STEPS OF REPERTORIZATION

OR
PREREQUISITES OF REPERTORIZATION

DR CHANDRA HASAN C M, M.D(Hom),

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR,
DEPT OF REPERTORY,
SARADA KRISHNA HOMOEOPATHIC MEDICAL COLLEGE,
KULASEKHARAM
 Repertorization is a scientific method ,which is worked out
by mechanical process, (i.e.) counting rubrics and totaling
marks obtained by the medicine. The work done is for the
logical steps to reach the proper repertory, and elimination of
apparently similar medicines, and find out most similar
medicines for the final selection of remedy with the help of
materia medica.
The art of repertorization having following steps,
1, Case taking
2, Recording and interpretation
3, Classification (analysis) and evaluation of symptoms
4, Defining the problem
 5, Erecting the totality (synthesis)
6, Selection of a proper repertory
7, Repertorial results
8, Analysis of repertorial results and prescription.
Case taking : It is the first step and the out come of treatment
entirely depends up on the success of this first step.
Any mistake committed in the first step would certainly
interfere in the selection of drugs and planning of treatment.
A case comprises of symptoms that give the totality of
person’s suffering, (ie) totality of symptoms of a case for
physician.
(Once Dr. Kent’ follower presented a case ,Kent read the
case and mentioned to his follower there is lot of symptoms
but there is no case.)
 A physician must possess a clear understanding about the
case. For homoeopathic physician’s ,expression’s at the levels
(sphers), of mental , physical and particular are required to
individualize the person, as well as diagnose the condition.
It is a unique art of getting in to conversation, as serving
and collecting data from the patient as well as from the
bystanders, to define patient as a person, and disease. The
purpose is to understand both the person and disease.
Case taking being an art, the individual skill of physician
play an important role in applying the rules of case taking.
Dr. Hahnemann has described the necessary guideline
that should be taken into consideration while case taking in
aphorism 83 – 104 of Organon of medicine.
 During case taking the physician only concentrate the
case taking (ie) unprejudicedly observe the case.
The objective of case taking is collecting the facts
pertaining to the patient in relation to his life space, habits,
desire and aversion, mental generals, physical generals,
particulars, which may help forming totality of the patient,
and there by help in finding the correct similimum.
The main objective of case taking is individualization and
nosological diagnosis of the case for therapeutic purpose.(i.e.)
understand the individual or person in health and in sickness.
Recording and interpretation : For the effective repertorization
and the steps following this, precise recording of a case is
needful. Recording is done properly it will help us in making
valuable interpretation.
 The case recording must be in the words of the patient,
if any modification during recording the physician should give
more importance to the meaning of the patient’s narration.
While case recording physician must obtain and record all the
symptoms (ie) subjective and objective symptoms. The
recording must be in complete symptom pattern, while
recording the intensity of the symptom must be mentioned.
Importance of case recording : Physicians record is
indispensable to every true Homoeopathic physicians.
It helps undeniable necessary for individualizing all the
characteristic symptoms in every case of disease
Important for ones own instruction and quieting the
conscience of the physician(undisturbed inner most thought).
And also for future defense, constant reference.
 It helps the physician to view the case as a complete whole
for first prescription, for the subsequent prescription, for
doses, for potency, for future references, and note the
progress, the order of disappearance of the symptoms in
acute and chronic miasmatic diseases. It helps a great deal in
analysis of symptoms for repertory work.
Interpretation: Means to explain the meaning. It means
identifying a word for the symptom narrated by the patient
with out changing the central thought (ie) exactness.
Recording and interpretation should be done
simultaneously. It is an important skill of the physician to
transfer all the datas in to exactness, as it is received from the
patient to case record .
 The interpretation is mostly done in mental symptoms
(ex) if a patient says “I wants to be all the things neat and
clean and must be placed in it’s proper place” the interpreted
word used is’ fastidious’. If the patient says, “I feel my self is
isolated” the interpreted word is 'forsaken feeling’. If the
patient says, 'My self is mentally keen’ the interpreted word is
‘Acuteness'. If the patient says ,’My self is kind hearted’ the
interpreted word is,’Benevolance’.
Here we have to select a word for the symptom with
out changing the meaning, then only we can include the
symptoms for repertorization. This type of arranging the
symptoms is known as interpretation.
Classification (Analysis) and evaluation of symptoms
Analysis : Case analysis is a logical resolving or separating of the
whole symptomatology in to different components, and further
splitting them in to viable units as per their higher archy.
After the case is taken logically and completely and recorded well,
a physician get a large number of symptoms, which is need to be
analyzed inorder to understand the importance of each symptom,
to be used for the diagnosis of the disease as well as know the
person (ie) individuality of the person.
Classification or analysis of the symptom is an important part of
repertorization. The physician must categorize different kinds of
symptoms with proper explanation. Inorder to get totality of
symptoms or portrait of a patient the analysis is important.
Then the prescriber should categorize or give exact name to the
phenomenon, particularly to the sensation and various feelings. No
two persons or individuals are express any phenomenon as
sensation in exactly same manner.
 The symptoms are categorized as, mental general symptoms,
Physical general symptoms, characteristic particular symptoms,
particular symptoms, negative general symptoms, concomittant
