After 25 years
of struggles, homeopathy has been recognized by Ministry of Health Malaysia in year 2000. Thanks to the former Health Minister, Datuk Chua Jui Meng of Malaysia
The formation of the Homeopathy Faculty
.
http://www.geocities.com/fakulti/hm.htm
" Classical homeopath
does not include any other surrounding or possible alternative medicines like vitamins, minerals, herbs or whatever. ... And
sometimes, a homeopathic remedy cannot cure a problem--for example, if your diet does not include a lot of salads or greens,
you might have an vitamin A deficiency and complain of poor night vision....the only thing that will help that is to change
your diet to include these foods, and/or take a vitamin A supplement. Homeopathy SOMETIMES can help you change your eating habits. But because the soils and veggies/fruits are depleted and no longer have
the levels of vitamin they used to before 1960, we are getting depleted and need supplements, " Eileen Nauman, my Cherokee
American friend, well known internationally as a writer and Homeopath in complementary
and alternative medicine, commented, in our Athena forum a few years ago.
I
recall those difficult years when I had to improvise very simple ways to manage emergency cases while practising in remote
areas in the state of Johore, Malaysia, when the nearest hospital was miles away. Droplet feeding a succussed
preparation from the patient's vomitus in accidental poisoning was a desperate homeopathic procedure in jungle medicine but
not in orthodox medicine.. There was no time for detailed history -taking. Slipping some crashed homeopathic granules of Antimony
Tartarate 6x into a gasping cyanotic child's mouth, with respiratory problems before the frantic rush to the nearest hospital,
was another emergency measure. My limited supplies of homeopathic medicine , which included principally the
homeopathic specifics for soft tissue injuries and bony trauma :Hypericum, Arnica, Natrum Sulph,
Calendula , Ruta, Symphytum, Ferrous Phos, Silica, Bellis Perennis
and the like , were obtained from Sungai Patani, friendly homeopaths in Kuala Lumpur and Kota Baru,in Kelantan.
I still recall the kindly homeopath from Kota Baru, Dr.Nik, now professor, who sent me Ringgit 200 worth of homeopathic
medicine on credit which I managed to pay off with the small collections from poor patients. Life has taught me
the best under such straitened circumstances. I seldom used steriods. I sparingly prescribed antibiotics because I resorted
to the homeopathized specifics for cleansing and the management of badly infected cuts and wounds with
wild honey dressing of the injuries.I found that diabetic ulcers healed fast with raw honey dressing. It was not safe
to keep tetanus toxoid because the supply of electricity in the village was erratic. Instead, I prepared Hypericum and Ledum
globules, which were adminstered orally under the tongue, for the prophylaxis of Tetanus. "
Lexin " , a snake -bite preparation developed by Dr. Parimal Banerji 's father,Maharshi
Pareshnath Banerji, had saved many lives. It was administered by olfaction.I saved enough money, with
skipped meals to buy Homeopathic Books from the Jain Homeopathic Publishers in India.The determined
will to learn a new discipline of medicine, Homeopathy, which is not taught in Orthodox Medicine spurred me
on to trudge wearily, inspite of all the deprivations that I have been subjected to, the lonely Way in search of the
Holistic truth , a lonely and non-lucrative path . I still treasure those books which I have faithfully
preserved till this very day. Though these homeopathic
books
are torn and tattered now, they are still,my constant sleeping companions. A far cry from those hectic days of
jungle medicine ,however, whenever, I pick up one of them for reference with my hands,it is like shaking the hands of old
friends and teachers. Though not an institutionally qualified homeopath, I studied and researched the Holistic
Principles of Homeopathy Nature 's way with a sound grounding of the Basic Medical Sciences taught me in Medical College. My naive patients are/were my best teachers and I gleaned from them the true meaning of the WHO 's holistic
trio of healing: Physical, Emotional and Spiritual. They were graphic projections of living drug-pictures
of symptoms in totality. They taught me Homeopathy.
