During internship, most of your clinical exposure happens in acute cases — fever, cough, diarrhea, injury, headache, food poisoning, allergic reactions, and seasonal infections. While constitutional prescribing is the foundation of homeopathy, mastering acute remedies builds speed, confidence, and practical skill.
According to the principles laid down in the Organon of Medicine by Samuel Hahnemann, acute diseases require rapid, gentle, and effective management. As an intern, you must be ready to recognize remedy pictures quickly and prescribe intelligently.
This blog lists the Top 20 Acute Remedies every homeopathic intern should master, along with their key clinical indications.
Why Acute Remedy Knowledge Is Important During Internship
- Most OPD cases are acute.
- Acute prescribing improves clinical confidence.
- It sharpens remedy differentiation skills.
- It prepares you for emergency and first-aid situations.
- It helps you understand remedy response and follow-up management.
Now let us explore the essential acute remedies.
1. Aconitum napellus
Indicated in sudden onset conditions after exposure to cold dry wind or fright. High fever with anxiety, restlessness, and fear of death. Useful in early stages of acute inflammation.
Common uses: sudden fever, coryza, acute anxiety states.
2. Belladonna
Sudden, violent inflammation with redness, heat, throbbing pain. Face flushed, pupils dilated, high fever with bounding pulse.
Common uses: tonsillitis, high fever, throbbing headache, febrile convulsions.
3. Bryonia alba
Dryness is the keynote. Complaints worsen by slightest motion and improve with rest. Patient prefers to lie still and is irritable.
Common uses: dry cough, pleurisy, acute arthritis, gastritis.
4. Rhus toxicodendron
Pain and stiffness worse after rest, better by motion. Complaints after getting wet in rain.
Common uses: sprain, strain, viral fever with body ache, joint pains.
5. Arsenicum album
Restlessness with weakness. Burning pains better by warmth. Anxiety about health. Thirst for small sips frequently.
Common uses: food poisoning, diarrhea, vomiting, allergic asthma.
6. Gelsemium sempervirens
Dullness, drowsiness, heaviness. No thirst. Anticipatory anxiety with weakness.
Common uses: influenza, stage fright, viral fever with prostration.
7. Nux vomica
Irritable, chilly patient. Complaints from overeating, alcohol, late nights.
Common uses: gastritis, constipation, hangover, acute dyspepsia.
8. Pulsatilla nigricans
Mild, weepy patient. Thirstless. Symptoms changeable. Better in open air.
Common uses: cold with thick bland discharge, indigestion from fatty food, earache.
9. Hepar sulphuris calcareum
Extreme sensitivity to cold and touch. Tendency to suppuration.
Common uses: abscess, tonsillitis, painful ear infections.
10. Mercurius solubilis
Offensive discharges, excessive salivation, night aggravation, profuse perspiration.
Common uses: sore throat, mouth ulcers, dysentery.
11. Ferrum phosphoricum
Early stage of inflammation without clear symptom picture. Mild fever with weakness.
Common uses: early fever, anemia-related weakness.
12. Chamomilla
Oversensitive to pain. Child becomes irritable and wants to be carried.
Common uses: teething complaints, earache in children.
13. Colocynthis
Severe colicky pain better by bending double and pressure.
Common uses: abdominal cramps, neuralgic pain.
14. Podophyllum
Profuse, painless, offensive diarrhea, worse in morning.
Common uses: acute gastroenteritis, diarrhea in children.
15. Carbo vegetabilis
Extreme weakness, coldness, desire to be fanned. Collapse states.
Common uses: food poisoning, fainting, flatulence.
16. Cantharis
Burning pain before, during, and after urination. Constant urging.
Common uses: acute urinary tract infection, burns.
17. Apis mellifica
Swelling with redness and stinging pain. Worse by heat, better by cold.
Common uses: allergic reactions, urticaria, edema.
18. Arnica montana
Trauma remedy. Soreness as if beaten. Refuses touch.
Common uses: injury, sprain, post-surgical soreness.
19. Hypericum perforatum
Nerve injury remedy. Shooting pains after trauma.
Common uses: crushed fingers, dental procedures, nerve pain.
20. Ipecacuanha
Persistent nausea not relieved by vomiting. Clean tongue despite gastric complaints.
Common uses: vomiting, asthma with nausea.
How to Master Acute Remedies During Internship
- Study remedy differentiation daily.
- Compare similar remedies (e.g., Bryonia vs Rhus tox).
- Observe senior doctors during acute case management.
- Maintain a personal acute remedy notebook.
- Focus on modalities and keynotes.
- Analyze follow-ups carefully.
Common Mistake Interns Make in Acute Prescribing
- Prescribing only on disease name.
- Repeating doses unnecessarily.
- Ignoring modalities.
- Not differentiating between similar remedies.
- Changing remedies too quickly.
Always remember: even in acute cases, individualization is essential.
Acute prescribing is the training ground of every homeopathic intern. When you confidently manage fever, diarrhea, injury, or acute respiratory infections, you build trust with patients and strengthen your clinical judgment.
Master these 20 remedies thoroughly. Understand their essence, modalities, and differentiating features. Once your acute foundation is strong, constitutional prescribing becomes easier and more logical.
Explore more practical clinical guides in our Internship Corner to sharpen your skills and become a confident homeopathic physician.