Homeopathy may be a cost-effective alternative to antibiotics in the treatment of recurrent infantile rhinopharyngitis.

The results of this observational study suggest that homeopathic treatment for hot flushes in menopausal women is effective. Further studies including randomized controlled trials should be conducted.

Little is known about the practice of homeopathic general practitioners (GPs) in France. We report a descriptive, cross-sectional study on this subject. The aim was to acquire a clearer idea of (1) the type of patients who consult homeopathic GPs and (2) the type of treatment provided by such GPs, in terms of diagnoses, prescriptions and costs. The survey was carried out on a representative sample of the French homeopathic GP population and covered three seasons of the year. The data was collected by means of a questionnaire which GPs completed for each consulting patient. It emerged that the type of patients who consult homeopathic GPs are chiefly women, between the ages of 20 and 54, living in an urban environment, not in employment, covered by National Health Insurance for Salaried Workers, and belonging to a Mutual Benefit Association. The most common reasons for consultation were ENT disorders, stress and anxiety. The homeopathic GPs mainly used homeopathy to treat these disorders. On average, four medicinal products per patient were prescribed per 2-month course of treatment, for an average reimbursed cost of 3.78 Euros.

BackgroundRotavirus is the most common cause of gastroenteritis in young children worldwide. The aim of the study was to assess the health outcomes and the economic impact of a universal rotavirus vaccination programme with RotaTeq, the pentavalent rotavirus vaccine, versus no vaccination programme in Spain.MethodsA birth cohort was followed up to the age of 5 using a cohort model. Epidemiological parameters were taken from the REVEAL study (a prospective epidemiological study conducted in Spain, 2004-2005) and from the literature. Direct and indirect costs were assessed from the national healthcare payer and societal perspectives by combining health care resource utilisation collected in REVEAL study and unit costs from official sources. RotaTeq per protocol efficacy data was taken from a large worldwide rotavirus clinical trial (70,000 children). Health outcomes included home care cases, General Practioner (GP)/Paediatrician, emergency department visits, hospitalisations and nosocomial infections.ResultsThe model estimates that the introduction of a universal rotavirus vaccination programme with RotaTeq (90% coverage rate) would reduce the rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) burden by 75% in Spain; 53,692 home care cases, 35,187 GP/Paediatrician visits, 34,287 emergency department visits, 10,987 hospitalisations and 2,053 nosocomial infections would be avoided. The introduction of RotaTeq would avoid about 76% of RVGE-related costs from both perspectives: €22 million from the national health system perspective and €38 million from the societal perspective.ConclusionsA rotavirus vaccination programme with RotaTeq would reduce significantly the important medical and economic burden of RVGE in Spain.

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