Spongia Tosta


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


Generalities

      Toasted sponge contains small percentage of iodine. It affects the HEART esp. valves; larynx; trachea and glands esp. ductless. It is suited to fair haired women and children, of LAX FIBRE, flabby and scrofulous constitutions. Exhaustion and heaviness of the body, with slight exertion; he must lie down; with orgasms of blood to chest, face etc. Feels stuffed up. Hard swelling; of glands, (ductless). Numbness lower half of the body. Dryness; of mucous membranes; of tongue; larynx; trachea, throat. Clothes feel uncomfortable. Anxiety, with pain in the region of heart or dyspnoea. Stiff, without ability to move. Faint, when losing her breath, on raising hands above head.

Worse

      DRY, COLD; wind. Roused from sleep. After sleep. Exertion. Raising the arms. Before 12 p.m. Full moon. Sweets.

Better

      Lying with head low. Eating or drinking; a little. Warm things. Descending.

Mind

      Irresistible desire to sing; with excessive mirth; followed by sadness. Fear of future; tired of life. Anxiety, fear of death; with suffocation. Timidity, fear and terror. Weeps; with the dreams; with whooping cough, with heat, with sweat. Despondent about loss of sexual power. Obstinate and improper behaviour.

Head

      As if hair were standing on end, on vertex.

Eyes

      Protrude; staring. Diplopia better lying down. Red, with lachrymation and burning.

Nose

      Dry coryza; nose feels stuffed up. Nose pinched; cold. Nostrils wide open; fan like motion.

Face

      Terrified; anxious expression. Blue lips. Pale, from exercise instead of ruddy glow. Cold sweat on chin. Chin numb.

Mouth

      Tongue; dry, brown. Taste sweetish.

Throat

      Taste bitter. Thyroid gland swollen; even with the chin. Soreness of the throat worse eating sweet things. Clears throat constantly. Throat symptoms better lying on back. Goitre; with suffocative spells; worse touching neck, or pressure; or pains with heart. Swallows water in small quantity and with difficulty. Numb externally.

Stomach

      Thirst with hunger. Cannot bear tight clothing around. Stomach feels flaccid as if standing open. Desire for dainties. Craving at stomach; before menses.

Abdomen

      Violent action of abdominal muscles during inspiration. Viscera drawn up against diaphragm. Pain in abdomen instead of menses.

Male

      Painful swelling of spermatic cord and testicles. Screwing, squeezing or stitches up into cord and testes. Testes hard and swollen. Genitals hot. Fistulous opening in scrotum with little thick white discharge.

Female

      Awakes with suffocative spells during menses. Asthma with absent menses. Hunger and palpitation of heart before menses. Pain in sacrum before menses or instead of menses.

Respiratory

      HOARSENESS; with many complaints; cough, coryza etc. Larynx; painful, dry, constricted worse touch, singing, talking or swallowing, he grasps it. SUFFOCATION, as from a plug, valve or leaf in larynx; wakes him; with violent painful palpitation and blue lips; with heavy sweat. Noisy, whistling inspiration on falling to sleep. Anxious, gasping breathing. COUGH; HOLLOW; BARKING; CROWING; SAWING OR TIGHT; CROUPY; wakes him; then burning in chest and throat worse cold drinks or excitement sweets, drinking cold milk, better drinking or eating esp. warm things. Voice gives way when singing or talking. Feels as if he had to breathe through a dry sponge. Chest weak; can scarcely talk; choking on falling to sleep. Asthma. Diphtheria. Croup. Profuse mucus expectoration; difficult to raise, swallows it again; smelling like milk. Tuberculosis beginning in apex. Fullness in chest. Oppression of breathing better eating a little. Asthma must throw head back; worse full moon. As if air were passing into glands of neck on breathing. Goitre.

Heart

      Violent palpitation with dyspnoea; awakes suddenly at night with pain and suffocation, with fear and terror. Blood surging up to neck, head and face; with closure of eyelids and tears. Valvular insufficiency. Aneurism of aorta. Rheumatic endocarditis. Hypertrophy of heart with asthmatic symptoms. Pulse frequent, hard, full or feeble. Angina pectoris.

Neck and Back

      Neck as if a cord about. Pain in sacrum, instead of menses.

Extremities

      Fingertips numb. Numbness of lower half of the body. Thighs numb and cold. Pain in the knees, when rising from kneeling. Thickening of joints after rheumatic fever.

Sleep

      Awakes in fright and feels as if suffocating; with terror and fear.

Fever

      Heat; in flushes; with anxiety; cardiac pain, would rather die; with cold moist thighs; worse thinking of it. Heat and sudden weakness after walking in open air, he must lie down.

Skin

      Swelling and induration of glands. Biting itching of the whole body.

Related

      Iod; Ledum

Complementary

      Hepar

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'.