Boger’s Boenninghausen’s Characteristics & Repertory (BBCR)

Author: Dr. Cyrus Maxwell Boger (CM Boger)
Full Name: Boger Boenninghausen’s Characteristics and Repertory

Sources of Construction

1. Boenninghausen’s Characteristics & Materia Medica
2. Homoeopathic Cough by Boenninghausen
3. Homoeo. Domestic Physician by Hering
4. Repertory of Antipsoric Remedies
5. Repertory of Non-Antipsoric Remedies
6. Sides of Body
7. Repertory Part of Intermittent Fever
8. Boenninghausen’s Therapeutic Pocket Book
9. Aphorisms of Hippocrates

Total Remedies: 464
Total Chapters: 53

Publication & Editions

1. 1st Edition — 1905 (Boenicke & Tafel)
2. 2nd Edition — 1937 (assistance of his wife; 1st Indian Edition)
3. 2nd Indian Edition — 1952 (B. Jain Publishers)
4. 3rd Indian Edition — 1972 (B. Jain Publishers)

Introduction

• Boger preferred Boenninghausen’s method over Kent’s.
• Translated Repertory of Antipsoric Remedies → appreciated Boenninghausen’s methodology.
• Modified Therapeutic Pocket Book (BTPB) → added rubrics, sectional arrangement, rearranged Fever chapter.

Philosophical Background

• Based on Inductive Logic – Particular → General
• Follows Hahnemann’s principle of Totality of Symptoms
• Built on 7 fundamental doctrines:

1. Doctrine of Complete Symptom & Concomitants

• Symptom = Location + Sensation + Modalities
• Concomitants noted in relation to time
• Concomitants have higher importance than generalisation

2. Doctrine of Pathological Generals

• Reflect state & constitutional changes
• Rich chapter: “Sensation & Complaint in General”

3. Doctrine of Causation & Time

• Causation & general modalities reliable
• Helps find similimum quickly

4. Clinical Rubrics

• Groups medicines based on clinical conditions
• Useful in tissue changes, low susceptibility
• Narrow down to small groups → eliminated by modalities

5. Evaluation of Remedies (Grades)

• 1st grade – Capital – 5 marks
• 2nd grade – Bold – 4 marks
• 3rd grade – Italics – 3 marks
• 4th grade – Roman – 2 marks
• 5th grade – Roman in parentheses – 1 mark

6. Fever Totality

• Each stage followed by Time → Aggravation → Amelioration → Concomitant

7. Concordances

• Deals with medicine relationships
• Only 125 remedies → for second prescription

Plan & Construction

• Book has 3 parts:
  1. Preface (Acknowledgement, Foreword, Introduction, Historical sketch, MM contents)
  2. Repertory Proper (53 chapters)
  3. Concordance Part
• Repertory Proper:
  • Most chapters start with rubric “In General”
  • Sequence: Location → Sensation → Time → Aggravation → Amelioration → Concomitant → Cross-reference
  • Example: Head Internal → Parts → Location → Side → Extending → etc.

Advantages

• Complete symptoms well arranged
• Diagnostic rubrics with groups of medicines
• Rich pathological generals
• Fever chapter excellent for bedside prescription
• Cross-references at chapter ends
• Large Mind section
• Well-arranged Menstrual chapter
• 5-grade typography

Disadvantages / Limitations

• Concordance chapter limited (125 remedies)
• Non-uniform construction, incomplete chapters
• Mind chapter → many rubrics, few sub-rubrics
• Some chapters over-particularised (Teeth, Extremities)
• Borrel nosodes missing
• Fewer remedies compared to modern repertories
• Similar rubrics in different sections → beginner confusion
• Misplaced sub-rubrics, single/few remedy rubrics

Scope in Practice

• Best for peculiar/rare/strange concomitants
• Excellent for pathological/fever/advanced cases
• Quick repertorisation due to emphasis on causation, time, concomitants
• Still widely used clinically (especially Fever & Concomitant sections)

Quick Comparison with Kent (Common Exam Question)