zincum sulfuricum

                                                                                  

 Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica by TF Allen

Introduction

Zinc sulphate, Zn. SO4 7H2O. (White vitriol.) Preparation: Solutions in water.

Generalities

(Excessive anaemia). Very tremulous. Tremors. Convulsions. Severe convulsions. Convulsions, followed by death. (General weakness). General weakness so considerable that many were unable to stand, and had to be carried into the infirmary. General exhaustion and death, in nine hours. Prostration. Extreme prostration, accompanied with distressing restlessness and anxiety. So prostrate that he could neither walk nor stand (in half an hour), 249 Debility, long remained extreme. Heaviness in the whole body. The nerves are set on edge. A feeling “as though her blood could scarcely struggle through her veins,” 25. Titillation all over the body, with irresistible inclination to laugh. All the prisoners resumed their work six days after poisoning, but the general weakness continued some days longer.

Mind

Delirium. Apparently delirious. Anxiety. Great nervous anxiety and depression (after three-quarters of an hour).

Head

Dizziness (second day). Headache, 16 20. Violent headache (after fifteen hours). Violent headache, with thirst. Burning acute pain in the head. Immediately he felt (in his own words) as if a powerful electric shock had passed through his head; he expected that his brains would have burst through his skull.

Eyes

(Bluish rings around the eyes). Eyes of a heavy dull appearance. Eyes staring (after three-quarters of an hour). Eyes almost fixed and of a peculiar bright lustre. Convulsive movements of the eyeballs and upper extremities. Copious flow of tears from the eyes (after one hour). Pupils much dilated (after three-quarters of an hour).

Ears

(Roaring in the ears).

Face

(Countenance pallid. Pale, sunken countenance. Face pale, sunken, with cold extremities and convulsive pulse. Countenance pale, expression anxious. Leaden, purple tint of the countenance, and contracted features. Features shrunken.

Mouth

Tongue moist, even with those little affected, and slightly blanched. Tongue partially paralyzed. 25. Gums a little swollen and red upon the outer edge. Great irritation of the whole mucous membrane (after one hour). Exceedingly sour taste.

Mouth

Inflammation of the throat, so that he threatened to suffocate. A sense of choking and constriction round the chest. Tenderness in the throat, epigastrium, and abdomen. Slight soreness of the throat (second day). Burning in throat and stomach. Burning and constriction at the fauces. Contraction of the oesophagus to such a degree that he is afraid of choking.

Stomach

Intolerable thirst. Much thirst and dryness of the mouth (after three-quarters of an hour). All complained of heartburn. Nausea and Vomiting. Sickness, colic, at first without either evacuation or excessive weakness (after fifteen hours). Sickness at the stomach. Vomiting. Violent vomiting. Frequent vomiting. Vomiting and diarrhoea. Vomited and purged incessantly. Violent vomiting, with cramps, severe pain, and burning in the stomach, and extreme prostration (soon). Vomiting, the rejected matters tasted similar to the fluid she had swallowed (in fifteen minutes). Instantly vomited, and then became affected with almost incessant retching and purging for half an hour, which continued afterwards at short intervals for three hours, and then gradually diminished. Only three or four had vomitings of bilious matter. Stomach. Burning sensation in stomach (after three-quarters of an hour). Burning heat at the stomach. Excessive, burning pain in the stomach, with from time to time slight efforts to vomit. Complained of pain at the epigastrium and of feeling sick. Pain in the stomach, gradually involving the whole abdomen. Excessive pain at the epigastrium. Acute pain in the region of the stomach, accompanied with a sensation of burning.

Abdomen

Inflammation of the abdomen, with retraction of the umbilicus and terrible colic. Inflammation of the whole lower abdomen, with retracted umbilicus and misery. (Abdomen retracted and sunken, somewhat distended in the region of the colon). Pain and great distension of the abdomen. Great pain in abdomen, limbs, etc. Much pain in the abdomen, more especially in the region of the bladder (second day). Severe pain in the region of the groin. All suffered from sharp, almost continuous colic.

Rectum

In some cases there was rectal tenesmus. Constant desire to eliminate and discharge the faces (after one hour).

Stool

Diarrhoea. Violent purging. Purged and vomited incessantly. Bowels acted freely immediately. Stools infrequent, the fecal matter hard and yellowish, mixed with the remains of the food of Wednesday, such as haricots, pieces of meat, etc.; afterwards a very abundant bilious diarrhoea set in. After three months the evacuations became bloody, accompanied by sticking and cutting pains in both sides of the abdomen and along the colon; these dysenteric symptoms lasted three weeks.

Respiratory organs

Cough (after one hour). Violent cough, with bloody and purulent expectoration. Weak respiration, 15 in the minute. Respiration difficult (after one hour). Considerable dyspnoea (after one hour).

Chest

Pains in the chest with vomiting, followed by death. Violent burning pains beneath the chest.

Extremities

In the greater number, there were trembling of the limbs and very painful cramps; the slightest pressure increased these pains, both in the limbs and in the abdomen. Great pain from cramp in the arms and legs (second day).

Upper Limbs

Convulsive movements of the upper extremities and eyeballs.

Sleep

Sleepy and stupid; she wanted most of all to sleep and to die in peace.

Fever

Chilliness. Coldness. Shivering. Outwardly shivered, and had slight quivering of the lips (after three- quarters for an hour). Skin cold and clammy. Whole surface of body cold, and covered with a clammy perspiration. Extremities cold, 3 10. Temperature of skin diminished. Heat. Febrile action, which was followed by profuse sweating, that soon became excessive (second day); the fever, with the pain at the fever, with the pain at the epigastrium, continued till the sixth day. Constant heat of the body, on account of which he cannot sleep. Burning heat of the extremities. Sweat. Profuse sweating (after six hours). Her hands were covered with a cold clammy perspiration, but they felt to herself quite hot, and she seemed anxious to get hold of anything to cool them (after three- quarters of an hour).

Skin

Development of blisters on the neck, at first discharging bloody water, afterwards thin green, badly-smelling pus, which lasted about a month; after this the gum began to swell, and upon it developed blisters from the size of the head of a pin to that of a pea, which burst and discharged blackish-brown substances, with blood, and of an extremely disagreeable odor and taste; then the lips and gum began to swell, so that the patient could scarcely speak; these symptoms gradually diminished, but afterwards returned more violent than ever, and were accompanied by the most violent pain in the tongue and swollen lips; the swelling increased, extended over the face, neck, and throat, especially on the left side. The doctor noticed a great similarity between the lip and tongue and a syphilitic disease which affects these parts, but there were no other symptoms of a syphilitic affection, and the violent colitis, with which the patient suffered, seemed to indicate the toxic origin of the trouble. When brought into the hospital the tongue was so large that there was scarcely room for it in the mouth; the upper surface was inflamed, and there were fissures with hypertrophied papillae; the enlarged lower lip hung down; its pale mucous membrane was cracked, and secreted a thin whitish-yellow liquid; this was associated with chronic diarrhoea; the evacuation was mixed with blood, thin, at times greenish-yellow, and accompanied by violent pains and rumbling in the abdomen, 20. (Skin pale yellow). A deadly pallor of the skin, which was milky in its whiteness.

Heart and Pulse

(Palpitation on every motion). Pulse rapid and scarcely distinguishable, at times dicrotic. The pulse full, 100 to 120 in the worst cases. Pulse frequent and small. Spasmodic pulse. Pulse 74, weak and small (after three- quarters of an hour). Pulse about 70, and of small volume. Pulse fluttered. Pulse languid. Pulse 50, very feeble, small, and easily compressible (after one hour). Almost complete loss of pulse, as in true cholera.