Treatment

Local - The use of oven dried rye meal, or powdered starch may afford much comfort to the sufferer. The starch, for such purpose should be carefully prepared by washing it in cold water in order to remove all foreign matters; it should then be allowed to settle, the supernatant water poured off, and the starch then slowly dried. During the drying process it should, from time to time, be broken up so as to expose fresh surfaces, thereby hasten­ing the process. The starch is thus readily converted into an almost impalpable powder, which, when applied to the inflamed surface, promptly relieves the itching and burn­ing. Applications containing fatty substances are usually harmful in their effects.

The following makes an excellent application in some cases: The site of the disease is to be painted with this mixture every two hours, and then covered with antiseptic gauze.

Dr. Hilsman recommends the application of strong heat to the parts affected. This procedure is evidently homoeopathic. Erysipelas is a dermatitis of a specific character, and the application of a high degree of heat produces, itself, a dermatitis. Whether the high heat kills the microbe of erysipelas or not does not aifect the homoeopathicity of the treatment. The parts attacked by erysipelas are covered with heavy felt and then a red-hot smoothing iron applied forward and backward over the felt which heats the affected parts and removes the erysipelas] Some cases are intolerant of heat.

The external application of raw cotton to the inflamed parts, to keep off the air, as in burns, is recommended by several physicians.

I have found the application of Ver. Vir, one teaspoon full of tincture to half a glass of warm water, to be very soothing.

In domestic practice a poultice of raw cranberries, or scraped potatoes, or raw carrots, is often used with decided benefit.

The indications for remedies are as follows:
Aconite.- Intense synochal fever, with restlessness, fear of death, etc.
Ammon. carb.- Erysipelas of old people, when cerebral symptoms are developed, while the eruption is still out; debility and soreness of the whole body; tendency to gangrenous destruction.
Anthracin.- Erysipelas gangrenosa with typhoid symptoms; great pain in head and dizziness; delirium and un­consciousness; great prostration and depression; fainting and copious sweating; sleep short, unrefreshing, more like stupor.
Apis.- Erysipelas, with bruised sore pain and much sweUing; stinging, burning, prickling pains in the skin, which is very sensitive to the slightest touch; erysipelas of the face and scalp, with puffiness of the eyelids; typhoid tendency; sphacelated spots here and there; the whole eruption rather pale than deep red; chronic erysipelas, recurring periodically; apt to go from right to left.
Arctium lappa.- Chronic erysipelas is said to be removed permanently by its persistent use. (Gymnocladus Ptelea).
Arnica.- Phlegmonous erysipelas, with extreme tenderness and painfulness on pressure, with tendency to the formation of bullae; the swelling hot, hard, shining, even deep red; the patient feels nervous, cannot stand pain, and feels tired as after hard work, or as if beaten.
Arsenic.- Irregular progress; disposition to internal organs; terrible restlessness and sinking of strength; fainting pain in the bowels and hermorrhage, as sometimes occurs in large burns.
Belladonna.- Intense erysipelatous fever, accompanied by inflamed swellings, passing even into gangrene; skin imparts a burning sensation to the examining hand; phlegmonous erysipelas; tendency to attack the brain; with deli­rium; severe headache, furious look, violent thirst, dry tongue, parched lips, etc.; smooth and shining erysipelas on the right side of the face; tendency of inflammation to spread in streaks.


