Bacillinum Burnett

Excerpted from Materia Medica of Nosodes and Sarcodes -by Dr. Gaurang Gaikwad

 The lesser used Nosode! Bacillinum Burnett is what I would love to call it because Burnett was the person who actually started using this remedy.
Bacillinum is a Nosode formed from the lung of tuberculosis, first described by Burnett.

Bacillinum is actually a maceration of a portion of the lung of an individual who died of pulmonary tuberculosis, containing the bacilli, ptomaine and tubercles in all stages. “…which I have ventured to call ‘Bacillinum’ as the bacilli were proved to be the preparation.” (Burnett)

It does not only contain tubercular bacilli but it contains other bacilli as well, and, that is why Bacillinum is called as the “Broad Spectrum Nosode”. Therefore, you will see that the sphere of action of Bacillinum is much more than that of Tuberculinum.

(Tuberculinum is a remedy found by Kent and therefore it is called  Tuberculinum Kent. It is formed from the tuberculous lung and especially the tubercular part. While Bacillinum contains both Tubercular and Atubercular bacilli.)

The main person who started working on it was Burnett, then Clarke and later on Dr. Sankaran, my guru, did a lot of provings with it.

Before we start with Bacillinum, let us see the genius of Bacillinum. Bacillinum is used very unhomoeopathically and still we get good results with Bacillinum and what if we use it artistically, medically, scientifically to learn how to use it in a better way. And that is why we are going to learn the picture of Bacillinum.

The main idea/genius of Bacillinum is hectic pace, changeability, suffocation, deformed/dwarfed structure, chronic catarrh, offensive pathology and a tubercular taint/miasm.

One of the main things about Bacillinum is a lot of lung pus, infection, wheezing, rattling. One of the main things is that patient is not able to expectorate that much. I often use Bacillinum when Antim tart. and Kali-c fails.

• Chest; INFLAMMATION; lungs, pneumonia
• Respiration; WHEEZING, whistling
• Respiration; RATTLING
• Expectoration; DIFFICULT
• Expectoration; GREENISH; yellow
• Expectoration; PURULENT; tuberculosis of lungs, in

The other main important thing where Bacillinum is used is in eczema around the eyes and in ringworm.

• Eyes; ERUPTIONS; eczema; lids

There is also another very important use of Bacillinum in tuberculosis of the abdomen/glands.

• Abdomen; TUBERCULOSIS; mesenterics, lymphatic tissue
• Abdomen; INFLAMMATION; lymphatic tissue; mesenteric

Clinically, whenever you see in the lung a lot of wheezing and in the X-ray a lot of congestion and you see in the blood test a lot of poly- bacillary reports, you see different bacteria; even if it is not tuberculosis, think about the first remedy Bacillinum.

Proving by Dr. Sankaran showed the main state of Bacillinum as “HECTIC” that is, I have to do so many things. My life is so hectic. I want to do this, I want to do that. This is the hectic pace of Bacillinum where the main idea is ‘Time is less and I have to do more.’ You will also see the idea of suffocation.

Especially in cases for recurrent cold, Bacillinum is a top remedy. When patients say “I get cold and cough especially coryza especially when I get up in the morning.”

• Nose; CORYZA; morning; agg.
• Nose; CORYZA; morning; agg.; rising, on
• Nose; CORYZA; cold; taking a
• Nose; CORYZA; chronic, prolonged
• Nose; CORYZA; recurrent
• Nose; DISCHARGE; green; morning
• Respiration; ASTHMATIC; hay asthma

One of the very important symptoms of Bacillinum is a lot of tooth pain, caries, tartar teeth, serrated teeth, yellow teeth. If you see patients with yellow teeth, start with Bacillinum.

