Introduction
Sodium nitrate, NaNO3. Cubic nitre, Chile saltpetre. Preparation: Solutions in water.
Mind
Great ill-humor (mental indolence).
Head
Head dull,; as after mental exertion.
Ear
Pain in the right ear, as if in the drum; a kind of earache; with a feeling of warmth, within the ear, in the evening.
Face
Face pale; features relaxed. The face becomes paler and more emaciated towards the end of the proving. Face seems thinner and paler during the last days of the proving. Pressing inwards pain in the malar bone (second day).
Mouth
Tongue. Tongue whitish. General Mouth. A distressing burning dryness in the mouth and throat. Taste. Taste altered, almost sour. Sour taste and sour eructations, for a short time, almost like heartburn (second day). Peculiar, almost coppery taste on the lips and tongue, all the forenoon.
Throat
Some dull stitches posteriorly in the throat, always on drawing air through the nose, in the evening while lying in bed.
Stomach
Appetite slight. He has less appetite for his usual food, especially for his morning coffee, of which he is usually very fond (after 2 hours). Aversion to coffee, for two days.
Abdomen
Distension and feeling of heaviness in the lower abdomen, with emission of much flatus (after a quarter of an hour); afterwards eructations. Painless rumbling in the bowels. Flatulent troubles, which cause pressive pains in the pit of the stomach, and higher up under the sternum. As if in the chest, worse after physical exertion; relieved by emission of flatus or eructations (after nine hours). Some pains in the intestines during the last days of the proving. Slight pains in the abdomen, followed by three successive attacks of diarrhoea, with relief of the pain; the next morning he had a perfectly normal stool. The abdominal muscles become painfully contracted towards the spine.
Stool
The stool always consisted of isolated fecal masses evacuated with great exertion; and during the last days of the proving he had a constant desire to go to stool. Stool very indolent, only after effort, large, followed by a sensation as if there was still more to be evacuated, at 2 P.M. (after forty-eight hours). Stool retarded one day.
Urinary Organs
Micturition. Frequently at times, very distressing desire to urinate, with increased secretion from the mucous membrane of the urinary passages, as evinced by the turbidity of the urine and the copious deposit of slimy sediment. Profuse emission of urine which in spite of the heat of the summer amounted one day to 61 ounces, next day to 82 ounces, and the third day to 84 ounces. Urine. Urine became remarkably light-colored, and of a high specific gravity; at times turbid, and depositing a somewhat slimy sediment. An increased secretion of urine, in spite of perspiration, during very hot weather; the amount of urine exceeded that of the liquid taken; while previously and subsequently this relation was reversed, the specific gravity increased; when a drop of urine was allowed to fall upon paper, there remained iridescent crystalline scales. Specific gravity of the urine rose from 1005 (before taking) 1010, 1015, 1020 and at last 1025; the urine was previously reddish-yellow, now constantly became lighter colored; and soon after stopping the drug it resumed its dark color as before.
Chest
Pressive pains below the outer portion of the right pectoral muscle, as if between and on the ribs, on deep breathing and on every inspiration, while sitting bent over.
Pulse
Pulse normally 75, became slower, once 63. Pulse usually between 75 and 80, during the proving almost always less than 75, at times as low as 66; the normal tension of the pulse seemed to completely disappear during the last days of the proving. The pulse previous to the proving averaged 65, on the second day fell to 62, on the seventh day to 52, and during the whole proving remained below 60; after stopping the drug, it became more frequent, and returned to its normal after 5 days. Pulse before taking never above 60, after taking never above 50, and once only 40; six days after discontinuing the drug, it was 54, and after ten days, 58; previous to taking, the differences of the pulse between sitting and standing was from 10 to 15 beats; while taking it was only from 4 to 8 beats. The pulse, that was formerly large and full, became daily smaller and softer.
Extremities in General
A peculiar painful sensation in the joints and in the adductors of the thighs; which, however, showed no visible change. Pressive aching, like a bruised pain in the joints of the feet, toes, shoulders, fingers (after three-quarters of an hour.
