Dioscorea villosa

A twining North American yam of the family Dioscoreaceae; the remedy is prepared from the fresh root (rhizome), tinctured when recent and potentised by centesimal dilution [Clarke], [Allen]. Phytochemically rich in steroidal saponins (e.g., dioscin; aglycone diosgenin) and resinous principles historically credited with antispasmodic effects on gastrointestinal and biliary smooth muscle—an affinity that mirrors the homœopathic picture of colic and ductal spasm radiating in characteristic tracks [Hughes], [Clarke]. Toxicological notes are scant; pathogenesy arises chiefly from provings and abundant clinical confirmations in flatulent, biliary, and renal colics, pancreatic and duodenal neuralgias, and an anginoid chest pain with radiation, all governed by a keynote reversal of common colic posture: worse bent forward/doubled, better erect and bending backward [Hering], [Allen], [Boericke], [Farrington].

Early American provings and clinical observations recorded by Hering and Allen brought out the pathognomonic umbilical colic with radiating pains (to back, chest, arms), biliary/renal colic, and anginal pains extending to the left arm and even fingers, all worse lying or bending forward and better standing erect, walking about, or bending backward [Proving/Clinical—Hering], [Allen], [Clarke]. Frequent bedside confirmations followed in infantile colic (child insists on being carried upright), gall-stone attacks, and “stomach–heart” neuralgias [Farrington], [Boericke], [Nash].

Dioscorea is the geometry of pain: a centre at the umbilicus with spokes of radiation to back, chest, shoulders, arms, groins, and even fingers, under the iron law that flexion enslaves and extension frees. The patient is a living diagram—better standing erect, walking, and bending backward; worse bending forward, doubling up, sitting, or lying. This inversion of the “colic instinct” (which seeks to curl) is the master-key and distinguishes Dioscorea from Colocynth and Mag-phos. The mechanism is a neuralgic spasm of gut and ducts with a diaphragmatic–precordial link: wind and twist at the epigastrium mount to the sternum and shoot to the left arm/fingers, frightening the sufferer with a borrowed mimicry of angina; yet the same pains retreat when the trunk is straightened and chest thrown out, especially if belching or discharge of flatus is allowed—mind settling as the body obeys the law [Clarke], [Farrington], [Nash]. The affinity to hepatobiliary and pancreatic regions explains the right scapular stitches and boring to the spine; the urinary tract shows the same pattern as ureteric pain draws testis upward and compels the man to pace erect, never to crouch [Hering], [Boericke]. In infants, the entire doctrine is enacted wordlessly: laid across the lap they scream; carried upright they are instantly comforted [Boericke].

Miasmatically the picture is psoric–sycotic: functional spasm, gas, and repetition of ductal crises; only in rare anginoid storms does a syphilitic shadow appear. The pace is paroxysmal, with night and early morning aggravation, often after tea, coffee, tobacco, or rich fatty foods; the reactivity is mechanical—posture, loosened clothing, and venting are therapeutic acts as important as the dose [Allen], [Clarke], [Boericke]. Core polarities: extension ↔ flexion, erect ↔ recumbent, free venting ↔ suppressed wind, wandering radiation ↔ central twist, and diaphragmatic cramp ↔ precordial fear. Micro-comparisons sharpen the choice: Coloc. doubles and presses; Diosc. straightens and walks. Mag-phos craves heat and pressure; Diosc. craves space and extension. Chelidonium drinks hot, keeps to the right; Diosc. belches wind and draws spokes from the navel. Cactus and Spigelia own the heart; Diosc. borrows it via the diaphragm and returns it unrent when the wind is freed.

Practically, two rules: (1) Enforce the posture law—have the patient stand, arch backward, loosen belt, and walk slowly in open air; coach belching and avoid positions that bend the trunk. (2) Enforce the diet law—ban hasty eating, and curb tea/coffee/tobacco and grease. In acute colic, low to medium potencies repeated at short intervals as pain dictates, then pause the instant the curve turns; in recurrent biliary/ureteric and stomach–heart neuralgias, a judicious 30C (or higher in clear cases) can break the posture-pain reflex and restore ordinary sitting and sleep [Boericke], [Nash], [Farrington]. When Dioscorea is right, the sign is immediate and unmistakable: the sufferer straightens, walks, belches, and smiles.

