Sulphur.

Other tomes: Potter

Preparations: Precipitated sulphur, flower of sulphur and sulphur lotum or washed sulphur.

Properties: Antiseptic, parasiticide and laxative.

Physiological action: If given in large doses, breath will have the odor of sulphur and it will also be excreted through the pores with perspiration staining the underwear yellow. If used for some time, it will produce general muscular weakness, anemia and impair the blood in general. May also produce eruptions of the skin, eczema, etc., if used too long.

Indications: A change or want of pigment of skin and hair. Dirty, sallow, brownish skin with bluish urine. Rapid loss of color in hair may indicate sulphur. Persistent cough, mucous rales, sputum tough and hard to raise if accompanied by foregoing indications or some. of them. In cramps in calf of legs, especially after going to bed, in old and middle aged women. For internal use the trituration of sulphur lotum is preferable.

Use: In dyspepsia of scrofulous persons, with bad breath and bad taste, and a feeling of fullness in the stomach after meals. As a laxative it is useful in cases where there is deficient intestinal secretion with hard and impacted feces. Of use in rectal ulcers, fissures and hemorrhoids. A good remedy in many skin diseases if indicated. In scabies it is our best remedy. In many cases of anemic condition it is indicated. Where iron has not the desired effect use sulphur or both. Sulphur, iron and lime assist to make red blood corpuscles; if sulphur is lacking, iron will not relieve anemic conditions. In falling out of hair it will often act promptly, especially if alternated with silica. In sterility with cutaneous eruptions and where there is no congenital or organic cause it acts well. In case where iron is needed but desired effects not obtained if alternated with small doses of sulphur happy results are often obtained. The average dose is about 2 to 5 grains of the 1st trituration 1 to 3 times a day.

The Materia Medica and Clinical Therapeutics, 1905, was written by Fred J. Petersen, M.D.