Enabling
the patient to breathing 'in' and 'out' of a make-shift perforated paper bag of " bad gas " rather than an
oxygen mask for oxygen, for better carbon dioxide and exhaled Nitric Oxide retention , was a life-saving
measure to maintain vasodilation to provide oxygen for life maintenance to the anoxic child during the journey to the nearest medical institution .
(
Nitric oxide is a potent endothelium-derived vasorelaxant substance and an inhibitor of smooth-muscle-cell
growth . Nitric oxide is produced in various cell types by the action of an enzyme, nitric oxide
synthase and L-arginine.
Inhaled NO appears to be an ideal treatment for hypoxemia in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome
because it selectively increases perfusion to portions of the lung receiving ventilation. However, because most patients with
acute respiratory distress syndrome do not die from hypoxemic respiratory failure, but from multisystem organ failure, inhaled
NO may not improve final outcome. Randomized clinical trials have reported temporary improvements in arterial oxygenation
but no significant differences in outcome between patients who received inhaled NO and those who received placebo gas.Despite
these observations, inhaled NO may allow clinicians to use less-injurious ventilatory strategies (e.g., by reducing the inspired
oxygen concentration), and this may reduce toxic effects and morbidity. In addition, inhaled NO may prove invaluable for the
minority of patients in whom severe oxygenation defects are the primary cause of death. The only area where NO has proven
efficacy is in infants with persistent pulmonary hypertension, where it has been found to improve systemic oxygenation and
decrease the need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.
The benefit (or harm) of NO will most likely be secondary to its immunological effects. Inhaled NO is capable of modulating
neutrophil chemotaxis, adherence and activation,both locally and in nonpulmonary vascular beds after reperfusion injury; therefore,
future studies will likely evaluate its immunomodulating potential in patients who are at risk for acute lung injury and reperfusion
injury syndromes.
As suggested in the Buteyko Protocol, it seems that breathing air with a 8% CO2 content, not only raises the
body ' s pH and oxygen level but also eliminates pulmonary infection, has favorable outcome for patients of cardio-vascular
accidents, for the asphyxiated and the brain-damaged. )
INHALED NITRIC OXIDE GAS THERAPY and ARDS ( Acute respiratory Distress Syndrome )
Posited as
a Emergency measure in Sars and Avian Influenza
This
writing is intended to briefly introduce
ARDS patients, their families, and significant
others, with the properties of nitric oxide
and the clinical implications associated with
the use of this gas. Nitric oxide should(NO) not be confused with nitrous oxide (N20), the mild anesthetic
often used by dental
professionals that is more commonly known as "laughing gas." As a matter of fact, nitric
oxide was known as a common environmental
I pollutant and contaminant during the
manufacturing process of nitrous oxide. NO is
normally manufactured from the
reaction of
sulfur dioxide with nitric acids. Nitric
oxide
is a component of smog that can be measured in
urban area air at 10 to 100 parts per billion
(ppb), is naturally produced in the body in the upper and lower airway at 100 to 1000 ppb,
and is present in cigarette smoke at 400 to
1000 parts per million (ppm). Clinical
research found that the concentration
of
exhaled NO is increased during exercise and in patient's with
asthma.
Inhaled NO is a relatively new United States
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
investigational drug and numerous
facilities
are involved in clinical trials utilizing this
gas. Until approved by the FDA, its use is
limited to
those facilities that have gone
through the application process for drug
evaluation and research and have been granted permission (known as an Investigational New
Drug [IND] number) to conduct such studies utilizing NO. In addition, an informed consent
procedure must be obtained from each patient or legal representative prior to the administration of NO.
Physiology of ARDS
A
limited review of the pulmonary disease , ARD , is necessary to gain an understanding of the way in which NO affects
this pulmonary
ailment.
