Background and Aim: Nonerosive gastroesophageal reflux disease or nonerosive reflux disease (NERD) is characterized by troublesome reflux-related symptoms in the absence of esophageal erosions/breaks at conventional endoscopy. There are a number of medicines cited in homoeopathic literature which can be used for treatment of symptoms such as heartburn and regurgitation. A pilot study was undertaken to explore usefulness of homoeopathic medicines in treatment of NERD. Methodology: In this study, 78 patients were screened and 34 were enrolled, having symptoms of heartburn and/or regurgitation at least twice a week, having a gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptom score of more than 4. Homoeopathic medicine was prescribed on the basis of presenting symptoms. Response to treatment was assessed on GERD symptom score, visual analog scale (VAS) for heartburn, and World Health Organization quality of life-BREF (WHO-QOL) questionnaire evaluated at baseline and at end of 8 weeks of treatment . Results: Significant difference was found in pre- and post-treatment GERD symptom score (8.79 ± 2.7 vs. 0.76 ± 1.8; P = 0.001) and VAS for heartburn (47.47 ± 19.6 vs. 5.06 ± 11.8; P = 0.001). Statistically significant improvement was seen in three domains of WHO-QOL score, i.e. psychological health, social relationship, and environmental domain. Conclusion: The findings are encouraging to open avenues for further studies on reflux disease.

Patients with psoriasis commonly opt for homeopathic treatment. However, no study has assessed the response to homeopathic treatment by using standardized disease-specific scales, and the findings are based on clinical assessments only. The objective of this study was to evaluate the response to the individualized homeopathic treatment of psoriasis with respect to changes in disease severity and quality of life based on Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) and Psoriasis Disability Index (PDI) scales, respectively. A multicentric study was conducted using a pragmatic model. The study participants were regularly followed up for 1 year. Subsequently, participants completing the 1-year follow-up were included in a long-term assessment for further 2 years. Three monthly assessments were made by using PASI, PDI, and Visual Analog scales for patient and physician general assessment. Data were analyzed to identify treatment effects and variables affecting treatment. In total, 384 patients were enrolled, out of whom 254 participants completed 1 year of treatment. Of these, 84 participants continued treatment for an additional 12 months. A significant reduction was observed in the scores of PASI (10.96 ± 10.67 at baseline to 4.24 ± 5.10 at 12 months, p = 0.000), PDI (10.19 ± 9.11 to 3.91 ± 4.44, p = 0.000), and patient and physician global assessment scales. Regarding PASI response at 12 and 24 months, PASI 75–89 was reported in 66 and 14 participants, whereas PASI 90–100 was reported in 29 and 17 participants, respectively. Baseline severity of psoriasis considerably affected treatment response, whereas age, gender, and duration of psoriasis did not. Furthermore, the severity of psoriasis and quality of life improved considerably with regular homeopathic treatment.

To compare the difference between primary homoeopathic and conventional paediatric care in treating acute illnesses in children in their first 24 months of life. One hundred eight Indian singleton newborns delivered at 37 to 42 weeks gestation were randomised at birth (1:1) to receive either homoeopathic or conventional primary care for any acute illness over the study period. In the homoeopathic group, conventional medical treatment was added when medically indicated. Clinicians and parents were unblinded. Children in the homoeopathic group experienced significantly fewer sick days than those in the conventional group (RR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.24–0.58; p < 0.001), with correspondingly fewer sickness episodes (RR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.32–0.87; p = .013), as well as fewer respiratory illnesses over the 24-month period. They were taller (F (1, 97) = 8.92, p = .004, partial eta squared = 0.84) but not heavier than their conventionally treated counterparts. They required fewer antibiotics, and their treatment cost was lower. Conclusion: Homoeopathy, using conventional medicine as a safety backdrop, was more effective than conventional treatment in preventing sick days, sickness episodes, and respiratory illnesses in the first 24 months of life. It necessitated fewer antibiotics and its overall cost was lower. This study supports homoeopathy, using conventional medicine as a safety backdrop, as a safe and cost-effective primary care modality during the first 2 years of life. Trial registration: Clinical Trial Registry-India (2018/09/015641). https://ctri.nic.in/Clinicaltrials/login.php What is Known: • Due to their holistic nature, many Complementary and Alternative Medical (CAM) modalities are not readily amenable to assessment by head-to-head RCT for a given Indication. • We propose a pragmatic, RCT comparing homoeopathic with conventional medicine as a system. What is New: • Homoeopathic was apparently superior to conventional primary care in preventing sick days, sickness episodes, and respiratory illness episodes and was significantly associated with growth in height but not weight and required fewer antibiotics in children from birth to 24 months of age.

