous membranes 

 and at the same time stimulates the kidneys to the performance of 

 the onerous duties which fall upon these organs when an excess of 

 fluid has to be got rid of from some distant part. 



Arsenicum album 3X. — This remedy also may often prove more 

 effective in getting rid of old-standing dropsies of the chest, and 

 among other s3'mptoms by which it may be recognized as displac- 

 ing Apis mel. , is the fact that the patient wants to drink a little 

 and often, whereas when Apis mel. is indicated thirst is repressed 

 and noticeable by its absence; furthermore, when the heart is as- 

 sociated with the dropsical condition of the chest, this remedy will 

 often prove to be specially called for, as it exercises a profound in- 

 fluence upon the vital organ referred to; palpitation, in conjunction 

 with great difficulty in breathing, by reason of the oppression 

 experienced from the dropsical condition, should suggest this 

 remedy. 



