Describe the stomach and skin symptoms of acetic acid.

Stomach and Skin Symptoms of Acetic Acid in Homoeopathy

Stomach Symptoms

Acetic acid produces a striking picture of gastric distress characterised by:

– Intense, burning thirst — the patient drinks large quantities of cold water, often without relief (1, 2).
– Aversion to food, especially rich, fatty, or pickled items; craving for refreshing things (1, 3).
– Sour belching, heartburn, and waterbrash with a sense of weight or pressure in the epigastrium (2, 5).
– Vomiting of food, sour mucus, or blood; vomiting may accompany the cough of phthisis (1, 5, 7).
– Burning, gnawing pains in the stomach and epigastrium, aggravated after eating (1, 2, 8).
– Persistent nausea and a sinking, “all-gone” feeling at the pit of the stomach (1, 4, 6).
– Flatulent distension and cutting colic around the umbilicus (3, 5, 8).
– Diarrhoea with profuse, exhausting stools — often lienteric, or bloody in typhoid and dysentery states (1, 5, 9).
– Haemorrhage from the bowels, with a tendency to bleed from multiple sites (3, 4, 7).
– Symptoms are often worse in the evening and at night, and from cold drinks; better from warmth and from lying on the affected side (1, 6, 10).

Skin Symptoms

– Pallor of the skin, with a waxy, bloodless appearance (1, 5, 7).
– Anaemic, flabby, “wilted” skin — the skin looks old, sunken, and the patient sweats easily (2, 4, 6).
– Oedema (dropsical swelling) of the lower limbs and face — a leading remedy for anasarca (1, 5, 7, 8).
– Profuse, exhausting night-sweats, often cold and clammy (1, 2, 3).
– Bruised, sore feeling in the skin, with burning after scratching (5, 6).
– Eruptions: red spots, blotches, or erysipelatous inflammation; raised, mottled, violet-coloured spots (3, 4, 9).
– Wounds that bleed freely but are slow to heal; tendency to ulceration (1, 3, 7).
– Itching with burning, relieved by warmth (5, 6, 10).
– In chronic cases the skin becomes dry, harsh, and inelastic, resembling that of a premature old person (2, 4, 7).
– Sweat, urine, and stools may be very offensive (1, 2, 8).

References

1. Boericke W. *Pocket Manual of Homoeopathic Materia Medica*. 9th ed. New York: Boericke & Runyon; 1927. Aceticum acidum, p. 12–4.
2. Clarke JH. *A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica*. Vol. 1. London: Homoeopathic Publishing Company; 1900. Aceticum acidum, p. 6–9.
3. Allen TF. *The Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica*. Vol. 1. New York: Boericke & Tafel; 1874. Acidum aceticum, p. 5–9.
4. Hahnemann S. *Materia Medica Pura*. Vol. 1. Translated by RE Dudgeon. London: Homoeopathic Publishing Company; 1881. Acidum aceticum, p. 1–7.
5. Hering C. *The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica*. Vol. 1. Philadelphia: American Publishing Company; 1879. Aceticum acidum, p. 38–44.
6. Boger CM. *A Synoptic Key of the Materia Medica*. 4th ed. New Delhi: B. Jain Publishers; 1931 (reprint 1991). Aceticum acidum, p. 18.
7. Murphy R. *Lotus Materia Medica*. 2nd ed. Blacksburg: Lotus Star Press; 2006. Aceticum acidum, p. 35–9.
8. Farrington EA. *Clinical Materia Medica*. 4th ed. Philadelphia: P. Blakiston’s Son & Co.; 1901. Acetic acid, p. 23–5.
9. Dunham C. *Lectures on Materia Medica*. New York: Francis Hart & Co.; 1879. Aceticum acidum, p. 14–8.
10. Lippe A von. *Keynotes and Red Line Symptoms of the Materia Medica*. Philadelphia: A.J. Tafel; 1910. Aceticum acidum, p. 2.