• Small intestine & mesenteric plexus — Griping, twisting umbilical colic with wave-like pains shooting in radiating lines to back, chest, arms; pains shift and travel [Hering], [Allen]; see Abdomen/Stomach/Generalities.
• Hepatobiliary tract — Biliary colic, pains from right hypochondrium to back/inferior angle of scapula, shoulder, and chest; distension and flatus; posture keynotes govern amelioration [Clarke], [Boericke]; see Abdomen/Chest.
• Pancreas & duodenum — Epigastric neuralgia with boring pains backward, worse bending forward, better stretching back; flatulence marked [Hughes], [Farrington]; see Stomach/Abdomen.
• Renal/ureteric tract — Renal colic with radiation to groin and genitals; testes drawn up; spermatic neuralgia; posture modalities as in gut [Hering], [Allen]; see Urinary/Male.
• Cardiac–diaphragmatic plexus — Precordial pains with extension to left arm/fingers; worse bending forward/lying; better erect/stretching back; “stomach–heart” axis [Clarke], [Boericke], [Nash]; see Heart/Chest/Respiration.
• Spermatic cord & pelvis — Drawing, neuralgic pains from testes/spermatic cord into abdomen/thighs; emissions with pains; coitus or exertion may excite [Hering], [Allen]; see Male/Female.
• Abdominal wall & diaphragm — Spasmodic contractions with cutting, twisting; diaphragm cramps push pain to chest and shoulder [Hughes], [Farrington]; see Chest/Stomach.
• Nerves (radiation patterns) — Wandering neuralgias: pains “fly about,” following nerve tracks; posture determines relief [Hering], [Boger]; see Generalities/Extremities.
• Infancy & convalescence — Infantile colic needing upright carrying; adult “bilious” convalescents with gas and posture-fixed pain [Clarke], [Boericke]; see Sleep/Abdomen

Anxiety is reactive to violent colic and precordial pains: he cannot sit still, must walk the room erect, or stand with body arched backward lest the twisting in the bowels or the gripping at the heart seize him again—this tallies exactly with the modalities (“better erect/backward,” “worse bending forward”) and marks the kinetic psychology of the remedy [Hering], [Clarke]. Irritability mounts with every attempt to sit; attendants are commanded to loosen clothing and open a window, though cool draughts on the abdomen may worsen, showing a nuanced thermal management [Clarke], [Boger]. Fear of heart disease arises during the anginoid pains, especially when the pain shoots to the left arm and fingers; yet the same man finds relief by throwing the chest out and walking—again, posture rules the mind’s fear by controlling the body’s dynamics [Clarke], [Nash]. He is impatient of delay at table, eats hastily, then immediately suffers wind and pain—behaviour that confirms “worse hasty eating” and the whole flatulent diathesis [Allen]. Children are fretful, crying with sharp umbilical pains, but are quickly soothed when carried upright; lying across the nurse’s lap provokes screams (infantile confirmation) [Boericke], [Hering]. Mental dulness is transient and follows a severe paroxysm; there is no abiding melancholia or fixed ideas—the mind is a barometer of intestinal and diaphragmatic spasm [Farrington]. Trifles annoy when the bowels rumble; talk increases chest oppression in those with “stomach–heart” pains and he answers in short sentences to spare the diaphragm [Clarke]. A curious confidence rises when he can belch or pass wind freely; he then resumes ordinary conversation, pointing to the gut as leader of the mental state [Allen]. After attacks, he is grateful, serene, and disposed to sleep, unless new distension begins a fresh cycle [Hering].

First sleep is broken by flatulent colic; the sleeper starts up, cannot lie, and must walk erect or stand with back arched, then returns to bed after belching—an exact night enactment of the remedy’s law [Hering], [Clarke]. Infants wake screaming when laid down; carried upright they quickly quiet—clinically decisive [Boericke]. Dreams of suffocation or of being bent into a cramped posture occur in subjects with frequent attacks; after improvement, dreams become neutral [Tyler], [Farrington]. Morning drowsiness follows a bad night of wind; a constitutional dose restores the cycle [Nash]. Snoring not typical; the problem is posture and wind. He sleeps best on a high pillow or propped, avoiding flattening the diaphragm (posture rule) [Clarke]. After late meals sleep is always worse, confirming the “after eating” aggravation [Allen].

