Argentum Nitricum – Homeopathic Medicine: Its Uses, Indications and Dosage

Argentum Nitricum is derived from a natural compound, the nitrate of silver. This compound is potentised (the process of preparing homeopathic medicines that arouses the medicinal power of a drug) to extract the homeopathic remedy. This remedy works wonders for treating cases of anxiety, anticipation and certain phobias (fear).

The ‘Argentum Nitricum’ Constitution

This medicine works well for people who are tired as a result of excessive and prolonged mental exertion. It also suits people of a nervous disposition, as  well as females experiencing menstrual problems.

Drug Action 

This medicine acts well on the mind, head, eyes, throat, gastric system, urinary organs, limbs, skin, male genitals and female genitals. 

It’s clinical use includes treatment of conditions like anticipation, anxiety, panic attacks, fear, eye complaints, headache, acidity, stomach ulcer, irritable bowel syndrome, laryngitis, incoordination, locomotor ataxia, and warts.

Scope as a Homeopathic Remedy

1. Mind (Anticipation, Anxiety, Fear, Panic Attacks)

This medicine has a marked action on the mind. It is a top grade medicine to manage cases of anticipatory anxiety. This sort of anxiety occurs from anticipation, which is the act of predicting something and excitement about something which is about to happen in future. For example, a person may feel anxious when they have an appointment with a doctor and start anticipating things that will happen during the appointment. Or a student may have anxiety about an examination that is going to be held in the future. Diarrhoea is another common occurrence that appears with such situations.
Other than this, it is a prominent medicine to help cases of performance anxiety like anxiety before giving a performance on stage. Panic attacks including sudden anxiety, fear, terror can be well managed with this medicine.

This remedy is also used to manage cases of fear. People requiring it may have different sorts of fears, like fear of heights, crowds, dark, high buildings (as if these would fall upon a person), flying in airplanes, or of death. Those who need it are very nervous, hurried and impulsive in behaviour. 

Key indicating features:

Anticipatory anxiety and performance anxiety
Anxiety with diarrhoea
Panic attacks

2. Head (Headache and Migraine)

This medicine is effective to manage headaches and migraines. The main symptoms of using it is headache resulting from mental exertion. Binding the head tightly may improve it. For migraine the most important indication is migraine that follows some sort of emotional disturbance. It is followed by weakness most times.

Key indicating features:

Headache after mental exertion
Migraine from emotional disturbance

3. Eyes (Conjunctivitis, Blepharitis, Eyestrain, Pterygium)

This medicine treats many eye complaints effectively. The most important among them is conjunctivitis that refers to an inflammation of the membrane lining the eyelid and eyeball. It is used when conjunctiva looks pink or red with excessive eye discharge. The discharge consists of mucus and pus. It is also indicated for cases of ophthalmia neonatorum means conjunctivitis of the newborn. Here excessive thick yellow pus discharge from eyes is the guiding feature. 
It can also be given in cases of blepharitis (inflamed eyelid edges). There is redness, thickness and swelling over the lid margins. Thick crusts on eyelids are prominent. Its use can also be considered in cases of eyestrain. The eyes feel tired along with aching. Person feels better by pressing or closing their eyes.
Besides these, it is valuable medicine to treat pterygium (abnormal tissue growth on conjunctiva) cases when tissue growth is pinkish coloured. 

Key indicating features:

Conjunctivitis with discharge of mucus and pus from eye
Ophthalmia neonatorum (conjunctivitis in newborn babies)
Blepharitis with redness, thickness and crusts on eyelid margins
Pterygium of pink colour

4. Throat (Laryngitis and Sore Throat)

With its action on the throat, it helps treat laryngitis (inflammation of larynx i.e. the voice box). Here, it is used when there is hoarseness of voice and sometimes loss of voice. Speaking in a high tone may trigger a cough. Itching and tickling in the larynx may occur. It is one of the best medicines for hoarse voices in those who overuse voices, for example singers. It also helps out cases of sore throat. The throat looks markedly red. There is excessive thick mucus in the throat accompanied with much hawking. The throat feels raw, sore and dry. Burning sensation occurs in the throat. A splinter sensation is felt in the throat when swallowing. 