• Teeth; PAIN, toothache; wrapping up head amel.
• Teeth; PAIN, toothache; warmth; amel.
• Teeth; PAIN, toothache; upper; right
• Teeth; SERRATED
• Teeth; TARTAR
• Teeth; CARIES, decayed, hollow
• Teeth; CARIES, decayed, hollow; sides, edges; outer, lateral

Also, remember Bacillinum is not for an acute infection, it is for the recurrent. We are trying to remove the disease from the root. So, when you see a recurrent condition, remember Bacillinum.

• Generalities; RELAPSE of complaints

Even in bad cases of Asthma, where Arsenic has failed, and we are thinking Arsenic, the main remedy is Bacillinum.

Bacillinum is very useful in cases of dysmenorrhea, in infertility, in miscarriages, I use Bacillinum.

• Female; ABORTION; tendency to
• Female; CONCEPTION; easy
• Female; MENSES; painful, dysmenorrhea
• Female; MENSES; protracted, prolonged
• Female; SEXUAL, libido; desire; increased
• Female; SEXUAL, libido; desire; violent
• Female; INFLAMMATION; ovaries, ovaritis

But the best use of Bacillinum is in coughs, especially bad cough, dry cough, very spasmodic dry cough from the larynx in the sleep, remember Bacillinum.

• Cough; AIR; open; amel.
• Cough; EATING; while
• Cough; ITCHING, from; larynx, in
• Cough; CONVULSIVE, spasmodic
• Cough; DRY; constant, almost
• Cough; SUDDEN, paroxysmal; morning; rising, on or after
• Cough; TICKLING
• Cough; TICKLING; from; larynx, in
• Cough; SLEEP; during
• Cough; SLEEP; during; disturb, does not

One very typical keynote, I check the palms. If the patient’s palms are sticky, cold and there is perspiration more than Silica, think about Bacillinum.

• Extremities; PERSPIRATION; cold; sticky, feet
• Extremities; PERSPIRATION; sticky; hands

In cases with a history of lot of warts, think about Bacillinum.

• Extremities; WARTS; lower limbs
• Extremities; WARTS; feet
• Extremities; WARTS; feet; soles

Some very important things about Bacillinum: All the symptoms of Bacillinum are aggravated after they get up in the morning.

Confirmatory symptoms of Bacillinum:

• Shiny nails
• Hairy back
• Yellow teeth
• History of recurrent ringworm
• Past history of tuberculosis
• Irritable, snappish and uncivil children

One of the main things about Bacillinum is that they can often be very snappish and they don’t want to answer your questions. One of the main things is they constantly want to change, even wants to change doctors frequently. And with that they are extremely critical, complaining. There is a constant feeling that something wrong has happened with them. They also get dreams of running and exhaustion, which again shows the main genius of Bacillinum – Hectic.

They just don’t want to meet a doctor. Along with this they have a lot of fear of dogs which is a tubercular miasm feature, especially fear of black dogs is often seen in Bacillinum patients.

Even in psychiatric cases, they will come close to Tuberculinum. They will start hitting their head or tear their hair.

• Mind; ANSWER, answering, answers; snappishly
• Mind; ANSWER, answering, answers; aversion to; refuses to
• Mind; CHANGE; desire for; constantly
• Mind; CHANGE; desire for; doctor, of his
• Mind; CENSORIOUS, critical
• Mind; COMPLAINING; bitter
• Mind; DELUSIONS, imaginations; wrong; suffered, has
• Mind; DREAMS; exhausting
• Mind; DREAMS; running
• Mind; DOCTOR, practitioner, aversion to one’s
• Mind; FEAR; dogs, of
• Mind; STRIKING; oneself; knocking his head against things
• Mind; TEARS; himself, herself; hair, his

Dr. Sarkar uses Bacillinum in 1M potency in bladder cancer and in cases of cerebral palsy with stunted growth and low understanding.

Dr. B.N. Chakroborty from Kolkata would use Bacillinum in lung cancer and sarcoidosis of lung with good results.

Bacillinum is known to be complementary to Kali carb and Calc-phos.