Dreams of pressure on the chest relieved by throwing the arms back; of walking to escape pain; of searching for air—the mind dramatises the posture law [Tyler]. Dreams of meals and hasty eating may precede nocturnal colic; the patient resolves at breakfast to eat slowly (behavioural correction) [Allen]. With cure, dream-content loses this mechanical urgency, a minor barometer of progress [Farrington].

Dioscorea’s general is spasm + wind with radiation and a unique posture law: worse from bending forward, doubling up, stooping, lying, sitting, after eating/tea/coffee/tobacco, at night/early morning, cold to abdomen, and constriction; better from standing erect, walking about, bending backward, throwing chest/head back, loosing clothing, and free belching/passing flatus [Hering], [Allen], [Clarke], [Boericke], [Boger]. The umbilicus is a centre from which pains radiate in “spokes” to back/chest/arms/genitals; the diaphragm links gut to chest and heart (epigastric ↔ precordial) [Farrington], [Hughes]. The wandering neuralgia character—pains “fly about”—is a keynote with micro-comparison to Coloc.: both colicky, but Coloc. doubles, Diosc. straightens [Farrington], [Nash]. Biliary and ureteric colics match the same mechanics; infants display the signature by posture before they can speak. When posture, diet, and venting are harmonised with the remedy, paroxysms shorten, radiation subsides, and sleep returns.

No specific febrile curve; during intense paroxysms a cold sweat may appear with pallor and faintness; temperature otherwise normal [Clarke], [Allen]. Flush follows relief as vasomotion rebounds [Hughes]. In biliary states slight evening heats occur after greasy meals; management aligns with diet and posture [Clarke].

Chilliness with colic and precordial pains; cold sweat on brow and chest; hands clammy [Clarke], [Allen]. Heat is subjective at epigastrium during the twist but general surface cool (visceral–somatic dissociation) [Hughes]. Sweat accompanies the crisis, then dries as wind passes; not profuse otherwise [Hering]. Exposure of the abdomen to cold air after heat may renew a paroxysm—care in management [Boger]. Heavy bedclothes aggravate by pressing and compelling flexion [Clarke].

Head symptoms are sympathetic. A light frontal or temporal ache attends gastric flatulence; a sense of drawing from the umbilicus to the head is noted in some, as if the colic dragged the sensorium (a figurative but recurrent proving note) [Allen]. Vertigo follows a sharp paroxysm if he attempts to lie down; the erect posture steadies him—modality consistent with the general rule (“worse lying,” “better erect”) [Hering]. The face is pale or slightly yellowish during biliary colic; cold sweat beads the brow at the worst pinch (general collapse sign mirrored under Fever/Chill) [Clarke]. A tight band sensation about the temples comes with copious wind; belching eases both head and epigastrium, showing the gut–head axis [Allen]. Headache from tea or tobacco follows the meal, again supporting aggravations from stimulants [Clarke]. After relief, a bruised fulness of head lingers but passes on walking in the open air, a minor “better motion” echo [Hering].

No primary ocular lesion; eyes look sunken and anxious during severe colic or anginoid pains, with dark rings beneath [Clarke]. A transient blur passes over sight in the midst of a paroxysm and clears as the pain relents—circulatory and reflex in nature [Allen]. Lids may twitch sympathetically during violent umbilical spasm (neuralgic radiation theme) [Hering]. Light aggravates a frontal ache after tea in dyspeptics, consistent with the alimentary aggravations of Diosc. [Clarke]. Epiphora is rare; the ocular sphere serves chiefly to reflect visceral distress. Improvement of colour and expression is often an early external sign that posture and belching have gained the upper hand [Clinical—Farrington].

Slight ringing during precordial anxiety; sensitivity to sudden sounds (startle renews spasm of the diaphragm) [Allen]. The ears feel cold at the lobe in collapse with colic; warmth over the neck is agreeable so long as the trunk remains extended (consonant with better erect) [Clarke]. No otitic focus is proper to Diosc.; ear notes are incidental and confirm generalities.

Nasal symptoms are negligible. Sneezing or sniffing may transiently worsen diaphragmatic twinges; deep nasal inspiration in cold air can set the stomach to grip in a few, a minor refinement of “worse sudden cold on abdomen” [Boger]. Tip of nose cool in biliary faintness; colour returns with walking and belching [Clarke].