Borax.- Erysipelas of the left side of the face, painful when laughing, with sensation as if covered by cobwebs.
Bryonia.- Erysipelas articularum, with drawing-tearing pains, increased by motion.
Camphora.- Great exhaustion; coldness of skin; breathing scarcely audible or, visible.
Caniharides.- Typihoid erysipelas; vesicular erysipelas, with fine stinging-burning pains internally and externally, the patient being uneasy, restless, distressed, dissatisfied; unquenchable thirst, with disgust for all sorts of drinks; kidneys and bladder involved; erysipelas begins on dorsum of nose and spreads to both cheeks, but more to the right.
Comocladia.- Burning on face and eyes, worse towards evening; excessive swelling of the face, with tormenting itching and swelling; corrosive itching of the head; dizziness and heaviness of the head, with shooting pains, re­lieved by motion.
Croton tigl.- Oedematous swelling of eyelids; large and small blisters; intermediate skin cracked and peeling off; violent burning.
Cuprum.- Sudden sinking of the swelling and changing into a bluish color; violent brain symptoms.
Euphorbium.- Erysipelas of head and face, with digging, boring, and gnawing pains, followed, when amelio­rated, by creeping and itching of the part. Considerable swelling of the parts affected, with small vesicles discharg­ing a rather yellowish fluid.
Eucalyptus glob.- General erysipelas, with putrid dysenteric passages; typhoid symptoms. A desire to be constantly moving about.
Ferrum phos.- Rose and erysipelatous inflammations of the skin, for the fever and pain and severe symptoms of inflammation.
Graphites.- Chronic disposition of the disease to return, from right to left; phlegmonous erysipelas of head and face, with burning-tingling pains; swelling and induration of lymphatics and glands; very liable to take cold from the least cold air.
Hydrastis.- Wandering from left side of nose to right over whole face and scalp; intense pain in the lumbar region; chills down the back; extremely restless; disturbed by noise; delirium; urine suppressed.
Hydrophyllum virg.- Burning and watering of eyes, with slight itching. Eyelids swollen, sclerotica injected, fiery redness, sensitive to light. In the morning eyelids agglutinated.
Ipecac.- Retrocession of eruption, with  vomiting.
Kali carb.- From right to left side; oedematous swelling under the eyebrows. When touched ever so slightly on his feet, he jerks them up much frightened; he talks of pigeons flying in the room, which he tries to catch with his hands; he gets regularly worse about 3 o'clock a.m. After previous attacks.
Kali mur.- Schiissler says this is the chief remedy in vesicular erysipelas.
Kali sulph.- Blistering variety, to facilitate the falling off of scabs.
Lachesis.- Where the" cerebral affection does not yield to Belladonna; bloated red face, attended with heat; headache and coldness of the extremities; one-sided tense head­ache, extending from occiput to eyes, with vomiting, vertigo, tendency to faint, and numbness; left side especially affected. (Bell., right).
Ledum.- Erysipelas of face and eyes from bites of in­sects.
Natrum phos.- Erysipelas, smooth, red, shiny, tingling or painful swelling of the skin.
Natrum sulph.- For the smooth form, with or without vomiting of bile.
Natrum benzoicum.- Dr. Haberkorn uses this drug in full physiological doses and given in seltzer water. He has treated fifty cases without a death, and reports that almost uniformly within forty-eight hours the temperature was reduced to normal, and the patient felt well. The local symptoms quickly subside, ending with desquamation. No local treatment was used.
Nux vomica.- Gastrosis the cause of the erysipelas; burning itching all over the skin, worse in the evening; great debility, with oversensitiveness of all the senses, and irri­tability of temper.
Pulsatilla.- Erysipelas erraticum; bluish, spreading rapidly, especially about buttocks and thighs; smooth skin, headache; mucous diarrhoea, nausea, neither appetite nor thirst.
Rhus rad.- Phlegmonous erysipelas, especially when it begins in the ankle and moves gradually up the leg in the deeper tissues; sometimes with very little fever.
Rhus tox.- Vesicular erysipelas; itching all over, especially on hairy parts; after scratching burning; swelling and redness of the face, with partial or entire closure of the eyelids; bruised feeling in the limbs and back; tendency to attack the brain; dark bluish redness of the parts affected.
Rhus ven.- The symptoms usually begin by itching and tumefaction in the hands and face, the swelling gradually spreading over different parts of the body.
Ruta.- In combination with wounds.
Sulphur.- Erysipelas migrans, appearing in subsequent throes, and running its course for a longer time than usual. Helps often when all other remedies fail.
Terebinthina.- Erysipelas bullosum, skin red and indurated, swollen; clusters of small, flat, pale, yellow vesicles, often confluent, with large red halos, here and there turn­ing bluish-black, showing a tendency to gangrene.
Trichlorphenol.- The daily application of a 5 to 10 per cent, solution of Trichlorphenol by means of a brush to an erysipelatous surface has been accompanied by excellent results.
Verat. vir.- Right side of head and face much swollen and covered with large blisters; headache; high fever; no sleep; no appetite; intermitting attacks of nausea; occasional vomiting of the water drank. It was applied low, externally and internally.