Evidence supporting the use of: Arsenic
For the health condition: Gonorrhea

Links: Go back one page, Tool main page, Ingredients list, Health conditions list, Body systems list

Synopsis

Source of validity: Traditional
Rating (out of 5): 1

Arsenic has a historical, traditional use in the treatment of gonorrhea, but this practice is not supported by modern scientific evidence. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, before the advent of effective antibiotics, compounds containing arsenic (such as arsphenamine, also known as Salvarsan or "606") were used to treat a variety of infectious diseases, most notably syphilis, but occasionally also gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted infections. This was based more on empirical observation and the lack of better alternatives rather than rigorous scientific validation of efficacy or safety. Arsenic compounds were believed to have broad antimicrobial properties, and their use was part of a general trend of employing toxic heavy metals (including mercury) against venereal diseases.

However, these treatments were often dangerous and associated with significant toxicity. Once sulfonamides and, later, penicillin became available, arsenic-based therapies were quickly abandoned. Current scientific consensus does not support the use of arsenic or its compounds for gonorrhea; safer and more effective antibiotics are now standard. There is no robust clinical evidence that arsenic is effective against Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the causative agent of gonorrhea. Thus, arsenic’s role in treating gonorrhea is a matter of historical interest rather than a scientifically validated practice.

More about Arsenic
More about Gonorrhea

Products containing Arsenic

We currently have no products on Vitabase that contain this ingredient.