Purpose: Good health status has traditionally been linked to greater levels of patient satisfaction. With the emergence and integration of various medical modalities, including Homeopathy, Ayurveda, and other complementary and alternative medical treatments, patients are likely to have different satisfaction levels during their interaction with different practitioners. Amidst this diversity, the efficacy, accessibility, and cost-effectiveness of these treatment approaches have garnered significant attention. Hence, a tool was developed to assess the patient’s interaction with Complementary and Alternative Medicine treatments specifically Homeopathy. The objective of this study is to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Patient Satisfaction Assessment Tool (PSAT) developed to assess patient interaction with homeopathic outreach services. Methods: A new structured questionnaire was developed using a standardized procedure. After obtaining clearance from the scientific and ethics committee of the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, data was collected from consenting participants above 18 years of age attending the Dr. D.P. Rastogi Central Research Institute for Homoeopathy, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. Data was then computerized and analyzed by principal component analysis as the extraction method and orthogonal varimax as the rotation method. Results: A total of 285 participants were enrolled for psychometric validation, and 254 participants were included in the final analyses after exclusion. The mean (±Standard Deviation) age of participants was 37.63 (± 12.9) years (range 18– 79). The final 34-item questionnaire was arranged into nine domains as per rotated component matrix analysis. The overall internal consistency of the final questionnaire, as calculated by Cronbach’s alpha, was 0.79, and the measure of sampling adequacy was 0.85 (Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin test). Conclusion: Initial results from the pilot tests suggest that Patient Satisfaction Assessment Tool (PSAT) is effective in capturing key aspects of patient satisfaction, from homeopathic clinical services which can guide future quality improvement initiatives in alternative medicine healthcare facilities.

Background: Homoeopathy is commonly used by patients suffering from vitiligo. The treatment response needs to be assessed on standardised scales in pragmatic settings. Objective: The study aimed to evaluate response to homoeopathic treatment in vitiligo severity and quality of life using the vitiligo area scoring index (VASI) score, Vitiligo European Task Force (VETF) score and dermatological life quality index (DLQI) score. Materials and Methods: This study was undertaken in dermatology outpatient departments at 11 research institutes of the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy. Participants, in the age group 18–60 years, any gender, presenting with at least one vitiligo skin patch above the size of 2 cm × 2 cm were included and invited to participate in the study and were regularly followed up over a period of one year. Participants completing one-year follow-up were included in a long-term assessment for another two years. Results: A total of 361 participants were enrolled, 266 completed one-year treatment; 139 continued treatment for additional twelve months, and 62 participants completed three years. Change in VASI and VETF area scores was not significant over one year. Post hoc test identified change in score for the VETF stage as significant at 6 months (p = 0.013), 9 months (p = 0.000), and 12 months (p = 0.000) from baseline. The spread score reduced significantly from baseline (p = 0.000), as also the change in mean scores of DLQI (p = 0.000), patient (p = 0.000) and physician global assessments (p = 0.000). Conclusion: The extent of depigmentation in vitiligo (staging) and spread decreased significantly along with improvement in quality of life with regular homoeopathic treatment.