The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    Why do patients with rheumatoid arthritis respond to homeopathy?

    Researchers at Aldermoor Health Centre, Aldermoor Close, Southampton, UK compared homeopathic consultation to homeopathic remedies.

    First, the details.

    • 83 participants were randomly assigned to a treatment group for 24 weeks.
      • Homeopathic consultation + individualized homeopathy
      • Homeopathic consultation + complex homeopathy
      • Homeopathic consultation + placebo
      • Non-homeopathic consultation + complex homeopathy
      • Non-homeopathic consultation + placebo
    • ACR 20% improvement (ACR20; ACR criteria measures the number and improvement in tender or swollen joint) was recorded.
    • 28-joint DAS (DAS-28) was measured.
    • Patients also made monthly global assessments of their condition.
    • Tender and swollen joint count, disease severity, pain, weekly patient and physician global assessment, and inflammatory markers were also measured.

    And, the results.

    • No significant differences in ACR20 or patient monthly assessments were observed.
    • There was no clear effect associated with homeopathic remedy.
    • Receiving a homeopathic consultation significantly improved DAS-28, swollen joint count, current pain, weekly pain, weekly patient monthly global assessment, and negative mood.

    The bottom line?

    The authors concluded, “Homeopathic consultations, but not homeopathic remedies, are associated with clinically relevant benefits for patients with active but relatively stable rheumatoid arthritis.”

    Others have also suggested the importance of the consultation in patient satisfaction among patients with homeopathic treatment.

    More on this topic is here and here.

    11/18/10 19:14 JR

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