Homeopathy for Pain Management

Burke Lennihan, RN, CCH

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Abstract for integration into conventional healthcare in the United

States.1 New pain-management guidelines from the American
Homeopathy is often overlooked as a modality for pain man- College of Physicians and the American Pain Society recom-
agement. However, it deserves to be a first-line treatment due to its mend a wide range of CAM modalities instead of opioids for
safety, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness. Limitations to the chronic low back pain—but the recommended CAM modali-
acceptance of homeopathy in the United States include physi- ties do not include homeopathy.2 In contrast, the American
cians’ lack of familiarity with the research studies, which pri- Pain Management Association’s textbook, Weiner’s Pain
marily come from Europe, where homeopathy is integrated into Management, has a detailed chapter on homeopathic treatment
the national healthcare systems of nearly all European countries. of pain syndromes.3
The database of the social security system in France, where citi- In a large-scale study in France, where national health in-
zens can choose a homeopathic or conventional family doctor, surance covers homeopathic as well as conventional primary-
shows that the former modality provides comparable results in care doctors, the former prescribed fewer opioids (and half as
pain management while significantly reducing the use of con- many nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [NSAIDs]) for
ventional painkillers. Research in the United States is minimal due musculoskeletal disorders while providing better results in
to lack of government or industry funding. In addition, exagger- terms of pain reduction and quality of life.4 Further, there is
ated media reports as to the potential harm from homeopathy have some evidence to suggest that homeopathy can work faster
resulted in undue reluctance to use it among both physicians and than conventional pain medications or reduce the need for
the general public. A large-scale review of the German drug safety them,5,6 without danger of dependence or withdrawal symp-
database has revealed a miniscule number of adverse events. Fi- toms.7 There is also research to suggest that homeopathy can
nally, resistance to the use of homeopathy—based on the mis- work better than placebo in reducing pain, for example from
taken notion that it contains nothing but water—is addressed by endometriosis,8 joint pain and stiffness,9 and hemorrhoids.10
citations from the newly emerging field of ultrahigh dilution For those in the throes of withdrawal, homeopathic medi-
physics. A description of the most common homeopathic medi- cines can minimize suffering and help to ensure a successful
cines for various types of pain is provided, including back pain, rehabilitation outcome, as reported in the forthcoming article
dental pain, labor pains, and trigeminal neuralgia. Homeopathic on Post-Acute-Withdrawal Syndrome. (Once dependency is
medicines must be customized to the individual patient in chronic established, it can be too late to substitute homeopathy for
conditions. Yet, a severe acute trauma can respond to the same opioids because the receptors have been altered; L. Butehorn,
homeopathic medicine in nearly all individuals. As an example, a pers. commun., 2017).
standard protocol is provided to speed healing and reduce pain
after surgery or dental extraction. While homeopathic medicines
are rarely tested against conventional painkillers in a head-to-head Advantages of Homeopathy
trial, certain research studies show that homeopathic medicines
can enhance healing for those already on conventional medica- Homeopathy is part of mainstream medicine in most coun-
tions and can reduce pain in a condition such as a fracture for tries in Europe and Latin America as well as in India and
which effective drug treatment is lacking. Russia. Most of its medicines are classified as over-the-counter
(OTC) drugs by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Keywords: homeopathy, pain management, acute pain, Their safety record has not required restriction to prescription-
back pain, musculoskeletal pain, postoperative pain only status.*

*A few homeopathic medicines have prescription-only status be-

Introduction cause of their source material (Opium, Cannabis) or because they
have no indications for self-care (Crataegus, used homeopathically
Pain management has been called “the leading edge” of only for heart conditions; Crataegus or hawthorn as a herbal extract
complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) modalities is available OTC in health-food stores as a traditional heart tonic).7

