Carbo Animalis


Dr. S.R. Phatak describes the clinically confirmed symptoms of the homeopathic remedy Carbo Animalis in his Concise Materia Medica, published in 1977….


Generalities

      Carb-an. or animal charcoal is made from charred ox-hide; it contains Calc-p. in small quantity. It is suitable to old persons of feeble constitution or to those persons whose vitality becomes low on account of some serious, or deep seated diseased condition, or loss of fluids. Patients are susceptible to colds and easy sprains. They are over affected by small vital losses. On account of venous stasis, the skin becomes blue. Glands enlarge, slowly and painfully, and become indurated burning like fire. Tendency to malignancy. Ulcerations, decompositions. Discharges are acrid and foul. Sensations; of looseness; crawling as of bugs. Gummae. Neglected buboes. Weakness of nursing women, they weep while eating, unable to walk even across the room. Stitch remaining after pleurisy. Haemorrhages. Copper coloured eruptions. Slow, hard, painful processes. More deep- acting than Carbo-veg. Ill effects of eating spoiled fish or decayed vegetables.

Better

      Laying hand on affected part.

Worse

      Slight causes; small losses of vital fluids, sprains, lifting. Taking cold. Dry, cold air. After menses. Shaving. EATING; while.

Mind

      Whining. Desire to be alone. Sad and reflective. Avoids conversation. Weeps during meals. Easily frightened. Homesick. Fear of the dark, worse closing eyes.

Head

      Brain feels loose worse motion and coughing. As if skull had been split or blown to pieces; must press it with both hands, better eating. Throbbing headache after menses. Vertigo followed by nosebleed. Vertigo; after shaving, better reeling.

Eyes

      Pains down through (right) eyeball. Sensation as if something lay above eyes, so that she could not look up. As if eyeball were loose in the socket. Objects seem to be far off. Dimness of vision when reading, better rubbing eyes. Senile cataract.

Ears

      Does not know from what direction the sound comes. Ringing in ears, when blowing the nose. Parotid gland swollen. Lancinating pain. Otorrhoea, with swelling of mastoid.

Nose

      Hard, red, swelled, hot, with itching pimples and desquamation. Brown stripe across the nose. Hard, bluish tumours on tip of nose. Fluent coryza; with loss of smell; with yawning and sneezing.

Face

      Bluish cheeks and lips. Copper coloured eruptions. Acne. Large number of pimples.

Mouth

      Knotty indurations in the tongue. Bites cheeks while eating. Teeth loose worse chewing and least cold. Toothache better eating salty things.

Throat

      Raw feeling like heartburn better eating.

Stomach

      Eating causes fatigue. Saltish water runs from the mouth. Retching; vomiting; hiccough; cancer. Faint gone feeling in stomach not better by eating; in suckling women. All food distresses the stomach. Nausea from smoking, which causes aversion to tobacco. Digestion weak. Nausea worse at night; of pregnancy. Sensation of coldness around the stomach better rubbing and pressure.

Abdomen

      Great distension; after operation. As of a hard body in groin (left) worse sitting better pressure and passing flatus. Neglected bubo. Anus sore. Moisture; oozing from anus; and on perineum. Feeling of coldness rising into the throat. Induration of pancreas.

Male

      Syphilis. Bubo.

Female

      Menses; dark, clotted, putrid, flow in morning only; followed by great exhaustion; so weak can hardly speak. Right ovary seems a heavy ball. Leucorrhoea; watery; burning, biting. worse walking or standing; stains linen yellow. Cancer uteri; burning pain down thighs; pelvic bones pain on sitting. Indurated os, with burning. Darting pains in mammae, while nursing, arresting breathing. Painful induration in breast (right). Hard painful nodes in breast. Uterine haemorrhage, with affections of glands. Lochia; long lasting, thin offensive, with numb limbs.

Respiratory organs

      Suffocation on closing eyes. Nervous dyspnoea. Ulceration of lungs, with feeling of coldness in lungs. Cough with discharge of greenish pus. Stitch remaining after pleurisy. Sputum, dark, brown tough, syrup-like.

Heart

      Palpitation when hearing singing in church, or in public places. Coldness in precordial region, with horripilation.

Neck and Back:

      Coccyx feels bruised, burns when touched worse sitting or lying. Coldness and aching in lumbar region, with cough.

Extremities

      Axillary glands, swollen; indurated. Ankles turn easily. Hands numb, with chest affections. Joints weak, easy dislocation.

Skin

      Bluish; affected part. Spongy ulcers. Copper coloured eruptions. Unsightly scars from eruptions.

Sleep

      Full of vivid fancies; Talks, groans, sheds tears in sleep.

Fever

      Surgings or hot flushes. Sweat; foul, exhausting, at night, staining yellow.

Related

      Calc-f; Graphites

Complementary

      Calc-p.

S.R. Phatak
A pioneer of Homoeopathy in Maharashtra, Dr Shankar Raghunath Phatak was born on 6th September, 1896. He did his MBBS from Grant Medical College, in 1924. Started his practice but somehow not satisfied with Allopathic Treatment.

He was convinced about Homoeopathy while going through Sir William Osler's writings on 'History of Medicine' so switched over to an entirely Homoeopathic Practice in 1932. He also started working on Homoeopathic literature along with his Practice.

He has contributed immensely to homoeopathic literature. He was an ardent follower of Dr Boger. His Repertory is based on Boger's ''A Synoptic key to Materia Medica'.