Dr.Sunila is a Scholar in Repertory in the Department of Repertory, Government Homoeopathic Medical College, Calicut. Here we give some excerpts from her paper presented in the scientific seminar held on 16th,September 2006 at Govt. Homoeopathic Medical College. She is young dedicated and enthusicitic in Research and teaching. Her full paper can be viewed at www.similima.com.

   There are many evidences during Hahnemann’s time and recent out breaks of many communicable diseases. Scarlet fever, Cholera, Typhoid, Dengue and Japanese Encephalitis had been controlled effectively with Homoeopathic Medicines. If we could teach and spread abroad the facts that in the 1918 epidemic, the homoeopathic physicians had the record of over 16,000 cases treated by Hahnemannian homoeopaths with a mortality of only one-quarter of one per cent, the fear of epidemics would be removed.

   Homoeopathic Prophylaxis

   As per the guidelines laid down by Dr. Samuel Hahnemann in the Organon a Genus epidemics has to be found out in the specific area and it could be the best to be found out in the specific area and it could be the best prophylactic remedy.

   Many homoeopaths consider Eupatorium perfoliatum as a preventive medicine for Chikungunya. The most commonly suggested potency as prophylaxis is 200C of Eupatorium perfoliatum. As per the reports the homoeopathic remedies useful for propylaxis are - Eupatorium perfoliatum, Gelsemium, Rhustox, Bryonia alba, Ars alb and Aconite.

   The Karnataka Board of Homoeopathic System of medicine announced Rhustox 200 & Pyrogen 200 as the Genus Epidemicus for Chikungunya cases. In Tamil Nadu Homoeopathic physicians distributed Rhustox and Eupatorium for more than 4000 persons as a preventive prescription. Andhrapradesh Government distributed medicine to 2 Lakh people.

   According to Dr.Kent :“The other and greater prophylactic is the homoeopathic remedy. After working in an epidemic for a few weeks, you will find perhaps that half-a-dozen remedies are daily indicated and one of these in a large number of cases than any other. This one remedy seems to be the best suited to the general nature of the sickness. No one remedy seems to be the best suited to the general nature of the sickness. You will find that for prophylaxis, there is required a less degree of similitude than is necessary for curing. A remedy will not have to be so similar to prevent disease as to cure it, and these remedies in daily use will enable you to prevent a large number of people from becoming sick. We must look to Homoeopathy for our protection as well as for our cure.” We are not matching symptoms per se; rather; we are matching the essence of the patient with the essence of the remedy.

   Treatment

   Chikungunya fever is usually self-limiting and will resolve with time. Symptomatic treatment is recommended after excluding other more dangerous diseases. There is no vaccine currently available for Chikungunya. Supportive care with rest is indicated during the acute joint symptoms. Movement and mild exercise tend to improve stiffness and morning arthralgia, but heavy exercise may exacerbate rheumatic symptoms.
Homoeopathic Treatment

   Now see the achievements of the system of Homoeopathy in preventing diseases. The achievement of Homoeopathy in preventing diseases like Japanese encephalitis, Cholera, plague, Epidemics of the cattle and fish, Dengue Fever, were all recognized by the Kerala Government. It was how the Government gave the administrative sanction for the Rapid Action Epidemic Control cell in Homoeopathy (RAECH). It is not a baseless arguement that Homoeopathy has prevented and will prevent such epidemics in future.

   Aphorism 100-102 is dealing with the treatment of epidemic diseases. According to Dr.Hahnemann, a carefully observing physician can arrive so nearly at knowledge of the true state of the epidemic from the examination of even the first and second patients and can even find a suitable homoeopathic remedy for it. Dr. Hahnemann recommends investigating each epidemic disease as a new and unknown case and selecting medicine according to its symptom similarity.

   In the therapeutics, etiology or nosology has classified diseases and since the Homoeopathic physician is found using books on Therapeutics, he too is apt to use the terminology as is found in medical books and dictionaries. That the word “chikungunya” brings before his eyes a certain group of patients or symptoms constituting a sick person cannot be denied.

   As Dr. Kent has said, the Homoeopathic physician should learn the pathological conditions and use their terms for classifying the cases in order to report them to the State Boards, etc. But in each case the method is individualisation and individualisation alone, which should be his guide. And it is a widely known fact which generations of experience has demonstrated that constitutional homoeopathic prescribing tends to raise the general level of health and in so doing, almost invariably raises the resistance of the individual being treated to colds and virus infections. Chikungunya, then, is an acute miasmatic disease - self limiting, having a prodrome, progress and a decline.

   This disease being acute and coming in epidemics, we have for our guidance the incomparable Organon and Dr. Kent’s Lectures on Homoeopathic Philosophy. (Aphorism 100 to 102 of the Organon refer.)

   Homeopathy offers many medicines which may help in Chikungunya. These include medicines like Eupatorium-perf, Pyrogenum, Rhus-tox, Cedron, Influenzinum, China, Arnica, Belladona, Bryonia, Nux vomica, Sulphur etc. Eupatorium perfoliatum Q (tincture, 3 to 5 drop dose) will remove the debilitating joint pains and cut short the intensity and duration of the disease. Other potencies may be used according to the intensity of the case. In Andhrapradesh medicines such as Eupatorium200 & Belladonna has cured number of cases.