Rheum palmatum
as H.C. Allen recorded it in Keynotes and Characteristics with Comparisons of Some of the Leading Remedies of the Materia Medica, 1899
Rhubarb
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Keynotes
Rheum
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 ; dislikes even favorite playthings (Cina, Staph.).
Sweat of scalp, constant, profuse ; whether asleep or awake, quiet or in motion, the hair is always wet; may or may not be sour (Cal., Sanic.).
Difficult dentition; child restless, irritable, peevish, with pale face and sour smell (Kreos., Cham.).
Desires various kinds of food but cannot eat them, become repugnant.
Colic: < at once by uncovering an arm or leg; with very sour stool; < when standing; not > by stool.
milk disagrees and child has sour odor.
Compare: Cham., Col., Hep., Ipec., Magn. c.. Pod., Staph., Sulph.
May be given after abuse of Magnesia, with or without rhubarb, if stools are sour.
What the other books say about Rheum palmatum
The same remedy read by a different author. They disagree, and the disagreements are where the remedy becomes recognisable.
- Rheum palmatum in Boericke — The concise clinical Materia Medica that most Indian colleges teach from, in full.
- Rheum palmatum in Boger — A compressed key — the generals and the characteristic modalities, with very little narrative.
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Cite this page. H.C. Allen. Keynotes and Characteristics with Comparisons of Some of the Leading Remedies of the Materia Medica. 3rd edition (1910). Philadelphia: Boericke & Tafel. Rheum palmatum — Keynotes, p. 240. HomeopathyWorld, https://homeopathyworld.in/materia-medica/books/allen/rheum-palmatum. Published 1910: public domain in the US (before 1931) and in India (author died 1909). Replaces B. Jain's 2005 "rearranged and classified" edition (© the publisher), per the owner's decision of 13 Sep 2026. Reproduced as the author wrote it; a historical reference for students and practitioners, not medical advice.