Patients with ARDS, whether precipitated by
inhalation of vomited stomach contents
(aspiration), injury, pneumonia, inhalation of
toxic substances, or a severe infection
somewhere in the body (sepsis), usually all
have high blood pressure in the vessels
leading to and around the lungs (pulmonary
hypertension.) Also, under normal conditions,
if the tiny air sacs in the lung (alveoli) do
not receive enough air or are collapsed
(atelectasis), the blood vessels supplying
these alveoli will constrict (become smaller
or narrower). In ARDS however, these collapsed
or underventilated alveoli continue to receive
full blood supply from the surrounding blood
vessels (capillaries). Since these collapsed
or underventilated alveoli are not receiving
oxygen, they are not capable of providing
oxygen to the blood stream. The net effect may
be a severe reduction in oxygen levels in the
blood stream.
Basic Science
Certain substances that occur naturally in the
body exert control over blood flow in and
around the lungs. These substances can cause
blood vessels near the lungs to dilate (become
wider or larger, vasodilation). They produce
this vasodilation by causing cells lining the
blood vessels to produce the gaseous product
NO. NO accounts for the physiological effects
of vasodilating drugs such as nitroglycerin; a
drug commonly used to treat high blood
pressure. Recent studies have found that
excess NO production in the body plays a role
in the massive vasodilation and low blood
pressure associated with septic shock
syndrome.
Since NO exists in a gaseous form, it can be
applied to the pulmonary vessels by
administering it as an inhaled gas. What this
means, is that when NO is inhaled, it
selectively dilates blood vessels in only
those lung segments that are actively
participating in gas exchange (oxygen & carbon
dioxide) at the alveolar-capillary level. In
other words, this increases the blood flow to
areas of the lung where oxygen is being
provided and thus improves oxygen levels in
the body. This is known as
ventilation-perfusion (V/Q) matching.
However, the lower respiratory tract contributes
substantially to exhaled NO. Direct sampling
via
fibreoptic bronchoscopy in asthmatic patients
shows a
similar elevation of NO in trachea and main bronchi
to that recorded at the mouth, thus indicating that
the elevated levels in asthma are derived from the
lower airways.
Biological relevance of exhaled nitric oxide.
Concentrations of NO present in expired air are
considered to be too low
to be of physiological
relevance [16, 17]. That is to say that nM concentrations
of NO are unlikely to have substantial bioactivities
in the lung
(as NO) where there is continuous
exposure to a high flow
rate of mM haemoglobin
concentrations which avidly bind NO . However,
NOS activation does not result in the formation
of NO alone . It may form a variety of nitrogen
oxides with a broad range of bioactivities ,
such as nitrate, nitrite (NO2 and peroxynitrite.
NO was not the first drug discovered that
causes pulmonary vasodilation. There are
several other drugs that are known
vasodilators that have been on the market for
years. These include the aforementioned
nitroglycerin and nitroprusside. The
shortcoming of these types of drugs is that
they increase the pulmonary blood flow to all
lung segments, including those that are not
well ventilated. This further inhibits oxygen
delivery to the blood stream because
capillaries are dilated that are in contact
with alveoli that are not providing or do not
contain oxygen.
Inhaled nitric oxide (NO) dilates only
ventilated alveoli, an outcome that improves
V/Q matching. (From Lunn R: Subspecialty
clinics: Anesthesiology; Inhaled nitric oxide
therapy. (Mayo Clin Proc 1995; 70:247-255;
with permission.)
After the NO is inhaled and passes through the
lungs and into the patient's blood stream, its
effects are quickly deactivated. This is
because NO quickly reacts with the
iron-containing pigment of the red blood cell
that functions to carry oxygen from the lungs
to the tissues (hemoglobin). Hemoglobin
inactivates NO and thus when it is carried to
the rest of the body, it does not cause
vasodilation to blood vessels beyond the lung
area. This is in stark contrast with some of
the other pulmonary vasodilator drugs that not
only cause vasodilation of blood vessels in
and around the lungs, but also cause
vasodilation throughout the body. This can
potentially lead to a serious decrease in a
patient's blood pressure.