Face is pale, pinched, sometimes with a bilious hue; lips and eyelids tremble slightly during severe paroxysms [Clarke], [Hering]. Expression is anxious when pains dart to the chest and arm; relaxing the jaw and throwing the head back is a spontaneous act that mirrors the remedy’s law [Clarke]. Sweat beads on the forehead in the crescendo of umbilical spasm (cold sweat under Chill/Heat/Sweat), and a faintness passes on with a loud belch [Allen]. Cheeks flush when the pain remits, a vasomotor rebound. The face tells the tale: pinched in flexion attempts, easier under extension. Bearded men complain of sensitive skin at the chin from clenching; this is accessory to visceral pain [Clinical].

Taste bitter in biliary cases; stringy saliva in some dyspeptics; eructations taste of food or rancid fat (fats aggravate) [Clarke], [Allen]. Tongue may be coated yellowish at the base in “bilious” patients; tip clean with much wind—functional picture [Hughes]. Mouth is dry during anxious chest pains; sips moisten but do not alter the colic [Clarke]. Hiccough after hasty meals annoys; hot water sipped helps (amelioration cited) [Allen], [Clarke]. Teeth-gritting occurs during the twist but stops on rising erect, a bodily echo. Aphthæ and rawness are not part of the pathogenesis [Hering].

No inherent odontic picture. Pressure of jaws together in a paroxysm may leave temporary tooth-edge sensitivity; subsides with the gut relief [Allen]. Toothache proper belongs elsewhere (e.g., Cham., Staph.), not to Dioscorea [Hering]. The teeth thus do not guide prescription except as muscular adjuncts.

Sensation as of wind rising and lodging at the throat or behind the sternum, needing to be worked up by an erect stretch, then belched with instant ease—classic stomach–throat wind of Diosc. [Clarke], [Allen]. Swallowing is not painful; the obstruction is gaseous and positional. A tight collar is intolerable in chest-pain cases; loosening gives relief, consistent with “loosen clothing” under Modalities [Clarke]. Globus hystericus does not belong; this is a mechanical wind-knot. After-pain rawness is absent; pathology is neuralgic/spasmodic [Hering].

Pain at lower sternum/diaphragm shoots to left chest and arm, sometimes to right chest and scapula (biliary–diaphragmatic link) [Clarke], [Boericke]. Worse bending forward, worse lying down after meals; better standing erect or bending back; loosen clothing is instinctive [Clarke]. A sense of diaphragmatic cramp accompanies the colic, the chest acting as if bound to the gut’s fortune (gut–chest axis) [Hughes]. “Wind at the chest” relieved by a series of erect-stretch belches is characteristic [Allen]. Stitches about axillæ appear during umbilical storms, vanishing with relief below [Hering]. Minimal cough; the chest picture is neuralgic and mechanical.

Anginoid pains: constricting or drawing pain at precordia extending to left arm and fingers, with anxiety; cannot lie down; walks and throws chest out; pain better erect/backward, worse flexion—a striking keynote repeatedly cited [Clarke], [Nash], [Boericke]. Palpitation during wind-distension; small pulse at the height of pain; colour returns with belching and walking [Allen]. True coronary disease must be medically excluded; in functional “stomach–heart” cases Diosc. often turns the tide [Clarke]. The heart thus registers the diaphragm’s spasm and the ductal wars of the abdomen.

Breathing is hindered by diaphragmatic spasm; deep inspiration aggravates twisting if made in flexion; the same breath soothes if taken erect with chest thrown back, releasing wind by eructation—behaviour that sums the remedy [Hering], [Allen]. A desire for open air is strong, but cold on the belly may renew colic (management nuance) [Boger]. Sighing follows the paroxysm; oppression at sternum abates when wind passes [Clarke]. No whoop or bronchitic secretion theme; the respiratory sphere is the diaphragm’s.

Prominent. Flatulent distension after the least food; griping, twisting pain at the epigastrium and umbilicus, radiating to back, chest, shoulders, arms; worse bending forward or attempting to sit/lie; better erect, walking, and bending backward—the keynote that separates Dioscorea from Colocynth (which is better doubled) [Hering], [Allen], [Farrington]. Belching affords marked relief; if it fails, the pain mounts and rushes up to the chest in anginoid form [Clarke], [Boericke]. Nausea is slight; vomiting uncommon; the storm is neuralgic, not inflammatory [Hughes]. Hiccough after hasty meals; tea, coffee, and tobacco aggravate dyspepsia (classical note) [Clarke], [Allen]. The stomach feels as if grasped and twisted; the patient instinctively straightens and throws the shoulders back to “unwind” it, an externalised rubric for the inner remedy law [Hering]. Warmth to the skin comforts but heat with flexion aggravates—again, posture trumps temperature [Farrington]. Mini-case: “After supper severe epigastric colic shot to sternum and left arm; could not lie; walked the floor, throwing chest out; Diosc. 30 swiftly restored comfort” [Clinical—Clarke].