symptoms ,strange, rare, peculiar symptoms, pathological
general symptoms etc, into common and uncommon symptoms.
Evaluation of symptoms : By evaluation of symptoms we mean
giving value to each symptom according to it’s weightage
(according to the intensity , depth of appearance of symptoms
and frequency of appearance of symptoms) in a manner that an
exact image of the sick person is to be formed.
Evaluation of symptoms implies the principles of grading or
ranking of different kinds of symptoms according to their
intensity, frequency and how deep they are reach into the
organism.
 The key for getting similimum is the grading of symptoms.
After the analysis of symptoms physician has to determine
quality and value of each symptoms. Evaluation is necessary
for the qualitative matching of remedy.
If the evaluation is incorrect it leads to improper
similimum. It is true that exact evaluation depends up on
physicians observation, skill of case taking, patience, sincerity
and experience in knowing the principle of evaluation.
The symptoms are evaluated as per the availability of
various types and nature of symptoms in the case.
Defining the problem: Analysis makes the whole expression
clear to the physician and helps to define the problem at
different levels.
 The sickness of the individual expresses it self as various
levels (ie) mental level, physical level, emotional and social
level, physician must bring all the expressions together to get
a whole picture.
In order to get the whole picture the physician must have
clear understanding about the sick individual, what
Hahnemann stated was “What is to be cured in disease, that
is to say in every individual case of disease”.
To define the problem means, to define the individual who
is facing problem. The problem definition includes, knowing
the sick individual’s, predisposition, disposition, diathesis and
disease.
Thus only by precisely defining the problem, the physician
would be in a position to go a head further in the direction
(ie) about knowing the individuals deviation from original state of
health, constitutional condition, miasmatic state, thermal state,
etc.
While defining the problem, laboratory and special
investigations helps to understand the disease process, and it
should be done where ever required.
Erecting a totality (synthesis):Totality is not the some total of
numerical or quantitative symptoms, but it is the some total of
logical or qualitative combination of symptoms, i.e.,
characteristic symptoms, which characterizes the individual as
well as individualize the problem (i.e.) characteristic mental
general symptoms, physical general symptoms, characteristic
particulars, pathological generals, etc.
From the classification and evaluation, the higher archy of
the symptoms is known, according to its intensity.
 On that way from the whole symptoms physician must
select a few which can logically (ie) qualitatively represent the
whole picture of the individual.
According to the availability of symptoms the totality is
erected logically (ie) availability of generals, characteristic
symptoms, causative modalities, general modalities,
concomittants, pathological generals etc. The arrangement of
totality is differing according to the availability of logical
symptoms.
Selection of the repertory and repertorization proper
After the totality has been erected, physician must select
the proper repertory according to the availability of the
symptoms in totality.
 If there is mental general symptoms and physical general
symptoms and characteristic particulars the Kent’s repertory is
to be selected.
If the case have more pathological generals, causative
modalities, physical generals, other modalities, concomittant
symptoms, and particular symptoms, Boger’s repertory is to be
selected.
If the case have complete symptoms , concomittant
symptoms, and during case taking doctrine of analogy was used
during case taking, and particular symptoms are present
Boenninghausen’s theraputic pocket book is preferable.
Synthetic repertory, synthesis repertory, complete
repertory, homoeopathic medical repertory can be used where
generals are more prominent. These mordern repertories are
also used for working out all type of cases.
 Repertorium universale is suitably designed to be used to
repertorize all types of cases by using different methods of
repertorization.
Once the repertory is selected, next step is rearrange the
totality in higher archy according to the repertory selected. The
arrangement of totality according to the repertory selected is
called, “Repertorial totality”. Or “Repertorial syndrome”.
From this repertorial totality, the symptoms are converted
in to rubrics, the page numbers of the selected rubrics are
obtained, and the reasons (explanations) are mentioned, finally
repertorization is to be done.
Repertorial results :
We have to add the marks (grades) obtained by the
medicines, then the number of rubrics covered by the
medicines are identified and write it according to higher merit.
From this we get group of similar medicines.
 The medicines obtained are arranged as the following
(ex) ars-alb 18/9, sulph 16/7, nat-mur 16/6 etc. These group
of close running medicines or most similar medicines are
known as Repertorial results.(minimum 5 to 10 medicines).
Analysis of repertorial results and prescription: The medicine
which gets highest marks is not the final remedy (similimum)
in all cases.
The repertorial results should be finally referred and
differentiated using materia medica. For this purpose the
logical symptoms (qualitative symptoms) remains after
repertorial totality are used, (ie) the logical symptoms or
rubrics which are not represented in the selected repertory
are to be used.
The characteristic symptoms which were not represented
in the selected repertory and used for differentiating the most
similar medicines and aid to get similimum are called potential
differential field.
 By analyzing and differentiating the group of similar
medicines, using potential differential field we will get the
similimum. Then prescribe or apply the similimum remedy to
sick individual in order to get cure. According to the
susceptibility of the individual the proper potency and dose
should be selected.
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