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OCTOBER 2017
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In one large study, Germany’s drug safety database was sear- Arnica can be used in the moderate 30c potency found in
ched for adverse reports on > 300 million doses of homeopathic retail stores.{ A typical dose for all of the medicines described
and anthroposophical drugs (similar to homeopathy). There were in this article is two pellets dissolved in the mouth. In addition
only 486 reports of adverse events, of which only 46 were veri- to Arnica, the following medicines are also used:
fied as serious.11 The accompanying article on the regulation of
homeopathy contains a detailed examination of the FDA’s recall  Calendula to help approximate the wound,18 prevent
of ZicamÒ and teething tablets, the only two homeopathic scarring and infection, and reduce pain. (One study on
products of recent safety concern. These seem to be examples of breast cancer patients showed that it reduced pain
disproportionate negative media rather than of serious safety from radiation-induced dermatitis, as well as helping it
concerns with homeopathy. to heal.)19
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Homeopathy’s mechanism of action is currently being  Hypericum to promote wound healing18 and reduce
revealed by studies in the newly emerging field of ultrahigh nerve pain.
dilution physics. In one scenario, nanoparticles of the orig-  Phosphorus to help stop excessive bleeding and to help
inal medicinal substance12 attract water molecules to form the person come out of anesthesia.
liquid crystal structures in the dilution water, which in turn
convey information that triggers a homeostatic reaction in This protocol takes advantage of homeopathy’s ability to
the body.13 In another, coherent domains are formed “among work preventively when given right before it is needed.
the molecules of the water-alcohol solvent, as predicted
by quantum electrodynamics.”14,15 The nanodose levels  The morning of surgery (or the night before if surgery is
that persist in homeopathic medicines are comparable to the in the early morning), one dose of Arnica 30c. Because
levels at which the body’s hormones and cell-signaling the pellets dissolve quickly in the mouth and are not
agents operate. These two qualities of homeopathy—the swallowed, they do not violate nip per os restrictions.
active ingredient being present only in nanoparticles and the  Soon after surgery, a dose of Phosphorus 30c, only if
mechanism of action based on conveying information rather the person is drowsy, disoriented, or nauseous after
than its medicinal substance—give homeopathic medicines anesthesia, or if there is excessive bleeding (e.g., after
their unique qualities: the patient needs less and less of them a tooth extraction).
over time; they do not create dependency or withdrawal;  For the first three days, Arnica 30c three times a day.
they do not interact with other medications; and they can Then Calendula 30c three times a day until the wound
heal other health conditions at the same time in addition to is healed.
the chief complaint, that is, they provide side benefits in-  If there is nerve pain (the patient reports pain shooting
stead of side effects.7 along the path of a nerve, or pain like an electric shock,
Homeopathic medicines in their pure form are not patent- or pins and needles, or numbness), give Hypericum 30c
able, which leads to another benefit: they are extremely inex- three times a day until resolved.
pensive, costing in the range of pennies per treatment. A clinic  If there is nerve damage, injury to the spine, or a
can be equipped with a year’s supply for <$1,000. Because headache following an epidural or spinal tap, give
they are non-addictive and have no resale value, there is no Hypericum as well.20
incentive for robbery, which enhances the safety of a clinic or
pharmacy. They can safely be administered by a community If symptoms are very severe, the medicine can be given more
health worker or health coach—which can also be done le- frequently, as often as hourly. If a family member wants to
gally because of their OTC status. A clinic can thus save on bring the medicines to their loved one in the hospital, an easy
salary expenses as well as drug costs. way to do this is to dissolve two pellets in a small bottle of
As an example of this concept in action, Homeopaths water (about 4 ounces, 125 mL) and have the patient sip on it
Without Borders is empowering Haitians as “homéopathes occasionally, labeling what each bottle of water is for. If the
communautaires” to conduct their own local homeopathy person is unconscious, the water can be dabbed on their lips.
clinics with the approval and supervision of the Haitian Health The water solution of Calendula can be used to irrigate the
Ministry.16 wound and dampen the gauze in a wet-to-dry dressing in order
to speed healing.

{
Practical Protocols for Post-Surgery/Post-Dental Potency in homeopathy is based on the number of times the starting
substance has been put through the serial dilution/activation process,
Extraction Pain Management with higher numbers representing stronger action because of the
increased activation. A potency of 30c is not to be confused with
The use of Arnica before and after surgery to reduce bruis- 30cc, a measure of fluid volume used for conventional drugs. Eu-
ing, swelling, soreness, and pain6,17 has been documented, ropean countries use the convention CH rather than c to indicate
with some variation in the potency (strength) and frequency potency. Some of the citations in this study refer to 30CH, for ex-
of dosage. ample, which is comparable to the 30c potency in the United States.

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Of course, this is the ideal scenario, and it may not be When it comes to short-term or palliative pain management
practical in a hospital unless a physician writes an order for the (e.g., treating a sprained ankle or providing temporary relief for
medicines. Sometimes family members are able to bring the arthritic pain), the prescriber typically chooses from among the
medicines in; in other cases, they have to wait until the patient homeopathic medicines well known historically for clinical
comes home. The sooner the protocol can be started, the more effectiveness (perhaps 3–20 top medicines for each condi-
effective it will be. tion).21–24 Among them, the choice is then based on individual
Homeopathic Calendula can be difficult to find in stores. characteristics: does the patient find relief from a heating pad
With advance notice, it can be ordered online. In an emer- or from an ice pack, for example; do they prefer to limber up an
gency situation, herbal Calendula can be used instead, diluted aching joint, or do they need to keep it still? This article will
in a 1:20 ratio. A homeopathic preparation of a nontoxic herb provide a simplified version for each of several types of pain,
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such as Calendula can enhance its action and also allow for differentiating among just a few of the best-known medicines
healing from the inside out. For example, if someone has in order to make homeopathy accessible for healthcare pro-
extensive first-degree burns or large areas of abrasion, dis- fessionals in other disciplines. This will be followed by a re-
solving homeopathic Calendula in the mouth can be as ef- view of the research and finally by resources for further study.
fective as applying it topically over a large area. The oral
administration can be simpler and less painful. For a tooth Back Pain and Other Musculoskeletal Disorders
extraction, the same protocol can be followed, with the pos- Studies in Europe show that patients choosing homeopathic
sible addition of the medicines for dry socket described under care have a much lower use of conventional pain medications
Toothache below. than those under conventional care (see the Research section
In my own experience and that of my colleagues, our clients for examples). A variety of homeopathic medicines have been
have survived surgery and tooth extraction with rapid healing used in the studies. Among those with the greatest clinical
and minimal need for conventional pain medications. Patients evidence of effectiveness are:
frequently report not needing any patient-controlled analgesia
(PCA) after surgery.  Rhus tox{ and Ruta grav for joint pain with stiffness
One of my colleagues, a pharmacist, provided this protocol that is worse in damp weather, needs to be limbered up,
for her elderly mother who was having a bowel resection. Her and feels better from the application of heat. These two
mother’s care team was surprised to find her trying to climb medicines are among the most effective and can be
over the bed rails and head toward the bathroom the day after difficult to differentiate. You may observe patients
major abdominal surgery. I have also had clients who had a needing Rhus tox swinging a joint to limber it up (the
wisdom tooth removed who did not need to fill their pre- “rusty gate” syndrome) or restlessly pacing in the
scription for a narcotic painkiller, and clients who needed no waiting room. Rhus tox is the medicine most often
PCA after major surgery such as a double mastectomy. used for fibromyalgia. Ruta grav has additional quali-
ties of lameness and weakness, for example those
whose knees go out from under them when going
Homeopathic Medicines for Specific Pain downstairs.
Conditions  Bryonia is for patients with the opposite symptom: they
feel worse from stretching and in fact worse from the
A well-known principle of homeopathy is that the medicine slightest motion, even the jarring motion of a heavy
must be individualized to the patient: 10 patients with fi- tread, so they tend to guard or splint their joints.
bromyalgia or rheumatoid arthritis are likely to receive 10 Bryonia is especially good for the serous membranes.
different medicines from a professional homeopath because Hence, it is good for bursitis and pleuritis.
each patient has a unique pattern of symptoms. However, this  Nux vomica is a top remedy for lower back pain in
primarily applies to chronic conditions. those with typical Nux vomica symptoms: competitive,
In an emergency situation, or in the case of a very virulent ambitious, driven, irritable, apt to use coffee, alcohol,
infectious disease, the nature of the trauma or infection spicy or fried foods, sometimes recreational drugs,
imposes the same symptom pattern on nearly everyone. For therefore apt to have a congested liver.
example, Arnica is useful in almost all acute cases of soft-  Protocol: Using the 30c potency (strength) most
tissue trauma with bruising, swelling, and/or soreness. This commonly available in stores, a dose of two pellets
makes it possible to create a standardized protocol using dissolved in the mouth can be repeated every one to
Arnica for post-surgery recuperation or for sports injuries. three hours, depending on the intensity of the pain. In
Hypericum, with its symptom set of numbness, tingling,
other paresthesias, and electric-shock sensations along a
nerve path—especially after a blow to the spine or a nerve- {
The common abbreviations are used instead of the unwieldy full
rich area of the body—similarly becomes a universal rem- homeopathic names in this article, thus Rhus tox for Rhus tox-
edy when an accident or surgery causes acute nerve pain or icodendron, Ruta grav for Ruta graveolens, Calc phos for Calcarea
nerve damage. phosphorica, and Hepar sulph for Hepar sulphuris calcareum.

