Arsenicum album 30C: An Unlikely Source of Liver Toxicity

The AYUSH system of medicine continues to play an integral role in the management of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection in India. Whilst several clinical research studies have indicated the possible beneficial effects of homeopathic Arsenicum album in COVID-19 infection, supporting the advisory for its use by the Ministry of AYUSH, India, the latter has faced a substantial amount of criticism from other systems of medicine based on biased observations and insufficient literature review.

Recently, the journal Cureus published a clinical case-series paper entitled “Dangerous Placebo during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Series of Homoeopathic Arsenicum Album-Induced Liver Injury.”[1] The article presents three cases of acute liver injury, including one patient with underlying non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) cirrhosis who later died, apparently due to the consumption of Arsenicum album 30C for COVID-19 prevention. We examined the data presented and the claims of the Cureus paper, identifying several discrepancies and concerns in its content.

Publication History

Received: 20 January 2023

Accepted: 22 March 2023

Article published online:
16 June 2023

• References

• 1 Theruvath AH, Raveendran R, Philips CA. Dangerous placebo during the COVID-19 pandemic: a series of homoeopathic Arsenicum album-induced liver injury. Cureus 2022; 14: e26062
• 2 Ministry of AYUSH. Advisory on AYUSH interventions for Prophylaxis and Management of COVID-19. Accessed January 31, 2023, at: https://www.ayush.gov.in/docs/Advisory-on-Covid-19.pdf
• 3 Dantas F, Rampes H. Do homeopathic medicines provoke adverse effects? A systematic review. Br Homeopath J 2000; 89 (Suppl. 01) S35-S38
• 4 Dudgeon RE, Boericke W. Organon of Medicine [Hahnemann S, trans.]. 5th and 6th ed. New Delhi: B Jain Publishers; 2014
• 5 Sitruk V, Mohib S, Grando-Lemaire V, Ziol M, Trinchet JC. [Acute cholestatic hepatitis induced by glimepiride]. Gastroenterol Clin Biol 2000; 24: 1233-1234
• 6 National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Telmisartan. LiverTox: Clinical and Research Information on Drug-Induced Liver Injury, Bethesda, MD; 2012.
• 7 World Health Organization. Arsenic. Accessed January 31, 2023, at: https://www.who.int/india/health-topics/arsenic
• 8 Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia of India, Vol. 1. New Delhi: Govt. of India; 1971: 283
• 9 Khuda-Bukhsh AR, Pathak S, Guha B. et al. Can homeopathic arsenic remedy combat arsenic poisoning in humans exposed to groundwater arsenic contamination? A preliminary report on first human trial. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2005; 2: 537-548
• 10 Nayak D, Nahar K, Bhalerao R. et al. Effectiveness of Arsenicum album 30C in prevention of COVID-19 in individuals residing in containment zones of Delhi—a prospective, community-based, parallel cohort study. Homeopathy 2022; 111: 261-270
• 11 Nayak D, Devarajan K, Pal PP. et al. Efficacy of Arsenicum album 30C in the prevention of COVID-19 in individuals residing in containment areas—a prospective, multicentre, cluster-randomized, parallel arm, community based, open-label study. Complement Med Res (e-pub ahead of print, October 4, 2022).
• 12 Chaudhary A, Nayak D, Pandey S, R Resmy, Khurana A. COVID Study Group. Homoeopathic medicine Arsenicum album 30C for COVID-19 in 2020: a retrospective analysis from mass-level data. Altern Ther Health Med 2022; 28: 72-79
• 13 Lal R, Sharma M, Behera S. et al. Pharmacological investigation on acute and sub-acute studies of Arsenicum album in experimental rats. ResearchSquare (preprint); posted September 23, 2022.