Key indicating features:

Laryngitis with voice hoarseness
Hoarse voice from overusing as in singers
Sore throat with redness and thick mucus in throat

5. Gastric issues (Stomach Ulcers, Gastritis, Diarrhoea, Gas, Bloating)

This homeopathic medicine has a wide sphere of action on the gastric system. The gastric issues that can be well treated with it includes gastritis (stomach inflammation), stomach ulcers, burping, gas, bloating and diarrhoea. In gastritis it is most useful when it occurs from excessive alcohol intake.
If we talk of stomach ulcers, it is beneficial to manage stomach pain that worsens from eating. This is followed by vomiting. The pain can be burning, gnawing and ulcerating. It can radiate from the stomach to other parts of the abdomen. There is excessive gas in the stomach, often leading to loud burping. It causes bloating and a sensation as if the abdomen would burst.
In general there is excessive craving for sweets but it worsens the complaint. It is highly effective to manage diarrhoea (loose stool). It is an infallible medicine to manage nervous diarrhoea that occurs from emotional reasons like anxiety, anticipation, fright, nervousness. There occurs watery stool with noisy escape of gas. It is also indicated for diarrhoea with offensive green stool having mucus in it. Another guiding feature for using it is diarrhoea that results from eating excessive sugar. It is one of the best choices of homeopathic medicine to manage cases of IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). In such cases it helps when there is diarrhoea in persons who have anxieties and nervous personalities. 

Key indicating features:

Gastritis in alcoholics
Stomach ulcer with be burning, gnawing and ulcerating pain
Loud burpings
Nervous diarrhoea from emotional reasons like anxiety, anticipation, fright, nervousness
Diarrhoea from eating sugar in excess
Loose stool when it is offensive green with mucus in it
Irritable bowel syndrome  

6. Male Problems (Weak Erections, Painful Erections, Low Libido, Ulcers on Prepuce)

In males it can be used for cases of weak erections and low sexual desire. It is also an important medicine to manage painful erections. Other than these it can be given for cases of ulcers on prepuce. These are tiny in size and covered with pus, and have a tendency to spread.

Key indicating features:

Weak erections and decreased sexual desire
Painful erections
Ulcers on prepuce 

7. Female Problems (Painful Intercourse, Vaginal Discharge, Intermenstrual Bleeding)

There are various female problems that can be treated with Argentum Nitricum. This medicine works wonders in treating complaints of painful intercourse in women medically known as dyspareunia. Females may also have vaginal bleeding after coition.
Argentum Nitricum is useful for vaginal discharges. For using it the discharge is yellow, profuse mucus and may also be blood stained. Cervical ulcers may be present with vaginal discharge.
Lastly, it is used to treat metrorrhagia (intermenstrual bleeding). It is accompanied with pain in the ovaries. This pain radiates to the thigh and lower back. 

Key indicating features:

Painful intercourse
Vaginal bleeding after coition
Vaginal discharges that are yellow, profuse mucus, blood stained
Intermenstrual bleeding with pain in ovaries that radiates to thigh and lower back

8. Urinary Problems (Urethritis, Gonorrhoea, Urethral Stricture)

This medicine helps to solve many of the urinary concerns too. Among these, first is inflamed urethra (urethritis). In such conditions there is burning, pain and itching in the urethra.
It is also well-indicated to treat gonorrhoea (a sexually transmitted infection caused by bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae) in its early stage. There is cutting pain in the urethra, excessive urethral discharge bleeding. It is beneficial for urethral stricture cases. The urine passes in a weak or divided stream. 

Key indicating features:

Urethra inflammation with burning, pain and itching
Gonorrhoea in early stages
Urethral stricture with weak or divided urinary stream

9. Limbs (Locomotor Ataxia, Calf Muscle Pain and Rigidity)

Coming to this section this medicine works well for locomotor ataxia (lack of muscle coordination of voluntary movement like walking). Persons needing it have staggering gait. They have unsteady walking and standing. They reel while walking in the dark. Lower limbs feel weak. Another characteristic is rigidity of calf muscles or its weakness. The legs feel heavy as if made of wood. Calf pain is there especially at night time. 

Key indicating features:

Locomotor ataxia with unsteady walking and standing
Rigidity, weakness and pain in calf muscles

10. Skin (Warts, Skin Ulcers, Bedsores, Herpes Zoster)

This remedy acts on skin and treats many complaints. It  includes warts (small bumps on skin caused by human papillomavirus). Second is skin ulcers that are deep rooted and the margins are hard. Bedsores and herpes zoster (a viral infection caused by varicella – zoster virus that causes skin blisters with pain, burning and sensitivity) are the other complaints that are treated with this remedy.

Key indicating features:

Warts
Skin ulcers that are deep with hard margins

Modalities

Worsening Factors: Complaints get worse from eating sweets, cold food, excessive mental exertion, anxiety, fear, worries.

Relieving Factors: complaints are better in fresh air, from hard pressure, cold bathing.

Dosage

Homeopathic medicine Argentum Nitricum works well in both low to high potencies. Generally in mind complaints, high potency of medicines is preferred. When using it in low potency it can be repeated often but in high potency, frequent repetition should be subjected to a physician’s discretion. 

Relationship with Other Remedies

Antidoted by: Arsenic Album and Natrum Mur

Antidotes: Calcarea Carb, Lycopodium, Phosphorus, Pulsatilla, Sepia and Silicea

Follows well: Bryonia, Causticum, Spigelia and Spongia

Followed well by Lycopodium