A case of Tarentula-cubensis
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1993 Jul / Aug Vol II No 4. 
Dr Prabha Patwardhan.
` Tarent-c

A tall, thin Muslim girl, aged 13 years came for a painful swelling on the right side of the neck of 3-4 weeks duration. The swelling had suddenly increased in size and had become very painful. It was a glandular swelling, hard, matted, warm with a pinkish hue and was very tender to touch. She also had a low grade fever and loss of appetite.

26-9-88 - Belladonna 200 every 8 hours and called after 2 days.
4-10-88 - No change. Swelling very hard. Phytolacca 200 every 6 hours.
7-10-88 - Swelling softer. Extremely tender. Skin red. Hepar-sul 
1M, 2 hourly, three doses. Thereafter 8 hourly.
10-10-88 - No change. Very painful. Skin had a purplish hue. Tarentula-cub 30, 2 hourly, three doses, then 4 hourly.
11-10-88 - No change. The glands were matted and hard but at one spot they were soft. At this stage she was referred to a surgeon who diagnosed it as a case of tubercular lymphadenitis with abscess formation. He advised an immediate operation of drainage and biopsy, followed by a long course of anti-tubercular treatment. The girl terrified by the thought of an operation and so asked for homoeopathic treatment. The operation was postponed for two days. In the meanwhile an ESR, CBC, Montoux test and an X-ray chest were asked for. She was given Tarentula-cub 200 8 hourly for two days.

Investigations:
X-ray chest - Normal
ESR raised significantly
WBC 8700 with 70 percent polymorphs
Mantoux test 1 in 1000, strongly positive.
13-10-88 - The mother excitedly reported that the abscess had burst early in the morning and about two cups of pus were drained. The glandular swelling started subsiding soon after this. She was put on sac-lac for a week. After this she made an uneventful recovery.

A month later she was given a dose of Tuberculinum and later Calc-phos.

She is well and comes occasionally for minor menstrual difficulties. She, however, has no recurrence of the swelling. She never received any anti-tubercular treatment.

Discussion: In this case, the remedy was chosen entirely on the local symptoms. Two remedies were considered. Anthracinum and Tarentula. Phatak says - Anthracinum - "Glands swollen; cellular tissue oedematous and indurated. There is a terrible burning with great prostration. Black and blue blisters. Hard stony swelling at right lower jaw and sub-maxillary gland. Septic inflammation of connective cellular tissue".

Tarent-cub - "Useful in septic conditions. Incubation is slow, but further progress is rapid; with alarming prostration, atrocious burning or sharp stinging pains; board like hardness of affected part.
Bluish abscess; painful abscess.
Mind : Nervous restlessness.
Skin : Purple discoloration".

It is believed that when a specimen of Tarent-cub stored in a bottle of alcohol was being transported by ship, the bottle broke. The alcohol drained out and the spider was putrefied on arrival. Yet the potencies were made and going by the Doctrine of Signatures they have proved to be invaluable in treatment of septic conditions.

For me, it was quite a fantastic experience to see a clear case of tubercular lymphadenitis, which under allopathic regimen would have needed a drainage, followed by at least a six month course of anti-tubercular treatment, clear up with a few doses of Tarent-cubensis.