Superior Extremities
Pressing asunder pains in the first joints of the right index and middle fingers.
General Symptoms
Before taking the drug, the blood was dark-red, thickish, containing a few colorless corpuscles, many elementary corpuscles; coagulated in eight minutes; the separation was very rapid, so that after an hour the clot did not seem much larger than after than fifteen hours; clot very firm; after taking saltpetre, the blood was of the color and consistence of cherry juice; numerous colorless corpuscles; coagulated in three minutes and thirty-three seconds; the separation of serum was somewhat slow, the clot not firm. Before the proving, the blood was dark red and thick, with rather numerous colorless corpuscles; coagulated in nine minutes; the clot firm and elastic; after taking the drug, the blood looked like cherry juice, contained numerous and very large colorless corpuscles; coagulated in four minutes and fifty-nine seconds. Before taking, the blood was dark red, contained numerous colorless corpuscles, coagulated in seven minutes and four seconds; clot firm and elastic; after taking the blood looked like cherry juice, contained fewer and very much larger colorless corpuscles; coagulated in six minutes and twenty-three seconds; the clot very soft and friable. Before taking the drug, blood dark-colored, containing rather numerous colorless corpuscles, mostly larger than the colored ones; coagulated in thirteen minutes and five seconds; clot firm; after taking the drug, blood lighter colored, containing very numerous large colored corpuscles; coagulating in seven minutes and fifteen seconds; clot very friable. Before the proving, the blood was bright-red, coagulated in 12 minutes and thirty six seconds; clot firm, elastic; afterwards, the blood looked like juice; the red corpuscles paler than normal; numerous colorless corpuscles; coagulated in six minutes and fifty seconds; clot soft, very friable. The color and consistence of the blood was changed, so that it became similar to cherry-juice; the number and size of the colorless corpuscles increased; the color of the red corpuscles became paler; the blood coagulated more rapidly; there was an increase of the water of the blood, and a corresponding diminution of the solids; decrease of fatty elements; increase of the inorganic salts of the serum (incinerated residue); diminished firmness and cohesion of the coagulum, diminution of its solid constituents, and increase of the inorganic salts. The result of one examination each time, before and after taking the drug, showed an increase of the water in the defibrinated blood, and also the serum; a diminution of the solid constituents of the defibrinated blood, as of the serum; a general diminution of the blood-corpuscles; diminution of albumen, and slight increase of the fibrin; increase of the soluble salts; less coagulum, and more serum. Weakness, with disinclination for mental and physical exertion. So great weakness that he could not walk far without resting repeatedly; increasing during the succeeding days, so that on the seventh day he could scarcely keep about. Weakness and exhaustion, especially in the knees, during a walk (after a small venesection); previous bloodletting had not affected him at all. An unusual sensation of exhaustion lasting sometime; it increased daily; aggravated by every motion, and going upstairs was especially very difficult. The weakness became so great that he was faint after slight exertion, in the evening (four days after the proving).
Sleep
Constant inclination for sleep, which did not refresh. Overpowering inclination to sleep had been noticed in proving on other persons.
Fever
Chilliness. A fine cold sensation of streams through the body, especially in the upper part and the arms; followed by increased warmth, after a quarter of an hour in bed. Shivering chill over the whole body, at times (first day). Diminished warmth, subjective and objective, of the feet, as far up as the calves (first day). Icy coldness of the left foot, extending half up the leg; noticed both in the warm room and while walking. Heat. The whole left concha became burning hot, (without any other cause), while the right remained cold; this sensation of heat soon extended over the left temple, and after awhile changed to pressive inward pain; after a time this sensation of heat extended to the right side of the head, especially to the outer ear, and from this point there extended a general heat over the face, with pressive pain in the left frontal eminence, in the afternoon.
Born in 1837in Westminster, Vermont. . He was an orthodox doctor who converted to homeopathy
Dr. Allen compiled the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica over the course of 10 years.
In 1881 Allen published A Critical Revision of the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica.