10/12/2021
https://www.facebook.com/178577868852236/posts/4798725260170784/?d=n
Real-world observational evidence for homeopathy from General Physicians in France
Observational studies provide valuable, clinically relevant information on how a treatment performs in the real world. For homeopathy, there is a small, yet highly relevant, body of such evidence supporting the usefulness of homeopathic treatment, especially in Europe.
A large observational study in France, looked at homeopathy used at the coal face by local Doctors. It was called the EPI3-LASER study and it included 8559 patients, treated by 825 general physicians (GPs), for musculoskeletal disorders; sleep, anxiety and depressive disorders; and upper respiratory tract infections. Patients treated by GPs certified in homeopathy were found to have similar clinical outcomes to patients using conventional medicine alone, but with reduced use of conventional drugs and at 20% lower overall cost. Use of gold standard scientific methodology ensures that these results – identifying potential benefits of homeopathy as part of an integrated healthcare model – are reliable, generalisable and most importantly, clinically meaningful.
To patients, clinicians and decision makers, what matters most is not necessarily how well a treatment performs under the artificial conditions of a randomised controlled trial (RCT), but rather how much clinical benefit a treatment provides when used by patients in the real world. Observational studies allow researchers to answer this question by collecting and analysing data from everyday clinical practice, without any interference with patients’ usual care.
Observational studies performed in France, Germany, Italy and the UK have provided valuable insights into the impact of homeopathic treatment – consistently showing patient benefit, often in chronic, difficult to treat conditions.
The take home message from the EPI3-LASER study is that patients in France who consult a homeopathic GP for some of the most prevalent and burdensome conditions in general practice, cost 20% less, get better at the same rate, and use fewer drugs compared to patients consulting GPs prescribing conventional medicine only. As the issue of polypharmacy (when Doctors use multiple drugs in a single patient) is a global problem, particularly in the elderly population the EPI3-LASER study is a significant piece of evidence, adding to that from other European countries, identifying the potential beneficial impact of homeopathy when used within an integrated healthcare model.
https://www.hri-research.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/HRI_RIF_EPI3_Winter2021.pdf