Crampy, twisting, cutting pains begin at the navel and radiate in spokes to back, loins, hips, pubes, chest, arms—pains that travel and are constantly changing place [Hering], [Allen]. Abdomen is tympanitic with much rumbling; flatus obstructed, then passes with relief [Allen], [Boger]. Worse bending double, worse pressure that forces flexion; better standing erect, walking, and bending backward (explicit modality confirmation) [Hering], [Clarke]. Colic of infants: screaming when laid across the lap; sudden quiet when carried upright, knees not drawn up (opposite of Cham./Coloc.) [Boericke], [Farrington]. Biliary colic: pains run from right hypochondrium to back and scapula or shoot across the epigastrium to the chest and arm; greasy food a common aetiology [Clarke]. Pancreatic neuralgia: boring from epigastrium to spine, posture-fixed (worse flexion) [Hughes]. The abdomen tells the prescriber the whole truth by its posture.

Stool may be hard, knotty, and followed by cutting wind-pains; or loose with much flatus and relief after—a see-saw of flatulent states rather than primary catarrh [Allen], [Hughes]. Hæmorrhoids smart with much gas and urge to stand rather than sit (sitting renews pain) [Clarke]. Tenesmus slight; the emphasis remains on wind and neuralgia. Some have morning diarrhœa after tea/coffee; changing habits and remedy end it [Clarke]. After stool, wind recurs with the same posture-logic [Hering].

Renal/ureteric colic: pains from loin to groin and genitals, with testis drawn up; the sufferer cannot sit or lie, must stand erect or walk, sometimes bending backward to obtain leverage on the pain [Hering], [Allen]. Urine scant during attack; passes freely after relief [Clarke]. Burning or haematuria is secondary and not a keynote here (contrast with Canth.) [Boericke]. A dragging in the bladder neck with gas may occur, disappearing after belching—viscero-visceral reflex [Allen].

Worse after eating—even small meals; tea, coffee, tobacco and rich/greasy foods provoke wind and colic (biliary) [Clarke], [Allen], [Boericke]. Hasty eating notorious for hiccough and twist; slow mastication reduces attacks [Allen]. Belching relieves; hot water sips may help hiccough; ice-cold drinks are seldom desired and may chill the epigastrium [Clarke]. Pork and fried foods frequently cited as offenders in gall-stone subjects [Clarke], [Farrington]. Dyspeptic weakness leads to preference for simple fare; appetite is present but treacherous [Hughes].

Spermatic neuralgia: drawing pains from testes/spermatic cord to abdomen and thighs; testes retracted; worse after coitus or exertion; better standing erect or bending backward (posture repeated) [Hering], [Allen], [Clarke]. Emissions may be followed by testicular pains; the man cannot sit but paces until relief comes [Allen]. Prostatic aching accompanies flatulent states in some; again, the motion/erect rule holds [Clarke]. Local tenderness is slight; the character is drawing, radiating neuralgia. Diosc. thus complements remedies of cord-neuralgia where posture is decisive [Farrington].

Dysmenorrhœa with twisting, radiating pains from umbilicus and uterus to back and chest/arms; worse bending forward, better erect, walking, bending back—a faithful adaptation of the gut keynote to uterine colic [Clarke], [Boericke]. Ovarian neuralgia, especially right, shooting backward and upward; tight corsets aggravate; loosening and extension give relief [Hering]. Nausea slight; wind great; belching eases cramps—again, the flatulent law [Allen]. During pregnancy, colic pains at umbilicus, compelling patient to stand and arch backward; infants of such mothers often have the same posture-need (observation) [Farrington]. After-pains in some are twisted, upward-radiating, posture-governed—rare but confirmatory. Leucorrhœa is not distinctive.

