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Study on Homeopathy among Scottish Doctors Homeopathic or herbal remedies are prescribed in 60 per cent of Scottish medical practices |
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According to a study published in December 2008 in the 'British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology', involving almost two million people, 60 per cent of Scottish GP practices prescribe homeopathic or herbal remedies. Researchers at the University of Aberdeen analysed all recorded prescriptions from 2003 to 2004, covering around 1.9 million patients from 323 practices. |
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The research team found the following: • 5 per cent of the practices involved in the study accounted for 50 per cent of these prescriptions, and 46 per cent of the patients had demonstrably received the remedies. • 4,160 patients (2.2 per cent of registered patients) were prescribed at least one homeopathic remedy during the study. 73 per cent of these patients were female and the mean age was 47 years.• Children under 12 months were prescribed homeopathic or herbal remedies particularly frequently (9.5 per cent of children in this age group), followed by elderly people aged 81–90 years (4.5 per cent of this age group). 16 per cent of homeopathic prescriptions were for children under 16 years. • 361 patients received at least one herbal remedy during the study (0.2 per cent of registered patients). 12 per cent of them were children under 16 years. • Doctors who prescribed a homeopathic remedy also prescribed, on average during the study, four conventional medicines. When a herbal remedy was prescribed, the number of additionally prescribed conventional medicines rose to five. • 4 per cent of patients who were prescribed a herbal remedy also received conventional medicines at the same time whose compatibility with phytotherapy had been documented. • The most commonly prescribed homeopathic remedies were: Arnica montana (for injuries, bruises, etc.) Rhus toxicodendron (joint complaints, headaches) Cuprum metallicum (cramps, low blood pressure) Pulsatilla (PMS, climacteric, menopause, problems with breastfeeding) and Sepia (PMS, climacteric, menopause, tiredness, exhaustion).
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• The most frequently prescribed herbal remedies were: |
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“Our study shows that a considerable number of Scottish GPs prescribe homeopathic and herbal remedies,“ says co-author Dr James McLay of the Medical Therapeutics Department at the University. “The main problem with homeopathic remedies is the lack of scientific evidence of their effectiveness.“ “Given the rise of medicines with proven effects and prescribing guidelines in England – should therapies without a positive clinical evidence base be prescribed and funded by the Health Service?“ “Or are proponents of these remedies right to argue that the issues surrounding the study of these treatments make scientific proof unnecessary?“ “However it is argued – our study shows an obvious acceptance of homeopathy and phytotherapy in primary care, including for children and babies. We believe these findings underscore the need for a critical review of these prescribing trends.“ “The University of Aberdeen study has added an important new dimension to the ongoing debate about homeopathic remedies by showing what is currently happening at the grassroots level of Scottish general practice,“ says Dr Jeffrey Aronson, editor of the Pharmacological Journal at the University of Oxford.
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“In September 2006 the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) introduced new rules to regulate homeopathic products and allowed manufacturers to indicate the conditions for which they can be used.” |
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