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general with homeopathic medicines, the medicine is  Chamomilla for when the pain is so unbearable, nothing
repeated frequently until it starts to take effect, then can satisfy her: she wants to order everyone out of the
slowed down or even stopped until symptoms return, room, or she demands something, and as soon as it is
so that the body can heal itself. given, she refuses it and demands something else.
 Cimicifuga for when the labor pains radiate down the
Broken Bones thighs, the woman feels gloomy “as if a black cloud is
Homeopathy can speed bone healing, as well as reduce the over her,” and she may say she feels she is going insane.
need for analgesics, according to a study done in India.25 These  Kali carbonicum for back labor and needle-like pains.
three medicines will cover most aspects of bone healing:  Sepia also for back labor with other typical Sepia
symptoms such as extreme fatigue leading to weepi-
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 Symphytum is by far the most common medicine for ness and irritability.
broken bones. Research shows that it can promote
callus formation and speed the union of fractures. After pains will also respond to some of the same homeo-
 Ruta grav is used when there is a contusion or bone pathic medicines:
bruise, or when the predominant sensation is soreness
rather than sharp pain along the line of the fracture, as  Arnica for its typical feeling of bruised soreness and
in Symphytum. aversion to being touched.
 Calc phos is used for growing pains in children and for  Chamomilla for when the woman is irritable and dis-
broken bones that take a long time to heal. satisfied, as above.
 Protocol: Using the 30c potency (strength) most com-  Hypericum for pains in the coccyx, and for the effects
monly available in stores, a dose of two pellets dissolved of an epidural such as a headache.
in the mouth once a day.  Kali carbonicum for needle-like pains in the lower back.
 Pulsatilla for changeable pains and moodiness, includ-
Labor Pains ing mild weepiness and a desire for consolation and for
The research on homeopathy in childbirth is primarily lim- company in her pain.
ited to the study of just one medicine: Caulophyllum.26,27
However, a range of medicines to reduce labor pains are in- Tooth Pain and Other Pain Conditions Treated by Dentists
cluded here based on 150 years of experience and the need to
reduce the use of epidurals. Epidurals prolong labor and can  Hypericum 30c, two to four times a day, whenever
trigger a “cascade of interventions” leading to a greater need there is nerve pain, such as following oral surgery or in
for an oxytocin injection, a higher rate of instrumental births, an impending root-canal situation.
and a higher risk of Cesarean section due to fetal distress.28  Chamomilla 30c as often as once an hour for excruci-
Homeopathic medicines can be given in advance to ating tooth pain in adults as well as in teething infants.
strengthen the uterus and prepare the woman for labor. In one  Symphytum 30c, once or twice a day, for pain and
research study, women given a combination of five homeopathic swelling after dental implant surgery (because Sym-
remedies during the ninth month of pregnancy had a 40% phytum heals teeth and bones), as well as Arnica,
shorter labor and only 25% as many complications of labor.29 which is always useful for postoperative pain and
The following homeopathic medicines have a long history of swelling.
successful use for labor pains among homeopathic obstetricians
and midwives. Give a dose of 30c as often as needed to minimize For any toothache and dry socket after a tooth extraction (an
pain and keep the contractions longer and more efficient. The extremely painful condition in which the protective blood clot
stronger potency 200c will work better for extreme pain. How- that forms over the empty socket fails to form or is dislodged,
ever, it is recommended only for use by homeopathic midwives exposing nerve endings in the socket):
and others experienced with using homeopathic medicines dur-
ing labor (not because the higher potency is dangerous, but be-  Belladonna for throbbing pain.
cause it can be more difficult to discern when to repeat it).  Chamomilla for extreme pain relieved by warm drinks
and driving the person to angry outbursts at family
 Aconite for violent, intense, sudden labor pains, espe- members and healthcare providers.
cially when the woman is afraid she will die.  Coffea for agonizing pain relieved by cold water in the
 Belladonna for extreme labor pains when the woman mouth, with oversensitivity to any sensory stimulation.
has the typical Belladonna symptoms (a wild look in  Hepar sulph if the dry socket becomes infected.
the eyes, reddened cheeks, delirium).  Silica afterwards to expel the contents of the socket
 Caulophyllum for when both the labor pains and the (food debris, pus, etc.).
woman’s moods are quickly changeable: the labor
pains seem to flit here and there, the woman is having All of these medicines are available in health-food stores in a
mood swings. 30c potency and can be given hourly or even more often until