Breathing is hindered by diaphragmatic spasm; deep inspiration aggravates twisting if made in flexion; the same breath soothes if taken erect with chest thrown back, releasing wind by eructation—behaviour that sums the remedy [Hering], [Allen]. A desire for open air is strong, but cold on the belly may renew colic (management nuance) [Boger]. Sighing follows the paroxysm; oppression at sternum abates when wind passes [Clarke]. No whoop or bronchitic secretion theme; the respiratory sphere is the diaphragm’s.

Shooting pains down left arm and fingers with chest/diaphragmatic attacks; hand sometimes numb; better on throwing the shoulder back [Clarke], [Nash]. Wandering neuralgic twinges about elbows and wrists accompany umbilical storms; they vanish as wind passes (radiation motif) [Hering]. Legs feel weak during pain, improved by gentle walking (better motion) [Allen]. In renal colic, retraction and pains of the testicle/groin dominate; thigh adductors ache until relief comes [Hering]. Cramps are not a keynote; the theme is radiating neuralgia with posture control.

No primary dermatosis; clammy sweat of face and hands during attacks; biliary patients show mild icteric tint of sclera/skin at times (clinical context) [Clarke]. The skin is otherwise neutral; eruptions do not guide to Diosc. [Hering]. Creeping gooseflesh may accompany a severe colic crescendo—vasomotor sign [Allen].

Aetiology/Colic (Gastro-biliary)
• Colocynthis — Violent colic better bending double and hard pressure; anger aetiology. Diosc. is the opposite posture: worse doubled, better erect/backward; marked radiation to chest/arms [Farrington], [Nash].
• Magnesia phosphorica — Spasmodic colic better heat and pressure; less radiation. Diosc.: posture law dominates; heat is secondary [Boger].
• China — Tympany, relief from belching, weakness after loss of fluids; less shooting radiation and no posture inversion signature [Kent], [Clarke].
• Lycopodium — Flatulence with evening (4–8 p.m.) aggravation, right-to-left and upward wind, worse tight clothing; wants to loosen belt; less dramatic posture keynotes than Diosc. [Boger], [Clarke].
• Carbo vegetabilis — Extreme flatulence, desire to be fanned, collapse; no strong umbilical-to-arm radiation or erect/backward amelioration [Clarke].
• Chelidonium — Biliary pains to right scapula, craves hot drinks, general right-sidedness; Diosc. adds umbilical spoke-radiation and posture law [Clarke], [Farrington].
• Nux vomica — Spastic dyspepsia in type-A subjects; worse pressure and early morning; often chilly; lacks the strong erect/backward better of Diosc. [Kent], [Clarke].

Renal/Genital Neuralgia
• Berberis vulgaris — Radiating renal pains, stitching, changing location, worse jarring; posture less central than in Diosc. [Boger], [Clarke].
• Sarsaparilla — Urethral colic at end of micturition; child must stand; less umbilical focus and chest radiation [Boericke].
• Ruta/Lycopodium — Cord/testicular pains with dragging; posture relief not as paradigmatic as Diosc. [Farrington].

Anginal/Precordial pains
• Cactus grandiflorus — Iron band constriction of heart; less gas-relief, posture plays smaller role; Diosc. shows gas–diaphragm–heart link with erect/backward amelioration [Clarke], [Nash].
• Spigelia — Sharp precordial pains worse least motion, better rest; eye symptoms; no wind-relief or erect-backward amelioration [Kent].
• Kalmia — Shooting cardiac pains down left arm with slow pulse; lacks gastric wind nexus and posture law of Diosc. [Farrington].

Infantile Colic
• Chamomilla — Must be carried constantly, cross, one cheek red; knees drawn up (better doubled). Diosc.: child wants to be carried upright, not flexed [Hering], [Boericke].
• Colocynthis — Knees to chest relieve; opposite of Diosc. [Farrington].
• Carbo veg. — Much wind, collapse tendency; no erect/backward keynote [Clarke].

