Stannum appears in 12 of the 13 classic books on Similia. Each was written to do a different job — here is what each adds on this remedy, with the opening of its entry.
- Allen HC — The keynotes that separate this remedy from its nearest neighbours.
“(Tin) Tin. (The Element.) Extreme exhaustion of mind and body. Sinking, empty, all-gone sensation in stomach (Chel., Phos., Sep.). Sad, despondent, feels like crying all the time , but crying makes her worse (Nat. m., Puls., Sep.); faint and weak, especially when going down stairs ; can go up well enough (Bor., - rev…”
- Allen TF — The raw proving record — symptoms as the provers reported them, unedited.
“The element, Tin. Preparation , Trituration of the pure metal. Authorities. (Nos. 1 to 12 , from Hahnemann, Chr. Kn.)”
- Boericke — The quick clinical read — keynotes, modalities and the conditions it is actually prescribed in.
“Tin (STANNUM) Chief action is centered upon the nervous system and respiratory organs. Debility is very marked when Stannum is the remedy, especially the debility of chronic bronchial and pulmonary conditions, characterized by profuse muco-purulent discharges upon tuberculosis basis. Talking causes a very weak feeling…”
- Boger (Syn) — Generals and modalities in a short analytical portrait rather than a symptom list.
“NERVES. MUCOUS MEMBRANES. CHEST. FEMALE ORGANS. Using voice. Cold. 10 A.M. MOTION: After. Gentle. Lying on right side. Ascending steps. Rapid motion. Hard pressure; over an edge. Expectoration. Repeated short attacks. EXTREME WEAKNESS; hard pressure and stool, which exhausts. Child wants to be carried over shoulder…”
- Clarke — The widest entry — sources, provings, clinical uses, relationships and antidotes in one place.
“Tin. Sn. (A. W., 118.8) Trituration of the pure metal. Anæmia / Asthma / Bronchitis / Chilblains / Colic / Consumption / Convulsions / Cramps / Debility / Dentition / Diaphragm, pains in / Dyspepsia / Ears, ring-holes, ulceration of / Epilepsy / Epistaxis / Gastralgia / Hæmatemesis / Hæmoptysis / Headache / Hectic…”
- Hering — Graded symptoms, each weighted by how often provers and practice confirmed it.
“Tin. The Element. Trituration of the pure metal. Introduced by Hahnemann, proved by himself, Franz, Gross, Guttmann, Hartmann, Haynel, Herrmann, Langhammer, Wislicenus, Chronische Krankh., vol. 5. CLINICAL AUTHORITIES. Headache , Dudgeon, B. J. H, vol. 29, p. 610 ; Schrön, B. J. H., vol. 11, p. 301 ; Rück. Kl. Erf…”
- Kent — The mental and general picture — who the patient is, before what the remedy cures.
“Stannum is especially suited to persons who have long been growing feeble. This is so striking that it may be said that some deep seated constitutional state must be present. There is a history of increasing weakness, cachexia, catarrhal conditions, and neuralgia dating back over years. There is sensitiveness to pain…”
- Lippe (KN) — Only the symptoms Lippe considered reliable enough to prescribe on.
“Weakness in the extremities. Pressing, drawing and burning heat in the limbs. Marked weakness with trembling which is felt more when moving slowly. Continued use of the voice proves enervating. Emaciation with a gone feeling at the epigastrium. Hysterical and hypochondrical spasms with pain in the abdomen and in the…”
- Lippe (MM) — The strict Hahnemannian reading — the symptom picture without clinical interpretation.
“Great anxiety and restlessness. Irritable sadness, with aversion to men, and disinclination to talk; hopelessness. Vertigo, it seems as if all the objects were too far distant. Painful jerk through the (left) temple, forehead and cerebellum, leaving a dull pressure, worse during rest, better from motion. Burning in…”
- Lippe (Red) — Keynotes with the most-trusted ones marked as red-line symptoms.
“Common name: tin. Burning in the palms of the hands and soles of the feet (Lach., Sulph.). Weakness in the extremities (Ars., Bry., Calc., Gels., Kali-P., Lyc.). Pressing, drawing and burning heat in the limbs. Marked weakness with trembling, which is felt more when moving slowly. So weak she drops into a chair…”
- Nash — The comparisons — the remedy set beside the ones it is most often confused with.
“Sinking, empty, all-gone sensation in stomach (Chel., Phos., Sep.). Sad, despondent, feels like crying all the time, but crying makes her worse; faint and weak, especially when going downstairs; can go up well enough. Colic > by hard pressure, or by laying abdomen across knee or on shoulder (Col.); lumbrici; passes…”
