The Safety of Homeopathic Products

Fisher, Peter; Dantas, Flávio; Rampes, Hagen

doi:10.1177/014107680209500922

Cited by 14 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 1 publication

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…18'20'21 '73 -81 There is a general recognition that adverse event reporting in clinical trials with homeopathic medicines is poor and many reports reviewed did not mention safety data.82 The hazards of homeopathic products are generally thought to be 'modest',83 and where adverse events are mentioned, these are generally mild and included headaches, nausea, tiredness, skin effects and bowel disorders such as diarrhoea. 84 Minor effects have been noted in case reports, but these were not well documented and were occasionally confounded because the homeopathic products referred to were combination products with other nonhomeopathic constituents. 82 It is recognized that adverse events to homeopathic medicines were under-reported and that 'mistaken identity' has occurred -usually where herbal medicines were used, in case reports.82 '84 Homeopathic aggravation is frequently seen following treatment with homeopathic remedies.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The potential impact of the use of homeopathic and herbal remedies on monitoring the safety of prescription products

Woodward

2005

Hum Exp Toxicol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The purpose of this paper is to explore the possibility that adverse reactions and drug interactions arising from the use of homeopathic and herbal medicines could lead to confusion when adverse reactions to conventional medicines are reported. An extensive literature review was conducted on the occurrence of adverse reactions and drug interactions following the use of homeopathic or herbal remedies, and the potential for these to confound adverse event reporting to conventional medicines considered. The survey demonstrates the potential for herbal remedies and homeopathic products, to produce adverse drug reactions or drug interactions, and shows the scope for potential for confusion with those arising from conventional medicines. There is a need for greater awareness that adverse reactions apparently due to a conventional medicine, might in reality be due to a herbal medicine or a drug interaction between a herbal medicine and a conventional drug, particularly when a health professional is unaware of the extent of a patient's selfmedication with alternative therapies.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The potential impact of the use of homeopathic and herbal remedies on monitoring the safety of prescription products

Woodward

2005

Hum Exp Toxicol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…According to the current pharmacological model any potential harm related to remedies of high dilutions must be related to indirect risk (see table 1 for definitions of concepts), such as e.g. risk related to the setting effects, such as the practitioner (5,31). …”

Section: Terminologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Direct risk is related directly to the intervention itself, such as the medication or the homeopathic remedy. Indirect risk is related to the treatment setting, such as the practitioner and the caring context (5)(6)(7).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adverse effects of homeopathy, what do we know? A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Kristoffersen

Alræk

Liu

2016

Complementary Therapies in Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Highlights:• This review address the naive assumption that because of the generally diluted doses used homeopathy must be safe• This review touches the neglected issue of the distinction between homeopathic aggravation, adverse reactions and adverse effects• We found a similar risk for homeopathic treatment compared to controls such as placebo and conventional medicine. Words: 5,187 Abstract ObjectivesHomeopathy is a popular treatment modality among patient, however there is sparse research about adverse effects of homeopathy. A concept unique for homeopathy, is homeopathic aggravation that is understood as a transient worsening of the patients' symptoms before an 2 expected improvement occurs. From a risk perspective it is vital that a distinction between homeopathic aggravations and adverse effects is established. There is a lack of systematic information on how frequent adverse effects and homeopathic aggravations are reported in studies. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were performed. Design and settingSixteen electronic databases were searched for Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs). The searches were limited from the year 1995 to January 2011. Forty-one RCTs, with a total of 6.055 participants were included. A subtotal of 39 studies was included in the additional metaanalysis. ResultsA total of 28 trials (68%) reported adverse effects and five trials (12%) reported homeopathic aggravations. The meta-analysis (including six subgroup comparisons) demonstrated that no significant difference was found between homeopathy and control with OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.86 to 1.14, I 2 = 54%. More than two third of the adverse effects were classified as grade 1 (68%) and two third were classified as grade 2 (25%) and grade 3 (6%) according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Effects. Homeopathic aggravation was classified as grade 1 (98%) and grade 3 (2%), suggesting that homeopathic aggravations were reported to be less severe than adverse effects. The methodological quality according to a method recommended in the Cochrane handbook for RCTs, was high. ConclusionAdverse effects including the concept of homeopathic aggravations are commonly reported in trials. The meta-analysis demonstrated that the proportion of patients experiencing adverse effects to be similar for patients randomized to homeopathic treatment compared to patients randomized to placebo and conventional medicine.

show abstract

“…Homeopathic remedies are generally considered safe 16. However this depends upon the maintenance of high standards of manufacture and appropriate use, particularly in vulnerable populations such as children.…”

Section: Safety Of Manufacturementioning

confidence: 99%

Homeopathic medicines for children: Table 1

Erlewyn-Lajeunesse

2011

Arch Dis Child

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article describes the homeopathic tradition and considers the safety, manufacture, effectiveness and regulation of homeopathic medicines. These medicines are commonly purchased without prescription for children, so an understanding of the basis of therapy is important to ensure appropriate and safe usage. The role of integrated medicine in the National Health Service is also reviewed with identification of research priorities.

show abstract

The Safety of Homeopathic Products

Cited by 14 publications

References 1 publication

The potential impact of the use of homeopathic and herbal remedies on monitoring the safety of prescription products

The potential impact of the use of homeopathic and herbal remedies on monitoring the safety of prescription products

Adverse effects of homeopathy, what do we know? A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Homeopathic medicines for children: Table 1

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About