Aceticum acidum
Acetic acid · Acetic acid, glacial acetic acid, ethanoic acid. · Human-made/chemical
People who benefit most from Acetic ac. often sigh due to feelings of depression, anxiety, or irritability, and are also prone to forgetfulness. They are often anemic, with pale, waxy, clammy skin and intense thirst. Despite profound sleepiness, they may find it difficult to sleep.
Debilitation and emaciation are the key factors linked to this remedy. It is often prescribed to treat fainting, breathlessness, water retention, diabetes, or great exhaustion following an injury, an operation, or hemorrhaging.
Severe burning pains and tenderness in the stomach can also be treated using Acetic ac., if they are accompanied by symptoms such as sour-tasting belches, vomiting, and profuse salivation, or by the classic debilitation symptoms.
Key symptoms
- Profound anaemia with waxy pallor of face and extreme emaciation
- Intense, unquenchable burning thirst with great debility and frequent fainting
- Violent burning pain in stomach and chest, followed by cold skin and cold sweat on forehead
- Vomiting after every kind of food; sour eructations
- Hectic fever with drenching night sweats; no thirst during fever
- General anasarca and dropsical conditions with oedema of feet and legs
- Haemorrhage from any part: nose, stomach, bowels, lungs, uterus
- Profuse pale urine; diabetes with intense thirst and weakness
- Membranous croup; hoarse hissing respiration; cough on inhaling
- Back pain relieved only by lying on abdomen
Worse (aggravation)
Better (amelioration)
Glacial Acetic Acid (ACETIC ACID)
This drug produces a condition of profound anæmia, with some dropsical symptoms, great debility, frequent fainting, dyspnœa, weak heart, vomiting, profuse urination and sweat. Hæmorrhage from any part. Especially indicated in pale, lean persons, with lax, flabby muscles. Wasting and debility. Acetic acid has the power to liquefy albuminous and fibrinous deposits. Epithelial cancer, internally and locally (W Owens). Sycosis with nodules and formations in the joints. Hard chancre. The 1x solution will soften and cause formation of pus.
Mind
Irritable, worried about business affairs.
Head
Nervous headache, from abuse of narcotics. Blood rushes to head with delirium. Temporal vessels distended. Pain across root of tongue.
Face
Pale, waxen, emaciated. Eyes sunken, surrounded by dark rings. Bright red. Sweaty. Epithelioma of lip. Cheeks hot and flushed. Aching in left jaw-point.
Stomach
Salivation. Fermentation in stomach. Intense burning thirst. Cold drinks distress. Vomits after every kind of food. Epigastric tenderness. Burning pain as of an ulcer. Cancer of stomach. Sour belching and vomiting. Burning waterbrash and profuse salivation. Hyperchlorhydria and gastralgia. Violent burning pain in stomach and chest, followed by coldness of skin and cold sweat on forehead. Stomach feels as if she had taken a lot of vinegar.
Abdomen
Feels as if abdomen was sinking in. Frequent watery stools, worse in morning. Tympanitic. Ascites. Hæmorrhage from bowels.
Urine
Large quantities of pale urine. Diabetes, with great thirst and debility (Phos ac).
Female
Excessive catamenia. Hæmorrhages after labor. Nausea of pregnancy. Breasts painfully enlarged, distended with milk. Milk impoverished, bluish, transparent, sour. Anæmia of nursing mothers.
Respiratory
Hoarse, hissing respiration; difficult breathing; cough when inhaling. Membranous croup. Irritation of trachea and bronchial tubes. False membrane in throat. Profuse bronchorrhœa. Putrid sore throat (gargle).
Back
Pain in back, relieved only by lying on abdomen.
Extremities
Emaciation. Œdema of feet and legs.
Skin
Pale, waxen, œdematous. Burning, dry, hot skin, or bathed in profuse sweat. Diminished sensibility of the surface of body. Useful after stings, bites, etc. Varicose swellings. Scurvy; anasarca. Bruises; sprains.
Fever
Hectic, with drenching night-sweats. Red spot on left cheek. No thirst in fever. Ebullitions. Sweat profuse, cold.
Relationship
Acetic acid is antidotal to all anæsthetic vapors. Counteracts sausage poisoning.
Compare: Ammon acet (Profuse saccharine urine, patient is bathed in sweat). Benzoin oderiferum--Spice-wood (night sweats). Ars; China; Digitalis; Liatris (General anasarca in heart and kidney disease, dropsy, and chronic diarrhœa).
Dose
Third to thirtieth potency. Not to be repeated too often, except in croup.
Introduction
There is either diarrhea or constipation; with the latter he is rheumatic, with the former he is at his best, as when the diarrhea slacks up he is full of suffering.
Generals
The diarrhea is his great relief, like Natrum sulph. and Zincum.
Sharp pains here and there, but especially in ovaries and joints.
This remedy is, useful in complaints of pale, sickly people.
Patients who have been weak for many years, who have inherited phthisis, Emaciation, weakness, anaemia, loss of appetite, burning thirst and copious pale urine are a combination calling for Acetic acid.
Sensation of heat with pulsation coining and going, like orgasms; chlorosis in young girls; dropsical conditions in general; bad effects from stings and bites, have been cured by this remedy.
Glacial Acetic Acid. HC2 H3 O2. (Distilled water is used for attenuations 1x and 1; very dilute spirit for 3x and up to 4; rectified spirit for 5 and higher.)
Clinical
Anæmia. Anæsthetics, antidote to. Ascarides. Burns. Corns. Croup. Debility. Diabetes. Diphtheria. Dropsies. Fevers. Hydrophobia. Nævi. Narcotics, antidote to. Phthisis. Sausage-poisoning, antidote to. Scalds. Stings. Stomach, cancer of. Varicosis. Warts.
Characteristics
The leading features of acetic acid are excessive wasting and debility; anæmia with waxy pallor of face; intense thirst; burning in throat; nausea, retching, and sour rising as met with in cases of cancer and debility. There are gnawing, ulcerative pains in stomach; pain and burning in abdomen. Profuse, exhausting diarrhœa. It has been used in diabetes. It corresponds to putrid and hectic fevers with night sweats; hæmorrhages, varicose swellings, and dropsies. As a type of vinegar effects may be mentioned the following: A plump and blooming young woman took a small glass daily to …
Urinary Organs
Passes large quantities of pale urine, particularly if accompanied by intense thirst and dry hot skin.
Phatak's chapter on Aceticum acidum is available in the app.
Read Phatak in the appClassical texts are in the public domain. Educational reference only — not medical advice.
