Homeopathy Remedies Shown to Be Effective for Moderate to Severe Depression

Posted on August 28, 2009 by homeopathyresource
A study in Brazil published in an Oxford Journal has shown homeopathy to be effective for depression.

Homeopaths world wide use homeopathy to treat individuals with severe to moderate depression. The active control in the study was fluoxetine- Prozac and using homeopathy was as good as or better in the treatment of depression using standard ratings.

Abstract:

Homeopathy is a complementary and integrative medicine used in depression, The aim of this study is to investigate the non-inferiority and tolerability of individualized homeopathic medicines [Quinquagintamillesmial (Q-potencies)] in acute depression, using fluoxetine as active control. Ninety-one outpatients with moderate to severe depression were assigned to receive an individualized homeopathic medicine or fluoxetine 20 mg day–1 (up to 40 mg day–1) in a prospective, randomized, double-blind double-dummy 8-week, single-center trial. Primary efficacy measure was the analysis of the mean change in the Montgomery & Åsberg DepressionRating Scale (MADRS) depression scores, using a non-inferiority test with margin of 1.45. Secondary efficacy outcomes were response and remission rates. Tolerability was assessed with the side effect rating scale of the Scandinavian Society of Psychopharmacology. Mean MADRS scores differences were not significant at the 4th (P= 0.654) and 8th weeks (P = 0.965) of treatment. Non-inferiority of homeopathy was indicated because the upper limit of the confidence interval (CI) for mean difference in MADRS change was less than the non-inferiority margin: mean differences (homeopathy–fluoxetine) were –3.04 (95% CI –6.95, 0.86) and –2.4 (95% CI –6.05, 0.77) at 4th and 8th week, respectively. There were no significant differences between the percentages of responseor remission rates in both groups. Tolerability: there were no significant differences between the side effects rates, although a higher percentage of patients treated with fluoxetine reported troublesome side effects and there was a trend toward greater treatment interruption for adverse effects in the fluoxetine group. This study illustrates the feasibility of randomized controlled double-blind trials of homeopathy in depression and indicates the non-inferiority of individualized homeopathic Q-potencies as compared to fluoxetine in acute treatment of outpatients with moderate to severe depression.

Read more at Evidence-based Complentary and Alternative Medicine published by Oxford Journals