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the excruciating pain is relieved, then three times a day would Headaches
be a typical dosage when the crisis is over and the patient is on While research shows that homeopathy can treat headaches
the mend. successfully, such a wide range of medicines can be useful that
The same medicines can be used for an abscessed tooth or it would be impossible to distill them into just a few recom-
indeed any boil or abscess, with the addition of Mercurius, thus: mendations. One leading homeopathic reference work lists
> 60 likely medicines for headaches, making a randomized
 Belladonna for the first stage of an abscess, when the controlled trial difficult if not impossible.31 Headaches provide
area is red, warm, throbbing, and swollen but the pus an excellent example of how homeopathic medicines are
has not yet gathered. matched to the individual’s symptoms. A homeopath inter-
 Hepar sulph for the second stage when the pus has viewing a patient with frequent headaches will ask what part of
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gathered, and the area is extremely tender and sensitive the head is affected; whether the left side or right side; what
to exposure to heat or cold, to touch, to the slightest time of day they come on, or what triggers them; whether
draft, which makes the person touchy and averse to throbbing or dull; what the pain feels like; and other symptoms
having anyone come close. specific to the pain. More importantly, the homeopath will ask
 Mercurius is used for the same stage, when the pus has what stress or trauma might have led to the pattern of repeated
gathered, if several of the typical Mercurius symptoms headaches. Then the homeopath will choose from among
are present: excess salivation, night sweats, bad breath, dozens of medicines well known to be effective for headaches.
and possibly small sores in the mouth, plus the person
is extremely sensitive to the temperature in the envi-
ronment, constantly adjusting heat or air conditioning. Research
 Silica is used for the last phase, when the pus has come
to a head and is ready to drain; Silica will speed the This section will review additional research on homeopa-
bursting of the abscess and quickly heal the tissues thy for back pain and dental pain, beginning with a brief look
underneath. at challenges and limitations to research in homeopathy.
In conventional medicine, recent research is given priority. In
I had a client who had no dental insurance and could not homeopathy, the same medicines used 200 years ago are still
afford the root canal that her dentist said was necessary for an in use today, so that research from the 19th century is still
abscessed tooth: I gave her these remedies in succession (using considered valid.32
Hepar sulph instead of Mercurius because of the exquisite In the United States, very little research is done due to lack of
sensitivity of the area). She took them over a period of several funds (currently little or none; I. Bell, pers. commun., 2017)
days. When she got to the Silica phase, she reported that pus compared to $100 billion a year for conventional medical re-
oozed out around the tooth, and the pain disappeared. Her search.33 Homeopathic manufacturers cannot afford to conduct
dentist confirmed that she no longer needed the root canal. research, since most homeopathic medicines are not patent-
able. Therefore, the profit is minimal, and the government has
Trigeminal Neuralgia stopped funding research in homeopathy. Research on home-
Trigeminal neuralgia is known as the “suicide disease” be- opathy is often criticized for small study size and for lack of
cause the pain can be so unbearable and so resistant to treat- replication of studies. These issues require substantial funding
ment that it can drive sufferers to suicide. In one small study, to be resolved. Due to a lack of funds in the United States, most
homeopathic treatment brought 60% relief of the pain after research is done in Europe, India, and South America, typically
four months.30 funded by governments that cover homeopathy in their na-
Two of the most common medicines for trigeminal neuralgia tional healthcare and therefore are motivated to assess its ef-
can be distinguished simply by which side of the face is in pain: fectiveness and cost-effectiveness.
Sanguinaria is used for right-sided trigeminal neuralgia, and Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are now being called
Spigelia for left-sided neuralgia. The dosage is 200c (a high into question in conventional medicine. Professor Sir Michael
potency) every 15 minutes until relief, then wait until relapse Rawlins, in his distinguished Harveian Lecture to the Royal
before redosing. Remember that these are only two of the College of Physicians of London in 2008, stated:
possible medicines for the condition. If the first one attempted
does not work, a professional homeopath may be able to pro- The [hierarchy of evidence] places RCTs at the highest
vide relief with a better-matching medicine. level with a lesser place for those based on observational
I had a remarkable experience years ago treating a young studies. Giving such prominence to the results of RCTs,
woman with long-lasting trigeminal neuralgia so severe that in however, is unreasonable. As Bradford Hill, the architect of
fact she admitted to contemplating suicide. Her husband was a the RCT, stated so cogently: ‘Any belief that the controlled
dentist, so she had had access to the best treatments available in trial is the only way would mean not that the pendulum had
conventional medicine to no avail. Just a few doses of Spigelia swung too far but that it had come right off the hook.’34 .
200c completely relieved her pain. Homeopathy does not usually They should be replaced by a diversity of approaches that
work so quickly or so well, but when it does, it is memorable. involve analyzing the totality of the evidence base.35