Gas Delivery Systems
As mentioned earlier, the way in which this
drug is administered is simply by providing
the gas for the patient to inhale. There are a
variety of delivery systems that are presently
in use. These either encompass a homemade or
"rigged" system or a commercially available
delivery system. They can provide gas delivery
via a ventilator circuit, a facemask, or a
nasal cannula.
The basic design and goal of each system is to
provide a system for safe gas delivery and
precision gas analysis or monitoring. If
delivering the gas through a ventilator,
either a continuos or intermittent flow of NO
is fed into the inspiratory limb of the
ventilator tubing. The rate of NO gas flow is
controlled to maintain the desired levels of
NO. Prior to the patient connection of the
ventilator tubing, a sensor or sample line is
connected to an analyzer that displays NO, NO2
(discussed in further detail later) and
possibly oxygen levels. Usually the displayed
NO and NO2 readings are measured in parts per
million.
Safety Concerns
As with any drug, there are legitimate safety
and toxicity concerns regarding the use of
inhaled NO. Inhaling very high levels of NO
(5,000 to 20,000 ppm) can be lethal causing a
severe and acute accumulation of fluid in the
lungs (pulmonary edema) and methomoglobinemia
(described below). However, there is little
evidence of such toxicity when the
concentration is kept in the normal
concentration range (1 to 80 ppm). Animals
have breathed the gas in concentrations of 10
to 40 ppm, for six days to six months, without
evidence of toxicity.
Virtually all patients receiving NO will also
be receiving oxygen (O2). ARDS patients
usually require high levels of O2. The
by-product of NO and O2 yields nitrogen
dioxide (NO2). NO2 is a highly toxic chemical.
Although OSHA has set the safety limit for NO2
at 5 ppm, some investigators have found that
prolonged exposure to even 2 ppm of NO2 can be
injurious to the lungs. The amount of NO2
produced is dependent upon the levels of NO
and O2 and the amount of time they are
combined together prior to inhalation.
Therefore, the lowest dose of NO and lowest
concentration of O2 that achieve the desired
effect are used. NO is usually fed into the
ventilator tubing as close to the patient as
possible, limiting the mixing time between O2
and NO.
All delivery systems monitor NO2 levels
continuously. Newer delivery systems have been
designed to limit NO2 production or inhibit
its delivery to the patient, but situations
may occur where the NO dose, the O2
concentration, or both, may have to be
reduced.
One of the potential adverse side effects for
patients receiving inhaled NO is the formation
of methemoglobin. Methemoglobin is hemoglobin
that cannot release the oxygen its carrying,
nor can it combine with more oxygen.
Therefore, it impairs the blood's ability to
deliver oxygen to the tissues. This is a rare
complication because the body contains certain
chemicals and enzymes that convert
methemoglobin back to hemoglobin.
Nevertheless, blood levels should be closely
monitored.
Patient Outcomes
Virtually since the discovery of NO for
medical use in the mid-to-late '80s, it has
been trialed on patients with acute
respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Numerous
formal studies have been completed that
examined the effect NO had on ARDS patients.
Virtually every study found that inhaled NO:
1) induced a redistribution of blood flow in
the lungs to areas that were well ventilated,
2) reduced the blood pressure in the arteries
surrounding the lungs, and 3) improved oxygen
levels in the blood. How NO is capable of
producing this effect was described earlier.
This research has also found that not every
patient responds to inhaled NO in the same
manner. Some patients have an almost immediate
positive and recognizable response. While
others have a limited response. Some studies
have found that only about one-third of
patients with ARDS due to sepsis had a
positive response to inhaled NO. Among other
factors, patients who had high blood pressure
in the arteries near the lungs and who
demonstrated a positive response to PEEP
(positive end-expiratory pressure from the
ventilator), appeared to be most likely to
have a positive response to inhaled NO. For
some patients, the positive response to
inhaled NO appears to last for only hours to
days while others respond positively for
weeks. The reason for this phenomenon is still
being investigated.
