-VERMEULEN Frans,
Ant-t.
 |
| Antimonium tartaricum |
Apples taste sweetest when they are going.
[Seneca]
Signs
Antimony potassium tartrate. Tartar Emetic.
CHEMISTRY Antimony potassium tartrate is an odourless and colourless crystal [sugar or sand-like] material or white powder. The crystals effloresce on exposure to air.
PROPERTIES Antimony potassium tartrate itself is inflammable, but in fire or near acid a poisonous gas is produced. Though only slightly reactive, its effects on contact are severe and corrosive. Soluble in water and highly persistent in water [with a half-life of longer than 200 days], it has high acute and chronic toxicity to aquatic life. It is incompatible with mineral acids, tannic acid, gallic acids, alkali hydroxides and carbonates, lead and silver salts, mercury bichloride, lime water, albumin, soap.
USES It is used in medicine [as an expectorant and in the treatment of schistomiasis japonicum], in dyeing [as a mordant], as an insecticide, and in hair dyes. Formerly it was used as an emetic in bronchial ailments, pneumonia’s, psychosis, and particularly as “poudre de tranquillité” [tranquillizer] in alcoholism.
EXCRETION Tartar emetic promotes body waste and the rapid excretion of waste products. In small doses, it stimulates the secretions of the stomach and intestinal canal, the salivary glands, liver and pancreas. In larger doses, it produces vomiting and purging, with evacuations much like the ‘rice water discharges’ of cholera. In toxic doses it paralyzes the heart muscles, combines with red blood cells, depressing their oxidizing power, lowering the blood pressure, and reducing the temperature. Being eliminated by all the excretory organs, including the skin, it excites follicular inflammation therein, resulting in a papular eruption on the skin, which becomes vesicular and pustular, the pustules being umbilicated, like those of variola. This may also be produced by rubbing tartar emetic into the skin. 1
INTOXICATION It is an extremely toxic compound and, medically, must be administered very slowly intravenously. When breathed in, by ingestion or by passing through the skin, it can cause poor appetite, rash, nausea, headaches, sore throat, irritation of air passages, and cough. Higher levels can cause abdominal pain, fluid build-up in the lungs, phlebitis, tachycardia, and hypotension. Sudden death can occur from circulatory collapse. It is excreted with the urine, faeces, milk and gall. Deposits may build up in the liver and kidneys. Contrary to arsenic, there is no habituation. In the 17th century its abuse claimed numerous deaths. Tartar emetic, apomorphine, ipecacuanha, senega, and squill are called central emetics due to the fact that they act upon the medulla.
POISONING “The substance has been used for homicidal purposes, though much less frequently than arsenic. It produces symptoms very similar to those resulting from arsenic poisoning, but the symptoms are more rapid in onset and graver in effect … The symptoms of acute poisoning are instructive. On swallowing a dose there is an immediate onset of symptoms – a metallic taste in the mouth, burning in throat and stomach, violent and incessant vomiting, severe purging and tenesmus. Profound depression follows with vertigo, extreme thirst, subnormal temperature, thready pulse, cyanosis, cramps, coma, collapse, and death in twelve to twenty-four hours. The skin is cold and covered in clammy sweat. Chronic poisoning is characterized by anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, emaciation and great depression, associated with headache, giddiness, mental confusion, dimness of vision and drowsiness. Finally extreme exhaustion ends in death.”2
