TY - JOUR
T1 - A randomized controlled trial of homeopathy in rheumatoid arthritis
AU - Fisher, P
AU - Scott, D L
PY - 2001
Y1 - 2001
N2 - Objective. To test the hypothesis that homeopathy is effective in reducing the symptoms of joint inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Method. This was a 6-month randomized, cross-over, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-centre study set in a teaching hospital rheumatology out-patient clinic. The participants of the study were 112 patients who had definite or classical RA, were seropositive for rheumatoid factor and were receiving either stable doses of single non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for greater than or equal to3 months or single disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) with or without NSAIDs for greater than or equal to6 months. Patients who were severely disabled, had taken systemic steroids in the previous 6 months or had withdrawn from DMARD therapy in the previous 12 months were excluded. Two series of medicines were used. One comprised 42 homeopathic medicines used for treating RA in 6cH (10(-12)) and/or 30cH (10(-30)) dilutions (a total of 59 preparations) manufactured to French National Pharmacopoeia standards, the other comprised identical matching placebos. The main outcome measures were visual analogue scale pain scores, Ritchie articular index, duration of morning stiffness and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Results. Fifty-eight patients completed the trial. Over 6 months there were significant decreases (P
AB - Objective. To test the hypothesis that homeopathy is effective in reducing the symptoms of joint inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Method. This was a 6-month randomized, cross-over, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-centre study set in a teaching hospital rheumatology out-patient clinic. The participants of the study were 112 patients who had definite or classical RA, were seropositive for rheumatoid factor and were receiving either stable doses of single non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for greater than or equal to3 months or single disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) with or without NSAIDs for greater than or equal to6 months. Patients who were severely disabled, had taken systemic steroids in the previous 6 months or had withdrawn from DMARD therapy in the previous 12 months were excluded. Two series of medicines were used. One comprised 42 homeopathic medicines used for treating RA in 6cH (10(-12)) and/or 30cH (10(-30)) dilutions (a total of 59 preparations) manufactured to French National Pharmacopoeia standards, the other comprised identical matching placebos. The main outcome measures were visual analogue scale pain scores, Ritchie articular index, duration of morning stiffness and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Results. Fifty-eight patients completed the trial. Over 6 months there were significant decreases (P
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0034789208&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/rheumatology/40.9.1052
DO - 10.1093/rheumatology/40.9.1052
M3 - Article
SN - 1662-3959
SN - 1462-0332
VL - 40
SP - 1052
EP - 1055
JO - Rheumatology
JF - Rheumatology
IS - 9
ER -