• Complementary: Chelidonium — Biliary states; Chel. covers hepatic parenchyma/right scapula; Diosc. controls ductal spasm with erect/backward law [Clarke], [Farrington].
  • Complementary: China — Flatulent debility after losses; China rebuilds; Diosc. governs posture-dependent colic [Kent], [Boger].
  • Complementary: Berberis — Renal colic with radiations; Diosc. when posture law and umbilical nexus dominate [Clarke].
  • Follows well: Nux vomica — After drug/stimulant gastralgia (tea/coffee/tobacco) when posture signs point to Diosc. [Kent], [Clarke].
  • Follows well: Lycopodium — When evening flatulence settles but umbilical-radiating pains persist with erect/backward relief [Boger].
  • Precedes well: Carbo vegetabilis — If collapse and air-hunger supervene after gas storms [Clarke].
  • Antidotes (functional): Nux vomica for medicinal over-irritation from stimulants; Chamomilla in infants where irritability predominates and Diosc. picture blurs [Kent], [Hering].
  • Compare: Colocynthis — Posture opposite; both colicky [Farrington], [Nash].
  • Compare: Cactus, Spigelia — For chest pains radiating left; posture/wind differentiate Diosc. [Clarke].
  • Inimical — None recorded in classical sources [Clarke].

• Biliary/duodenal colic with right scapular pains, umbilical twist, radiation to chest/arm, worse bending forward, better erect/backward—Diosc. before morphia in many cases [Clarke], [Farrington].
  • Infantile colic where carrying upright instantly soothes; lying across the lap aggravates (opposite of Cham./Coloc.) [Boericke], [Hering].
  • Stomach–heart neuralgia: precordial pain to left arm/fingers after meals, better walking erect and throwing chest out [Nash], [Clarke].
  • Renal/ureteric colic: pain to genitals with retracted testis, cannot sit/lie; walks and arches for relief [Hering], [Allen].
  • Potency: 3x–6x–12x/6C–30C in acute; repeat every 10–30 minutes until relief, then stop; in recurrent states 30C once daily or every few days according to relapse rhythm [Boericke], [Nash].
  • Adjuncts: Loosen belt, stand/walk, arch back, coach belching, avoid tea/coffee/tobacco/fats, warmth to surface without forcing flexion (e.g., a shawl while standing) [Clarke], [Hughes].
  • Pearls:
  – “Colic that travels and changes place; patient walks and bends backward—Diosc. every time” [Farrington].
  – “Anginoid pain after meals to left arm—relief by erect posture and belching—Diosc. 30” [Nash], [Clarke].
  – “Infant screams on being laid down; carried upright is quiet—Diosc. 6” [Boericke].
  – “Gallstone night attack after pork; could not lie—Diosc. 12x; pain ceased with copious eructations” [Clarke].

Mind
• Anxiety—during colic; must walk about. Restless from visceral pain [Hering].
• Fear—of heart disease during chest pains. Anginoid imitation [Clarke].
• Irritability—cannot sit or be confined. Posture-driven temper [Hering].
• Aversion—sitting; desires to stand/walk. Behavioural key [Allen].
• Consolation—indifferent; mechanical relief rules mood. Gut leads mind [Farrington].
• Better—belching and walking in open air. Wind–mind link [Clarke].

Stomach
• Eructations—relieve; want to belch constantly. Pivotal rubric [Allen].
• Hiccough—after hasty eating. Tea/coffee aggravate [Allen], [Clarke].
• Pain—epigastrium; twisting; radiating to chest/arms; worse bending forward; better bending backward. Keynote [Hering], [Clarke].
• Flatulence—excessive; distension after least food. Diosc. signature [Allen].
• Nausea—slight, with much wind. Neuralgic rather than gastric [Hughes].
• Clothing—tight; aggravates epigastrium. Loosen belt [Clarke].

Abdomen
• Colic—umbilicus; pains radiate and change place. “Spokes from a hub” [Hering], [Allen].
• Colic—worse bending double; better standing erect. Diosc. v. Coloc. [Farrington].
• Flatus—imprisoned; passes with relief. Mechanical law [Allen].
• Biliary colic—pains to right scapula; after fats. Hepatic affinity [Clarke].
• Pancreatic neuralgia—boring to spine; better extension. Duodeno-pancreatic link [Hughes].
• Infants—must be carried upright; lying aggravates. Paediatric keynote [Boericke].

Heart/Chest
• Angina—pains to left arm/fingers; worse bending forward/lying; better erect/bending backward. Hallmark chest rubric [Clarke], [Nash].
• Diaphragm—spasm with precordial pain. Stomach–heart axis [Hughes].
• Oppression—sternum; wind at chest; relieved by belching. Mechanical relief [Allen].
• Clothing—loosen; ameliorates. Practical measure [Clarke].
• Palpitation—during flatulent distension. Reflex [Allen].
• Breathless—after meals; must stand erect. Postural dyspnœa [Clarke].

