Hahnemann and placebo.

Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843) known today as the founder of homoeopathy, was - as far as we know - the first physician who administrated placebos to his patient on a systematic and regular basis. This study is based upon unpublished documents (e.g. patients' letters) in the Archives of the Institute for the History of Medicine of the Robert Bosch Foundation in Stuttgart. It also profited from the critical edition of Hahnemann's case journals and the editorial comments which have also been published in this series. Hahnemann differentiated clearly between homeopathic drugs and pharmaceutical substances which he considered as sham medicine (e.g. milk sugar). A close look at Hahnemann's case journals reveals that the percentage of placebo prescriptions was very high (between 54 and 85 percent). In most instances Hahnemann marked placebos with the paragraph symbol (§). The rationale behind this practice was that Hahnemann had encountered the well-known problem that patients were used to taking medicine on a daily basis as it was typical for the age of heroic medicine. The main reason for giving placebo was therefore to please the impatient patient who was used to frequent medications in allopathic medicine, not only every day but sometimes also hourly.

[The first labor analgesia with drug was already performed in late Meiji-Period (1868-1912): trace of opioid-scopolamine which was used in Akiko Yosano, back to its origins].

There have been some records of labor analgesia with intravenous or rectal anesthetics in early Showa-period (1926-1989). However, the author found that labor analgesia had been already attempted for some women in late Meiji-period (1868-1912). One of agents used was pantopon, a water-soluble opioid without serious respiratory depression as morphine. The drug was developed and produced in Germany. Some doctors applied this agent with scopolamine to labor analgesia in Europe. They also reported that this combination also conferred excellent analgesic effects without any serious complications in the mother and fetus. This combination was originally used for general surgery with inhaled anesthesia at that period. It remains uncertain how Japanese doctors got pantopon scopolamine from Germany.

Balancing between sensitization and repression: the role of opium in the life and art of Edgar Allan Poe and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

The creative process contains both conscious and unconscious work. Therefore, artists have to face their unconscious processes and work with emotional material that is difficult to keep under control in the course of artistic creation. Bringing these contents of consciousness to the surface needs special sensitivity and special control functions while working with them. Considering these mechanisms, psychoactive substance can serve a double function in the case of artists. On the one hand, chemical substances may enhance the artists' sensitivity. On the other hand, they can help moderate the hypersensitivity and repress extreme emotions and burdensome contents of consciousness. The authors posit how the use of opiates could have influenced the life and creative work of Edgar Allan Poe and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

Thomas de Quincey and his restless legs symptoms as depicted in "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater".

Thomas de Quincey, a British writer of 19th century, suffered insomnia from the age of 17 years. In his famous "Confessions of an English-Opium Eater" (1822), he described a symptomatology that could concord with restless legs syndrome long before he became addicted to opium. In this report, we analyze his clinical description and the circumstances leading to his opium addiction.

Machado de Assis' Original Sin.

Machado de Assis (1839-1908) suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy, probably with origin in the non-dominant hemisphere. The evidence for this is provided by the detailed reports of the characteristics of his seizures by his contemporaries and by his correspondence with other writers. He was treated with bromides and homeopathy. It is unclear whether his neurological disorder influenced his artistic performance. What is evident is that he was deeply ashamed of the disease - he avoided the word "epilepsy" and just wrote about it in his personal correspondence with friends in the last years of his life. Though controversial, he had no clear traces of personality disorders linked to his temporal lobe epilepsy. Despite all his adversities, including being "mulatto," having a stutter, being of humble origins, and epileptic in a period when there was no efficacious therapy and a profound stigma associated with the disease, Machado de Assis became one of the most important Brazilian writers of all times.

Dr. Maffei e Homeopatia: um exame das relações dos princípios médicos gerais do doutor Walter Edgard Maffei com os princípios homeopáticos / Dr. Maffei and Homeopathy: an examination of the relationships between doctor Walter Edgard Maffei's general medical principles and homeopathic principles

O Dr. Walter Edgard Maffei (1905-1991), médico patologista, apresenta grande impacto na formação médica geral e homeopática. Este trabalho objetivou o estudo das relações dos princípios médicos gerais do Dr. Maffei com os princípios homeopáticos por pesquisa descritiva com revisão bibliográfica utilizando como base a monografia apresentada à Associação Paulista de Homeopatia em 2000, sobre este tema, revendo as referências, com atenção especial à obra do Dr. Maffei: "Os Fundamentos da Medicina", e as análises comparativas acrescidas da vivência clínica e prática ao longo dos anos. Verificou-se que as semelhanças ocorrem porque os princípios são concordantes em suas bases, como a visão hipocrática, onde a Medicina é baseada na observação e experimentação. Destacou-se a importância do médico generalista, compartilhada pelo Dr. Maffei e pelos ensinamentos homeopáticos, para a compreensão do indivíduo na sua totalidade. A Hereditariedade ganhou destaque, sendo básica para a compreensão da individualidade de cada paciente em seu processo de saúde e doença.

The Doctor Walter Edgard Maffei (1905-1991), pathologist, had a great impact on general and homeopathic medical education. This work aimed to study the relationships between the general medical principles of Dr. Maffei with homeopathic principles by descriptive research with bibliographic review using as a basis the monograph presented to the Associação Paulista de Homeopatia in 2000, on this topic, reviewing references, with special attention to the work of Dr. Maffei: "The Fundamentals of Medicine", and adding comparative analyzes of clinical and practical experience over the years. It was found that the similarities occur because the principles are consistent in their bases, such as the Hippocratic view, where Medicine is based on observation and experimentation. The importance of the general practitioner was highlighted, shared by Dr. Maffei and for the homeopathic teachings, for the understanding of the individual in its totality. Heredity gained prominence, being basic for understanding the individuality of each patient in their health and disease process.

