March 21, 2007 – Homeopathy is at least as effective as drugs usually prescribed to treat respiratory tract and ear infections, according to a recent comparative study in which 1,577 people participated1.
In all, 857 people received one of the most frequently used homeopathic medicines. For the other 720, a classic treatment was prescribed. There was no placebo group. Several patients have decided for themselves which treatment they will receive: homeopathic or classic.
After 14 days of treatment, in the two groups roughly the same number of participants, about 86%, said they were completely cured or observed a major improvement in their symptoms of infection. After seven days of treatment, a higher percentage of patients in the homeopathic group, however, said they felt better compared to those who were taking conventional medication.
The authors listed 190 types of prescriptions including antibiotics, pain relievers and nasal sprays. A telephone follow-up was done with the participants after the initial consultation. They were asked to rate their symptom status and their satisfaction with the treatment received.
Participants were recruited from 57 primary health care centers in Europe and the United States. Only data collected in Europe could be analyzed since no telephone follow-up could be done among American subjects.
Children and adults who presented with one or more symptoms of respiratory tract or ear infection were included for the study. In children, doctors diagnosed otitis media, bronchitis or laryngitis. The adults were mostly affected by pharyngitis, bronchitis and tonsillitis.
Some of these infections will go away on their own, without treatment, within 7 to 14 days. The authors acknowledge that this may have influenced the validity of the analysis of the results. The study also does not indicate whether patients took other ways at home to relieve their symptoms.
The state of current research on the effectiveness of homeopathy for upper respiratory tract and ear infections still presents conflicting results. Some studies, like this one, present conclusions favorable to homeopathy, while others claim that it has no effect for this type of infections.2.
Marie france Coutu – PasseportSanté.net
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1. Haidvogl M, Riley DS, et al. Homeopathic and conventional treatment for acute respiratory and ear complaints: A comparative study on outcome in the primary care setting, BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2007.7: 7
2 See our sheet on homeopathy: www.passeportsante.net/fr/Therapies