As mentioned earlier, ARDS patients are
usually receiving high concentrations of
oxygen. High-level oxygen administration for
an extended period of time (usually > 72
hours) is well known for its pulmonary
toxicity. Since NO has been proven to improve
oxygen levels in the body, numerous clinical
studies have found that adding NO to a
patient's inhaled gas allowed a reduction in
the oxygen concentration being delivered to
the patient, and thus a concomitant reduction
in possible toxicity to the lungs.
So how has NO affected mortality and length of
intensive care unit or hospital stays? Since
NO is a relatively new medical adjunct, there
have been only a limited number of studies
that have tracked and reported patient
outcomes. Most research has focused on the
physiological effects and patient response to
inhaled NO.
In the largest study to date, 177 patients
diagnosed with ARDS, from various test sites
throughout the country, were randomized to
receive NO or a control gas (placebo). Results
of this study were: 1) an initial increase in
oxygenation allowed a reduction in O2
concentration, 2) there were no differences
among the groups receiving NO and the placebo
with respect to mortality rate, the number of
days alive and off mechanical ventilation, or
the number of days alive after meeting a
criteria for removal of mechanical
ventilation, 3) however, the percentage of
patient's alive and off mechanical ventilation
by day 28 that were receiving 5 ppm of inhaled
NO, was higher (62% vs. 44%) than the placebo
group. Even though most other studies were
conducted using much smaller patient
populations, almost all had the similar
findings of improved gas exchange, but no
effect on mortality.
The difficulty in analyzing the success or
failure of patient outcomes (mortality and
length of stay) for patients with ARDS is that
the reversal of lung failure may be obscured
by the development of other organ system
malfunctions that often may occur with ARDS.
Studies continue to address the use of NO to
improve the overall prognosis for ARDS
patients. Actual studies that are underway
include methods of predicting which patients
will respond positively to inhaled NO, the
optimal dose concentrations, patient
positioning during NO delivery, and
examination of potential long term toxicity.
Research has been proposed that would make
comparisons of NO delivery devices on patient
outcomes, and standardization of ventilator
management during NO administration.
By Dean Miller, BSRC, RRT
Education Coordinator
Respiratory Care Services
St. Luke's Medical Center
Milwaukee, WI
Under such straitened circumstances, I witnessed the foreign-body extruding effect of potentised Silica in healed injuries
still harbouring the retained debris. The extruded objects [ tiny glass pieces and wooden splinters] were palpable over the
skin. My patients from the jungle fringes in Kahang, Johore shared with me their folklore steeped in traditional medicine.It could be that the memories of the sounds and voices [ Nature's silence ] of the
rainforests where I spent most of my childhood, that had lured me to trudge the lonely Way searching for holistic
truths.
What mainstream medicine considered as healed
on the radiological evidence of calcification of the TB tubercles in the lung fields, seen as opacities is but an evasive
and protective mechanism evolved by the Tubercular Bacilli to escape chemical destruction and immune surveillence. This protective
phenomenon is observed in the Nano-Bacteria which produce a similar cellular calcium coating or a biofilm which prevents
the microbes from destruction by the immune cells or antibiotics. Nano-bacteria are immune to anti-microbials. The criterion
of recovery from TB is bacteriological and not radiological. I rely more on the bacteriological staining from sampling of
the saliva or a gastric aspiration. It has been observed that Cell Salts can cause morphological alterations in microbial
colonies. Potentised quartz [ silica ] causes a flaring up of old calcified TB lesions in the lungs, in the process of extrusion.