FRUIT ACID Tartaric acid is one of the most widely distributed of fruit acids. It is found in grapes and other fruits, either free or combined with potassium, calcium or magnesium. Deposited in wine, its crystals are called “the precious stones of noble wines.” Tartaric acid is chiefly manufactured as a by-product of the wine industry. It is widely used as an acidulant in fizzy drinks, effervescent tablets, gelatine desserts, and fruit jellies. As effervescent acid it is used in bath salts, denture powders, nail bleaches, hair-grooming aids, hair rinses, depilatories, and hair colouring. As additive E334, it occurs in products as confectionery, jams, marmalades, tinned tomatoes, tinned asparagus, processed tomato concentrates, tinned fruits, cocoa powders, and frozen dairy products. “Antioxidant; capable of increasing the antioxidant effect of other substances [synergist]; to adjust acidity in frozen dairy products, jellies, bakery products, beverages, confectionery, dried egg whites, sweets, preserves and wines; sequestrant; diluent for food colours; constituent of grape and other artificial flavours; acid in some baking powders.”3
PROVINGS The homoeopathic drug picture is mainly based on experiments with the crude substance and on intoxications. A good example of the dedication of experimenters is Noebeling, source nr. 11 in Allen’s Encyclopedia. Noebeling took daily small doses, gradually increasing them to 0.013 gr., for seventeen consecutive days. Though he after the 8th day was prevented from continuing the experiment, due to extreme weakness and prostration, his heroic proving begins to look like self-punishment when he starts on the 11th day to inject himself with strong solutions. “I had scarcely emptied the syringe when I experienced a raging headache, saw sparks of fire, had burning heat in the face, and distressing pressure in the brain; at the same time there was violent precordial anxiety. I suffered from dyspnoea, it became black before the eyes, I reeled, so that I was obliged to sit down; I vomited green masses with great effort. At the same time there was very free haemorrhage from the place of the injection, which was stopped only by persistent compression. Through the day I felt very weak, as after a terrible illness. Unfortunately it had been impossible to count the pulse, on account of the violence of the symptoms.” On the 17th day he injects himself again, “in spite of the unpleasant remembrance of the former injection.” The result is the same: a frightful headache, heat of the face, vision of sparks, and very anxious sensation in the stomach. He then takes the appearance of albumen in the urine as an indication to discontinue further self-experimentations. By then, he has lost seven pounds in weight, and he frequently suffers from digestive troubles for more than two months afterwards.
[1] Potter, A Compend of Materia Medica. [2] Gibson, Studies of Hom. Remedies. [3] Hanssen, E for Additives.
Affinity
MUCOUS MEMBRANES. Pneumogastric nerve [= nervus vagus] [bronchi; lungs; heart; CIRCULATION; respiration]. Stomach. Bowels. Sleep. Lumbar region.
Skin. * Left side. Right side.
Modalities
Worse: WARM [room; wraps; weather]. Anger. Lying. Morning. Overeating. Cold. Dampness. Change of weather. Spring. Motion. Touch. Being looked at. Night. Lying on affected side. 4 p.m. [cough].
Better: Expectoration. Sitting up. Motion. Cold open air. Lying on right side.
Main symptoms
M Apathetic, drowsy, dull or easily annoyed.
c Wants to be left alone when irritated. Doesn’t want to be looked at or touched.
Bad mood, noise is intolerable.
• “Everything displeases her of which she thinks [after two hours].” [Allen]
Great irritability on waking.
c Does not want to be alone when nervous.
• “Dreaded to be left alone even for a few moments, lest he ‘should be dreadfully nervous and not know what to do with himself.'” [Allen]
G Defective reaction. INCREASINGLY WEAK, DROWSY, SWEATY and RELAXED.
• “This remedy is indicated in those who are of a slow phlegmatic constitution, who are melancholy, bad humoured, and despair of their recovery.” [Blackwood]
G Old people and children.
G Ailments from bad effects of vaccination when Thuj. fails and Sil. is not indicated.
[This refers to smallpox vaccination!]
G Apparent death.
• “Apparent death from drowning, from mucus in bronchi, from impending paralysis of lungs, from foreign bodies in larynx or trachea, with drowsiness or coma.” [Mathur]
G Pregnancy.
