Argentum metallicum
Silver · Silver · Mineral
Anxious, restless, hurried, impulsive people who often act on a whim respond best to Argentum met. When ill, having to concentrate usually makes these people feel worse, and their thoughts are chaotic, so that they constantly flit from subject to subject when talking. Often changeable and deceitful, although normally cheerful and lively, they may be excessively depressed by small upsets.
Argentum met. is generally used for joint and bone disorders associated with the connective tissues, especially the cartilage. There may be bruising pains that bore into the joints, or pulling, cramping pains in the limbs and bones. Arthritis with paralytic pain and weakness may be present. The remedy may also be prescribed to treat nervous complaints involving spasmodic movements and convulsive shocks in the body.
Disorders of the reproductive organs may also be treated by Argentum met., especially if they are accompanied by thick, profuse secretions of the related mucous membranes. In men, frequent seminal emissions without sexual excitement at night may be treated. In women the remedy is given for ovarian pain, possibly due to cysts or tumors, and for bleeding between menstrual periods or heavy hemorrhaging during menopause. Argentum met. may also be helpful in treating throat inflammation and voice loss.
Key symptoms
- Emaciation; gradual drying up with desire for fresh air
- Chief action on joints, cartilages, bones, and ligaments
- Sensation of expansion and left-sided pains
- Total loss of voice of professional singers; aphonia
- Easy expectoration looking like boiled starch
- Cough from laughing; worse from use of voice
- Head feels empty and hollow
- Severe backache; must walk bent with oppression of chest
- Jelly-like gray mucus; profuse morning expectoration
Worse (aggravation)
Better (amelioration)
Silver
Emaciation, a gradual drying up, desire for fresh air, dyspnœa, sensation of expansion and left-sided pains are characteristic. The chief action is centered on the articulations and their component elements, bones, cartilages, and ligament's. Here the small blood vessels become closed up or withered and carious affections result. They come on insidiously, lingering, but progress. The larynx is also a special center for this drug.
Mental
Hurried feeling; time passes slowly; melancholy.
Head
Dull paroxysmal neuralgia over left side, gradually increasing and ceasing suddenly. Scalp very tender to touch. Vertigo, with intoxicated feeling, on looking at running water. Head feels empty, hollow. Eyelids red and thick. Exhausting coryza, with sneezing. Pain in facial bones. Pain between left eye and frontal eminence.
Throat
Raw, hawking, gray, jelly-like mucus, and throat sore on coughing. Profuse and easy morning expectoration.
Respiratory
Hoarseness Aphonia. Raw, sore feeling when coughing. Total loss of voice of professional singers. Larynx feels sore and raw. Easy expectoration, looking like boiled starch. Feeling of raw spot near supra sternal fossa. Worse from use of voice. Cough from laughing. Hectic fever at noon. On reading aloud, must hem and hawk. Great weakness of chest; worse left side. Alteration in timbre of voice. Pain in left lower ribs.
Back
Severe backache; must walk bent, with oppression of chest.
Urine
Diuresis. Urine profuse, turbid, sweet odor. Frequent urination. Polyuria.
Extremities
Rheumatic affections of joints, especially elbow and knee. Legs weak and trembling, worse descending stairs. Involuntary contractions of fingers, partial paralysis of forearm; writer's cramp. Swelling of ankles.
Male
Crushed pain in testicles. Seminal emissions, without sexual excitement. Frequent micturation with burning.
Female
Ovaries feel too large. Bearing-down pain. Prolapse of womb. Eroded spongy cervix. Leucorrhœa foul, excoriating. Palliative in scirrhus of uterus. Pain in left ovary. Climateric hæmorrhage. Sore feeling; throughout abdomen; worse by jarring. Uterine disease with pain in joints and limbs.
Modalities
Worse from touch, toward noon. Better in open air; cough at night when lying down (opposite Hyoscy).
Relationship
Antidotes: Mercur; Puls.
Compare: Selen; Alum; Platina; Stannum; Ampelopsis (Chronic hoarseness in scrofulous patients).
Dose
Sixth trituration and higher. Not too frequent repetition.
Generalities
We will take up the study of Metallic silver.
No wonder that this remedy is a very deep acting remedy, for it has been used symbolically, and medically throughout all history.
It has been a valuable substance throughout all history. It is an anti psoric and from its symptoms. I believe it to be an anti-sycotic. It goes into the life. Especially affects the nerves, nerves sheaths. Has complaints along the nerves.
All cartilages in the body are affected by it. It produces a hypertrophy of cartilages, a thickening of the cartilaginous portions of joints, of the cartilage of the ears, and of the nose.
Produces cartilaginous growths and tumors; infiltrations. It affects the nerve substance, it is a deep organic remedy.
Silver Leaf and Precipitated Silver. Ag (A. W. 107.66). Trituration.
Clinical
Blepharitis. Brain-fag. Caries. Chlorosis. Cough. Diabetes. Enuresis nocturna. Epilepsy. Epithelial tissue, affections of. Exostosis. Heart, affections of. Hit-joint, disease of. Hysterical joint. Joints, affections of. Laryngitis. Ovaries, affections of. Phthisis. Pollutions. Rheumatism. Uterus, cancer of; prolapse of. Voice, loss of.
Characteristics
Argentum affects all the cartilages, and hence all joints and bones, with tearing and bruised pains, tenderness and weakness; painful, so-called "hysterical" joint, articular rheumatism without swelling; pain in rib cartilages and especially the left. Exostosis on skull. The muscular system is also affected with cramps in limbs; calves feel too short on going downstairs; stiffness; numbness; electric-like shocks in joints and limbs; painless twitchings. The heart is specially affected; frequent, spasmodic, though painless twitchings in whole heart muscle, < lying on back; fears …
The Metal. (Pure Silver)
Tall, thin, irritable persons. Ailments from abuse of Mercury. Constitutional effects of onanism. Affects the cartilages, tarsal, ears, nose, Eustachian; the structures entering into joints. Seminal emissions: after onanism; almost every night; without erection; with atrophy of penis. Crushed pain in the testicles (Rhod.). Prolapsus; with pain in left ovary and back, extending forward and downward (right ovary, Pal.); climacteric haemorrhage. Exhausting, fluent coryza with sneezing. Hoarseness; of professional singers, public speakers (Alum., Arum. t.). Total loss of voice of professional singers. Throat and larynx feel raw or sore on swallowing or coughing. Laughing excites cough (Dros., Phos., Stan.) and produces profuse mucus in larynx. When reading aloud has to hem and hawk; cough with easy expectoration of gelatinous, viscid mucus, looking like boiled starch. Great weakness of the chest (Stan.); worse left side. Alternation in timbre of voice with singers and public speakers (Arum t.). Raw spot over bifurcation of the trachea. worse when using voice, talking or singing.
Mouth and Throat
Viscid gray; jelly-like mucus in pharynx, easily hawked up, early in the morning.
Male Sexual Organs
Crushed pain in the testicle; clothing < the pain.
Female Sexual Organs
Pains principally in the left ovary (Lach.); Lycop. and Apis affect primarily the right.
Respiratory Organs
Chronic hoarseness of professional singers and speakers (acute cases Rhus tox; Ferr. phos.).
Generalities
Pains increase gradually, disappear suddenly.
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Viscid gray, jelly-like mucous in pharynx, easily hawked up; only in the morning.
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Throat feels sore during expiration and coughing' not on swallowing.
Phatak's chapter on Argentum metallicum is available in the app.
Read Phatak in the appClassical texts are in the public domain. Educational reference only — not medical advice.