El médico Homeópata y la Homeopatía. Reflexiones del Doctor Vicente Rosas Landa Lechuga / The Homeopathic physician and Homeopathy. Reflections of Doctor Vicente Rosas Landa Lechuga

La historia e identidad de toda profesión se construye a través de la experiencia de quienes la integran. La profesión médico homeopática y la Homeopatía mexicana cuentan, a lo largo de más de 127 años, con una amplia gama de hechos y situaciones acaecidas en nuestro país y que nos permiten caracterizarla. Tener la posibilidad de que los propios actores puedan compartir de viva voz su vida profesional, resulta invaluable para las futuras generaciones. A través de este documento se presenta una entrevista al doctor Vicente Rosas Landa Lechuga, personaje muy significativo para la comunidad médico homeopática, sobre diversos temas relevantes respecto a la profesión y al campo de la Homeopatía.

The history and identity of every profession is built through the experience of its members. "The homeopathic medical profession and Mexican Homeopathy, over more than one hundred and twenty-seven years, have undergone a wide range of events and situations that occured in Mexico and therfore, allow us to characterize it. Having the possibility of the actors themselves to share their professional lives, is invaluable for future generations. Through this document, an interview is conducted to Dr. Vicente Rosas Landa Lechuga, a very significant person for the homeopathic medical community, on various relevant topics about the profession and the field of Homeopathy.

Niurka Meneses Moreno, la pasión por la Homeopatía (primera de dos partes) / Niurka Meneses Moreno, the passion for Homeopathy (first of two parts)

Cubana de nacimiento, la doctora Niurka Meneses Moreno puede considerarse una ciudadana universal ya que ha tenido un sinnúmero de experiencias en varias latitudes del mundo. Como ocurre con frecuencia con muchos expertos en Homeopatía, la doctora Meneses experimentó en carne propia los beneficios de la medicina hahnemanniana. Desde adolescente tuvo muchos problemas con el asma, al grado de sufrir un paro cardiorrespiratorio producto de los efectos de un medicamento.

Gran distinción para la doctora Susana Novelo Pichardo / Great distinction for the doctor Susana Novelo Pichardo

Hace unas semanas, la doctora Susana Novelo Pichardo, miembro del Comité de Arbitraje de La Homeopatía de México, recibió el reconocimiento al Profesionista Colegiado Distinguido 2020, por el Mérito al Sobresaliente Ejercicio Profesional e Impulso a la Vida Colegiada, otorgado por el Secretaría de Educación del Estado de Guanajuato.

Doctor Guillermo Soberón Acevedo: destacado médico mexicano / Doctor Guillermo Soberón Acevedo: outstanding Mexican doctor

En la presente entrevista, realizada en 1999, el doctor Guillermo Soberón Acevedo (1925- 2020) opina sobre distintos temas relacionados con la medicina y la salud pública. Comenta su proceso de formación como médico, la responsabilidad de los especialistas que se preparan en el extranjero y regresan a México, así como sus trabajos como rector de la UNAM y en el sector público, donde dirigió la transformación de la entonces Secretaría de Salubridad y Asistencia en la actual Secretaría de Salud. Asimismo, aborda temas como el carácter mutifacético de la medicina, la importancia de la investigación y las facultades de medicina, el valor de la certificación, el trabajo de los colegios y las asociaciones médicas y el futuro de la ciencia médica, además de que ofrece su punto de vista sobre la Homeopatía.

In this interview, conducted in 1999, Dr. Guillermo Soberón Acevedo (1925-2020) gives his opinion on different topics related to medicine and public health. He comments on his training process as a doctor, the responsabilities of the specialists who prepare abroad and return to Mexico, as well as his work as Rector of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (National Autonomous University of Mexico) As well as his experience in the public sector, in which he directed the transformation of the then Secretaría de Salubridad y Asistencia (Ministry of Healthiness and Assistance) into the current Secretaría de Salud (Ministry of Health). It also addresses topics such as the multifaceted nature of medicine, the importance of research and medical schools, the value of certification, the work of medical colleges and associations, and the future of medical science, in addition to offering his point of view on Homeopathy.

Homeopaths, surgery, and the Civil War: Edward C. Franklin and the struggle to achieve medical pluralism in the Union army.

An important aspect of the Union army medical corps throughout the Civil War was the clinical discord that pitted allopathic, or orthodox, physicians against sectarian, or unorthodox, physicians. Allopaths dominated the corps and its examining boards and consequently denied commissions as army surgeons to sectarian practitioners such as the homeopaths. This probably affected surgical manpower needs, since many well-trained homeopathic surgeons, like Edward C. Franklin, one of the nation's busiest and most prolific surgeons, wished to serve in the northern army but were unable to do so.

Herbal medicine, Chaplin, and "The Kid".

At variance with other largely safe complementary alternative medicines like homeopathy and acupuncture, which only carry the risk of inducing patients to shun effective treatment, herbal remedies are real, albeit impure, drugs and therefore fully capable of producing undesirable consequences if misused. The advantages they offer are uncertain since genuine evidence of efficacy and effectiveness is present in only a few cases. A result of this imbalance is that studies in this field are considerably more meaningful when they deal with untoward effects than with therapeutic uses. This disproportion has suggested to us the curious similarity with the situation portrayed in the film "The Kid" where the essential task of the protagonist (Chaplin) is to repair the windows his stone-throwing child has just broken.