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Homeopathic treatment for chronic disease: a 6-year, university-hospital outpatient observational study
David S Spence1, Elizabeth A Thompson, S J Barron
1United Bristol Healthcare, National Health Service Trust, Bristol, United Kingdom. David.Spence@ubht.nhs.uk
Objective:
The aim of this study was to assess health changes seen in routine homeopathic care for patients with a wide range of chronic conditions who were referred to a hospital outpatient department.
Design:
This was an observational study of 6544 consecutive follow-up patients during a 6-year period.
Setting:
Hospital outpatient unit within an acute National Health Service (NHS) Teaching Trust in the United Kingdom.
Participants:
Every patient attending the hospital outpatient unit for a follow-up appointment over the study period was included, commencing with their first follow-up attendance.
Main Outcome Measure:
Outcomes were based on scores on a 7-point Likert-type scale at the end of the consultation and were assessed as overall outcomes compared to the initial baseline assessments.
Results:
A total of 6544 consecutive follow-up patients were given outcome scores. Of the patients 70.7% (n = 4627) reported positive health changes, with 50.7% (n = 3318) recording their improvement as better (+2) or much better (+3).
Conclusions:
Homeopathic intervention offered positive health changes to a substantial proportion of a large cohort of patients with a wide range of chronic diseases. Additional observational research, including studies using different designs, is necessary for further research development in homeopathy.