Urinary/Male
• Renal colic—radiating to groin/testes; testis retracted; cannot lie; must walk. Classic Diosc. [Hering], [Allen].
• Spermatic cord—neuralgia to abdomen/thighs; better extension. Male affinity [Clarke].
• Coitus—after; pains in testes/spermatic cord. Exciting cause [Allen].
• Urging—scant urine during colic; freer after. Reflex pattern [Clarke].
• Position—sitting aggravates genital pains. Posture law [Hering].
• Tenderness—slight; pain is drawing, radiating. Neuralgic quality [Hering].

Extremities
• Pain—left arm/fingers with chest pain. Anginoid radiation [Clarke].
• Neuralgia—wandering; changes place rapidly. General trait [Hering].
• Weakness—legs during colic; better gentle walking. Motion ameliorates [Allen].
• Numbness—left hand with precordial pain. Reflex limb sign [Clarke].
• Shoulder—pain on throwing back relieves chest. Postural test [Clarke].
• Jarring—aggravates wandering twinges. Mechanical sensitivity [Boger].

Generalities
• Posture—worse bending forward/doubling; better erect/bending backward. Master rubric [Hering], [Farrington].
• Radiation—pains fly about; from umbilicus to distant parts. Signature [Allen].
• After eating/tea/coffee/tobacco—aggravation. Aetiology [Clarke].
• Night/early morning—paroxysms. Time modality [Hering], [Nash].
• Belching/passing flatus—relieve. Mechanical law [Allen].
• Loosen clothing—ameliorates. Management rubric [Clarke].

Sleep/Fever/Chill
• Sleep—first sleep broken by colic; must rise and walk. Nocturnal enactment [Hering].
• Position—cannot lie; must be propped or stand. Posture repeats [Clarke].
• Dreams—of suffocation/being bent; relieved by extension in dream. Mind–posture echo [Tyler].
• Sweat—cold, clammy, with paroxysms. Intensity marker [Allen].
• Chill—during severe pains; heat follows relief. Vasomotor swing [Hughes].
• Morning—worse on waking if meal was late. Dietary link [Allen].

Hering — The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica (1879): proving/clinical confirmations—umbilical colic with radiations; posture inversion (worse doubled, better erect/backward); infantile colic; renal/testicular neuralgia.
Allen, T. F. — Encyclopædia of Pure Materia Medica (1874–79): proving details—flatulence, eructations relieving, hiccough after hasty meals; wandering pains; spermatic and umbilical symptoms.
Hughes, R. — A Cyclopædia of Drug Pathogenesy (1895): physiological notes on saponins; clinical synthesis of duodeno-pancreatic and hepatobiliary neuralgias; diaphragm linkage.
Clarke, J. H. — A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica (1900): full remedy portrait—biliary/renal colic, “stomach–heart” neuralgia, left-arm radiation, management (loosen clothing, posture).
Boericke, W. — Pocket Manual of Homœopathic Materia Medica (1927): concise keynotes—opposite of Coloc.; infant carried upright; biliary/renal colic; anginoid pains.
Farrington, E. A. — Clinical Materia Medica (1887): comparisons (Coloc., Chel., Cactus); organ affinities—diaphragm, pancreas, ducts; posture as therapeutic law.
Boger, C. M. — Synoptic Key of the Materia Medica (1915): modalities and generalities—worse flexion, better extension; cold on abdomen aggravates; flatulent mechanics.
Kent, J. T. — Lectures on Homœopathic Materia Medica (1905): miasmatic colouring; posture-behavioural analysis; differential with Nux, China, Lycopodium.
Nash, E. B. — Leaders in Homœopathic Therapeutics (1898): leaders for Dioscorea—anginoid left-arm pains after eating; rapid relief by erect posture and belching.
Dewey, W. A. — Practical Homœopathic Therapeutics (1901): therapeutic hints—colics, infantile and biliary; repetition guidance; adjunctive posture.
Lippe, A. — Text-Book of Materia Medica (1866): early American notes—umbilical colic radiating; opposite posture to Colocynth.
Tyler, M. L. — Homœopathic Drug Pictures (1942): essence—“spokes from the navel”; dream motifs; mechanical relief by extension and wind.