 Few biological or medical applications exist for antimony . Treatments principally containing antimony are known as antimonials and are used as emetics . Antimony compounds are used as antiprotozoan drugs . Potassium antimonyl tartrate , or tartar emetic , was once used as an anti @-@ schistosomal drug from 1919 on . It was subsequently replaced by praziquantel . Antimony and its compounds are used in several veterinary preparations like anthiomaline or lithium antimony thiomalate , which is used as a skin conditioner in ruminants . Antimony has a nourishing or conditioning effect on keratinized tissues , at least in animals . 