During pregnancy, vomiting of mucus; belching; disgust for food; salivation; nausea with faintness, and amblyopia. [Hering]
No remedy excels Ant-t. to dilate a rigid os in labour. [Burt]
G Desire for ACIDS, sour drinks and apples, which <. G Irresistible thirst for cold water; vomits the smallest quantity taken. After every drink, nausea and pressure in the pit of the stomach. G Great sleepiness or irresistible inclination to sleep with nearly all complaints. G < Milk. • “Infants and children allergic to milk, vomit immediately.” [Mathur] G < AUTUMN and SPRING. G < WARM ROOM; HEAT. G YAWNING with many complaints. [Agar.] P NAUSEA; in waves; and weakness and cold sweat, loathing or anxiety. P Vomiting > lying on right side.
And Tremor of hands.
And Great sensitiveness of pit of stomach to touch or pressure.
And Eructations like rotten eggs.
P MUCH SECRETION OF MUCUS; coarse rattling but scanty expectoration.
P SUFFOCATIVE shortness of breath; alternating with cough; LOOSE, COARSE, RATTLING COUGH: chest seems FULL, yet LESS AND LESS is RAISED, followed by vomiting or sleep.
Cough tends to be worse at 4 a.m. [Kali fraction of the compound]
c LOUD, COARSE RALES IN THE AIR PASSAGES.
• “The chest seems to refill constantly with foamy mucus. At the beginning the patient can evacuate some tenacious light, white mucus by retching, but finally he is unable to do so, an asphyxial state impends and signs of collapse with cold, clammy sweat, white ala nasae and hippocratic facies is noted. The increasing weakness expresses itself in the type of cough: attacks of coughing decrease slowly in duration and severity with increasing weakness; the cough alternates with yawning.” [Leeser]
MUCH SECRETION OF MUCUS; coarse rattling but scanty expectoration.
P Intensely painful lumbago.
Slightest motion = retching and cold, clammy sweat.
• “No remedy in the material medica can equal this drug in this painful malady; if given so that it will produce slight nausea, it will cure about every case.” [Burt]
Rubrics
Mind
Anger alternating with cheerfulness [1]. Desire to be carried upright, in children with respiratory troubles [1]. Delusions, visions of fire [1]; he wades in water [1/1]. Wants to set things on fire [1]. Irritability in children, shriek when touched [2].
Head
Sensation as if head were separated from body [1].
Eye
One eye open only [1/1]. Shooting like electric shocks in inner canthi [1/1*].
Face
Upper lip drawn up, exposing teeth [1]. Twitching when coughing [3/1].
Mouth
Mouth remains wide open after yawning [2/1].
Stomach
Ravenous appetite while walking [1]. Nausea after fruit [2]. Thirst after perspiration [2], for small quantities often [1].
Abdomen
Abdomen seems full of stones when sitting or on stooping [1/1].
Rectum
Diarrhoea after vaccination [1].
Respiration
Difficult after midnight, 3 a.m. [3], > expectoration [3]. Gasping inspiration, expiration long and slow [2; Op.].
Cough
Eructations > [1]. Heat of sun < [2]. Chest Sensation of heat in region of heart [2]. Sensation as if the heart were revolving [1/1]. Back Sensation of heaviness in coccyx, as if a heavy weight were tugging at it [2/1]. Pain in lumbosacral region from least motion, and retching [2/1]. Limbs Perspiration hands on coughing [1/1]. Perspiration Cold, from dyspnoea [2]. Profuse, on affected parts [3/1]. Skin Sensitiveness of skin to every change of the weather [1/1*]. * Repertory additions. Food Aversion: [2]: Milk. [1]: Alcohol; apples; bread, during pregnancy; cold drinks; cold food; fruit; mother’s milk; sour; tobacco. Desire: [2]: Fruit; cold food; juicy things; sour. [1] Alcohol; apples; beer; buttermilk; cold drinks; fruit, sour; milk, sour; refreshing. Worse: [2]: Hot food. [1]: Alcohol; apples; beer; butter; eating; fat; food, sight of; food, thought of; fruit; fruit, sour; milk; pork; sour; vinegar; warm food. Better: [3]: Cold water. [2]: Cold drinks. [1]: Cold food.
