Rheum Officinale appears in 11 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.
“Rhubarb. (Polygonaceae) Suitable for children, especially during dentition. Sour smell of the whole body; child smells sour, even after washing or bathing (Hep., Mag. c.). Screaming of children with urging and sour stools. Children cry and toss about all night (Psor.). Child impatient, desires many things, and cries…”
- Allen TF — The raw proving record — symptoms as the provers reported them, unedited.
“Rheum officinale, Baillon. Natural order , Polygonaceæ. Common names , Rhubarb, Rhabarber. Preparation , Trituration of the dry root. Authorities. (Nos. 1 to 14 , from Hahnemann). Delirium, 7. Mental excitement, 15. The child impatiently desires many different things and cries, 1. Moaning, anxiety, ill-humor, 1…”
- Boericke — The quick clinical read — keynotes, modalities and the conditions it is actually prescribed in.
“Rhubarb (RHEUM) Of frequent use in children with sour diarrhœa; difficult dentition. Whole child smells sour . Impatient and vehement; desires many things and cries ( Cina ). Sweat on hairy scalp; constant and profuse. Cool sweat on the face, especially about mouth and nose . Much saliva. Sensation of coolness in…”
- Boger (GA) — Which general headings this remedy belongs under — the analytical scaffolding.
“FOAMY, frothy LYING, bent or doubled up, Amel. SOURNESS”
- Clarke — The widest entry — sources, provings, clinical uses, relationships and antidotes in one place.
“officinale. R. palmatum. Rhabarbarum. Rhubarb (though called "Turkey-rhubarb," the root comes from China, the exact species yielding it not being certainly known). N. O. Polygonaceæ. Tincture and trituration of the dried root. [A tincture of the fresh leaves and young stalks should be investigated.] Ardor urinæ /…”
- Hering — Graded symptoms, each weighted by how often provers and practice confirmed it.
“Rhubarb. Polygonaceæ. Provings by Hahnemann, Gross, Hornburg, Rückert, Teuthorn, etc. See Allen's Encyclopædia, vol. 8, p. 303 . CLINICAL AUTHORITIES. Headache , Fuller, Hah. Mo., vol. 20, p. 539 ; Difficult dentition , Tuller, Hah. Mo., vol. 20, p. 538 ; Renal affections , Tuller, Hah. Mo., vol. 20, p. 542 ; Diarrhœa…”
- Lippe (KN) — Only the symptoms Lippe considered reliable enough to prescribe on.
“All joints are painful when moving. Bubbling sensation as from bubbles in the muscles and joints. The limbs on which one lies go to sleep. Debility and heaviness in the whole body as if he was awakened from a heavy sleep. Especially suitable for children, during lactation and dentition. Cool perspirations (around the…”
- Lippe (MM) — The strict Hahnemannian reading — the symptom picture without clinical interpretation.
“Restlessness, with inclination to weep. The child demands various things with vehemence and weeping. Indolent and taciturn. Heaviness in the head, with heat rising to it. Dull, stupefying headache, with bloated eyes. Pulsation in the head, ascending from the abdomen. Pulsation in the eyes. Swimming eyes, full of…”
- Lippe (Red) — Keynotes with the most-trusted ones marked as red-line symptoms.
“Common name: rhubarb. Especially suitable for children, during lactation and dentition (Calc., Calc-P., Mag-C., Pod., Sil., Sulph) We use this remedy most particularly for sour-smelling children; stools, vomit, breath-all smell sour (G.). Nightly sleeplessness with loping about and crying. All joints are painful when…”
- Nash — The comparisons — the remedy set beside the ones it is most often confused with.
“Is another remedy which, like Jalapa, has been abused by the old school, but is very valuable when used homœopathically. The leading indication is sour stools. They may be brown mixed with mucus, or thin and pasty. There is often much pain before the stool, of a colicky nature, and there may be tenesmus after stool…”
