Trituration

Homeopathic trituration

1. Trituration is a dilution of a potent drug powder with an inert diluent powder, usually lactose, in a definite proportion by weight. We can then remove a weighable portion (aliquot) of the mixture containing the desired quantity of substance to maintain an acceptable range of accuracy . There are the following scales are in use, given below: Decimal Scale Centesimal Scale Quinquagintimillesimal There are different requirement and conditions to perform this process. Trituration

2. Requirements include: Clean unglazed Mortor Clean unglazed pestle Clean horn spatula Necessary amount of curde drug Milk sugar ( Lactose ) A stop watch Clean phial of required size Requirements

3. 8 . Freshly marked new velvet cork 9. Label paper, a scissor and paste

4. There are following conditions which are needed to be fulfilled. The room must be clean,of moderate temperature and dust proof. Mortar and pestle should be cleaned properly with alcohol and air dried. After trituration utensil should be cleaned and dried. Use small amount of alcohol during trituration for moistening milk sugar,as it saves the trouble of scrapping and stirring. Why lactose is used in trituration? Lactose is the most commonly used diluent in solid dosage form pharmaceuticals such as powders, tablets and capsules. Some of the reasons included its extremely low incidence of side effects, ready availability, and low cost. C onditions

5. It’s the first scale to be discovered by Hahnemann in his early years of homeopathy. As its name would suggest, it has a 1:100 dilution ratio and it is prepared in the following manner: Proecess : Step 1: One part of the mother tincture is diluted in 99 parts of a water and alcohol mixture. Step 2: This liquid is then succussed 10 times in its bottle by firmly hitting the bottle’s base Centesimal Scale

6. against a firm but resistive surface such as the palm of a hand or a leather covered book. The resulting liquid is called a 1C potency, “1” referring to its first stage of dilution and the Roman numeral, “C”, referring to its 1:100 dilution ratio. Step 3: One part of this 1C potency is again diluted and succussed in 99 parts of a water and alcohol mixture to produce a 2C remedy. Step 4: This serial process of dilution and succussion , called potentisation , is further repeated to produce increasingly higher potencies of the remedy

7. Principal: for making the 1 st potency, triturate one part by weight of crude drug with 9 parts of lactose for 1hr.All the following potencies are made by taking 1 part of the preceding potency by 9 parts of lactose. Process: The process of the trituration is done in 3 main stages; and total quantity of lactose is divided in three equal parts. Decimal Scale

8. First stage : 1 part crude drug and 3 parts of lactose are taken in a mortar and mixed with a spatula.Then the mixture is thoroughly triturated for 6 minutes. Next cleanly scrap the particles adhering to walls of the mortar and pestle for 3 mints. Next mix the triturated mass for 1 mint. This takes 10 mints.( rubbing,scrapping and mixing 6+3+1=10 ). Second stage: In this stage, 3 parts by weight of lactose ,is added to above triturated mixture . The same process of triturating,scrapping and mixing is repeated thus 2nd stage is completed in 20 mints.

9. Third Stage: The same process carried in 1 st stage ,are repeated in this case.so, the process is completed in 20 mints . Similarly 3 rd stage is also completed in 20 mints.Thus the whole process of trituration is completed in 1hr. Using ratio and proportion, we can determine the weight of drug and lactose required to make the trituration as well as the weight of the aliquot to be used to fill the prescription. Formula:

10. Merits of Trituration It is a cumbersome process with low productivity, especially the old method. Substances like hard metal may often create difficulty in inter-mixing and inter-changing. Substances like mercurial compound may reduce the potentiality during trituration as lactose has some amount of aldehydic property but for all the practical purpose this is not taken in account. Demerits of Trituration It raises the latent medicinal properties of drugs. It ↑ the therapeutic potential and curative values than crude form. it reduces the drugs particles to the finest. The drugs insoluble in i:e alcohol or water become soluble by trituration. This process increases the surface area and surface tension of a drug enormously. Catalytic effects,colloidal properties and absorptive properties increases proportionately with surface area.

11. By Muhammad Hashim Rao