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Rawlins’ lecture provides a detailed analysis of the limita- government, which concluded that homeopathic treatment was
tions of RCTs and the value of other forms of research design. just as effective as conventional treatment while costing 15%
Furthermore, as Dr. Marcia Angell, former editor of the New less.41 The committee conducted its own research on Swiss cit-
England Journal of Medicine, has observed, RCTs can easily izens’ use of homeopathic versus conventional treatment and
be manipulated in many ways, for example by ending a trial also examined the existing research, concluding that 20/22 meta-
before the time when side effects are known to show up.36 analyses show results for homeopathy greater than placebo.
RCTs on homeopathy are even more difficult to design cor- The following is a review of research on homeopathy for two
rectly, since the nature of the RCT (comparing a single drug to of the conditions covered in this paper.
placebo) is not consistent with homeopathy’s basic principle of
individualizing the medicine to the patient’s unique symptoms and Back Pain and Other Musculoskeletal Disorders
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circumstances. A single medicine can be used in a protocol such as A study in France, where patients can choose whether to go
the post-surgery protocol above, which would make the protocol to a conventional or homeopathic doctor, has documented the
ideal for an RCT. However, several other variables must be con- effectiveness of homeopathy in reducing the use of conven-
trolled correctly in order for the study to be valid. The medicine tional pain medications. This year-long study compared pa-
must be given in an appropriate potency and at an appropriate tients with a variety of musculoskeletal disorders, including
frequency, and the endpoints must be chosen appropriately. For osteoarthritis, rheumatism, fibromyalgia, muscle spasms, ten-
example, it would be easy to design a study on Arnica for post- dinitis, rotary cuff syndrome, ankylosing spondylitis, interver-
surgical pain in which not enough of the medicine is given, or the tebral disc disorders, neck pain, torticollis, and spinal stenosis.
study is ended only after the subjects’ pain is fully resolved. In both The homeopathic patients used 25% fewer narcotics and only
of these cases, the study will appear to prove that Arnica is no more half as many NSAIDs. Not surprisingly, they had fewer adverse
effective than placebo. In chronic conditions, most homeopaths events. Yet, there was no difference in specific functional scores
give a strong initial dose. However, this may cause an initial and no loss of therapeutic opportunity in the homeopathic co-
worsening (called an aggravation), which is actually the first sign hort—all the more surprising, since the homeopathic cohort’s
of healing. A study that lasts only a few weeks may leave the conditions were more longstanding.4
impression that homeopathy worsened the condition. A two-year multicenter study in Germany of patients re-
Another example of research with poor study design is a ceiving individualized professional homeopathic treatment for
study on children with upper respiratory infections in Norway, chronic low back pain revealed that the severity of their di-
which showed no benefit from homeopathy compared to pla- agnoses was reduced, along with their use of conventional
cebo, in which the choice of medicine was left to parents rather treatments and health services; the number of patients using
than a professional homeopath—and parents were only al- conventional drugs was half of the baseline, and quality of life
lowed to choose from among three out of the two dozen improved in both the physical and mental component scale.42
