Growling child given rabid dog saliva ‘remedy’
CANADA: A Canadian naturopath claims she treated a 4-year-old boy’s behavioural problems with a controversial homeopathic remedy – saliva from a rabid dog.
The recent claims have caused concern in the medical community and prompted questions about why the saliva – known as lyssinum, lyssin or hydrophobinum – has been approved by the Canadian government as a legitimate homeopathic product.
Anke Zimmermann, from Victoria, British Columbia, wrote on her blog in February that she used the saliva last year to treat a preschooler who had been having trouble sleeping and behaving himself in the classroom.
‘‘His preschool is complaining that he hides under tables and growls at people,’’ she wrote in the post.
Zimmermann said the young child, who she identified only as Jonah, had been bitten by a dog in the past, and she suspected it might have led to his problems.
‘‘People who need lyssinum, also known as hydrophobinum, are often afraid of the dark, of dogs, even of water, have trouble falling asleep and are overly excitable. Aggression can also be a strong feature, as can dreams of dogs, wolves and being attacked. This can even develop into full psychosis,’’ she wrote. So she prescribed it. ‘‘Within a minute or two of giving him the remedy, Jonah smiled at me very broadly and beautifully, as if all the lights had just gone on,’’ Zimmermann wrote. ‘‘We said our goodbyes, and I felt a warm feeling of hope for this boy.’’
Such a treatment would be a health risk to users, British Columbia provincial health officer Dr Bonnie Henry said yesterday.
‘‘There is no evidence that I am aware of that shows lyssin has any therapeutic benefit,’’ she said. ‘‘More importantly, I am concerned that if a product did actually contain what is suggested, saliva from a rabid dog, that would put the patient at risk of contracting rabies, a serious, fatal illness.’’
Henry said rabies was ‘‘a serious reportable communicable disease that is almost universally fatal in humans and in dogs, and it can be spread through saliva from an infected dog’’.
Henry, a physician and clinical associate professor at the University of British Columbia, said she was also concerned with Zimmermann’s suggestion that the child’s behavioral problems may have been related to a dog bite. ‘‘While I believe that homeopathy plays a complementary role for some families in their health, I have concerns that some people may delay or avoid proven effective treatments while relying on homeopathy alone.’’ She said she would urge Health Canada to review approving the saliva. – Washington Post