This phenomenon has been observed by astute holistic researchers. In Biological Transmutation, Prof Kervran [ University of Paris ] showed that the assimilated calcium is not utilised by the body as
such but is converted to magnesium which is stored in the body.This calcium-transmutated Magnesium is reverted back to calcium
to meet the body's demands as needed. In his classical experiment, Prof Kervran demonstrated
the Biological Transmutation of Quartz [silica] to Calcium present in the egg-shell with different chicken-feeds.The transmutated
calcium is the biological calcium which has its specific vibratory signature. The dynamised silica unmasks the non-biological
calcium coating of microbes by causing vibratory disresonance extracellularly and intracellularly,thus exposing the pathological
microbes to the immune system of the body.. A flaring-up of the so-called healed calcified TB lesion is instituted by immune
cells as a homeostatic response to rid the body of foreign matter. This is part of the rationale of flaring-up and extrusion
of calcified TB lesions and other foreign bodies in the human body observed by earlier homeopaths and holistic researchers.. As a matter of fact, potentised silica has antibiotic properties. I have resorted
to homeopathized Silica which is one of the essential tissue salts of Schuessler, for management of chronically discharging
infected lesions with a dosage of 2 drops of Silica 200x on the tongue with a monthly review. These lesions heal with proper
dietary advice and nutrient supplements. I have compiled some of the scraped notes on rural practice in holistic medicine years ago on Nutritional Science. I have uploaded the pages to a website.. The pages
have an old fashion typeface but I hope the messages in these faded pages are legible in the webpages.
Very few would trudge the lonely path the way I did. I had suffered and
ran the gamut which many of my pioneering teachers of holistic medicine and allied sciences had experienced. The reawakening
was rejuvenating and the realization
of my cherished dream that eventually the medical establishment in Malaysia would resonate with Mother Nature is well worth all the illusory deprivations that had beset me and the shattering experience
of holistic reawakening.
What is Vibrational Medicine ?
Stefanatos ( 1997,228 ) tells us that the " electromagnetic fields (EMF)emanating from bacteria,viruses and
toxic substances affect cells of the body and weaken its constitution." So the vital force is identified quite explicitly
with electromagnetic fields and said to be the cause of disease. But somehow the life energies of the body are balanced by
bioenergetic therapies. " No antibiotic or drug, no matter how powerful, will save an animal or human if the vital force of
healing is suppressed or lacking ." ( Stefanatos 1997, 229 ) So health or sickness is determined by who wins the battle between
good and bad electromagnetic waves in the body.
Electronic and Magnetic medicine is going to be the future medicine. The average frequency of the human body
during the day is between 62 and 68 cycles each second.If it drops below this rate,the immune defence system will start to
shut down.
Cold symptoms appear at 58 cycles,
Flu at 57, Candida at 55, Glandular Fever at 52,
Cancer at 42 cycles each second.
Dr. Young and Bruce Tainio [ Cheny University. WA. USA]
Anthroposophic Medicine
A unique specialty is Anthroposophic Medicine. With
the founding of Homeopathy by Samuel Hahnemann in the early 19th century, and of Anthroposophic Medicine by Rudolf Steiner
in the early 20th century, Medicine has rediscovered some of its spiritual and holistic roots.
On one hand, Anthroposophic Medicine is thoroughly modern requiring its practitioners to be fully qualified
MDs or DOs (Osteopaths) with a solid grounding in mainstream medicine. On the other hand, Anthroposophic Medicine seeks to
change our modern view of the human being as a marvelous machine to a renewed holistic understanding of ourselves as fourfold
beings: spirit, soul, life forces and our physical body.
The Anthroposophic physician or therapist strives to develop his or her intuitive grasp of the spiritual dynamic
at work in every illness. The practitioner's training to access insight that can serve the patient's healing is not only a
scientific endeavor, but an artistic and moral endeavor as well.
Today, Medicine is at a crossroads. Although it has successfully contributed to the diagnosis and treatment
of disease for the last four decades, it has not been as successful in promoting healthy aging. The movement from disease-centered
care to patient-centered care is provoking new questions relative to health and vitality across the lifespan.
Sources: Philip Incao MD ; Larry Eckstein,
MD, and Lisa Bassow, MD.