remedies used by professionals.37 Other studies in Europe have shown that homeopathy can
Similarly, a Spanish study that showed no benefit from ho- provide better relief from back pain than placebo, or compa-
meopathy in otitis media used four homeopathic medicines not rable pain relief with fewer adverse events.43–45
commonly used for the condition by professional homeopaths.
Two of them are not even included among the 40 medicines listed Tooth Pain
for the condition in the standard homeopathic reference book,38 An article in the British Dental Journal46supports the use of
leaving homeopaths bewildered as to why precious research homeopathy not only for toothache, but also for other types of
funds would be spent on this study. Despite the inappropriate pain treated by dentists, including burning mouth syndrome
choices, fewer children in the homeopathy group experienced a and trigeminal neuralgia. Hypericum in particular (the medi-
recurrence (4.8% vs. 11.4%). Yet, the researchers concluded that cine for nerve pain) was studied in a systematic review that
homeopathy is not an effective adjuvant treatment.39 favored its effectiveness, although it was not statistically sig-
In a British study on Arnica for post-surgical pain, Arnica 6c nificant.47 Hypericum is more likely to be effective for dental
did better than placebo on days 2 and 3, as is visible in the pain involving a nerve rather than pain from soft-tissue trauma
graph accompanying the study.40 By day 4, pain was resolved from an injury or teething, which could explain its overall
in both groups (everyone had stopped taking their pain medi- apparent lack of effectiveness.
cation), and the effect of Arnica 6c was less noticeable. The Symphytum 5CH (comparable to the 6c available in the
researchers had chosen pain on day 4 as their endpoint, al- United States) may reduce pain and swelling after dental im-
lowing them to state that Arnica was no better than placebo. plants when given along with conventional pain medication (in
Homeopathy (except for emergencies and acute traumas) does an observational study whose authors recommended random-
best in a research study on its own terms—allowing a profes- ized trials).48
sional homeopath to choose an individualized medicine—and Homeopathic treatment was successful in helping 58% of
expanding the parameters to include rate of adverse events and of patients avoid a root canal, tooth extraction, or pulp capping in
recurrence over an extended period of time, cost of treatment, a small study that used a European method not available in this
quality of life, and patient and practitioner satisfaction. The country (injection of the homeopathic medicine Pulpa Dentis
largest outcome study on homeopathy was done by the Swiss 303).49

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 ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES  OCTOBER 2017

a differential among the top 60 remedies for headaches, al-

To Contact Burke Lennihan though it would only be useful for those already trained in
homeopathy.
Burke Lennihan, RN, CCH
777 Concord Ave., Suite 301
Cambridge, MA 02138
E-mail: blennihan@alumni.harvard.edu Acknowledgments
Dana Ullman, MPH, CCH, provided invaluable assistance in
compiling the research studies.
Resources
Downloaded by University of Adelaide from online.liebertpub.com at 09/06/17. For personal use only.

General Author Disclosure Statement

Skinner S. An Introduction to Homeopathic Medicine in
Primary Care. Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publications, 2001. No competing financial interests exist. n
Written by a nurse practitioner, this book will be especially
helpful for primary care practitioners.
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