Praveen Oberai
Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, India
Title: Homoeopathic management of Schizophrenia: A prospective, non comparative, open-label observational study
Biography
Biography: Praveen Oberai
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the usefulness of Homoeopathic intervention in “schizophrenia,” in untreated cases, antipsychotic treatment resistant, to identify indications of medicines, and to prevent relapse.
Materials and Methods: A prospective, noncomparative, open-label observational study was carried out (October 2005–September 2010) by CCRH (India) at Central Research Institute (H), Kottayam, Kerala, India. Patients between 20 and 60 years of age, presenting with symptoms of schizophrenia were screened for inclusion and exclusion criteria to enroll. The patients who were on antipsychotic drugs were allowed to continue the same along with homoeopathic medicine, the dose of antipsychotics was monitored by the psychiatrist. The symptoms of each patient were repertorized, and medicine was prescribed in 30C potency after consulting Materia Medica. Patients were followed up for 12 months. Outcome of treatment was based on internationally accepted scale, i.e., brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS) and analysis was done using Statistical Package for the Social sciences SPSS Version 20.
Results: Out of 171 enrolled patients, 105 completed 12 months follow-up and 66 visited for varied time period. The intention to treat principle was applied for conducting analysis of these 66 patients considering the last observations carried forward. Significant difference (P = 0.0001, P < 0.05) in the mean scores of BPRS, using paired t-test was observed at end of the study. It was observed that Sulfur (n = 39), Lycopodium (n = 36), Natrum muriaticum (n = 27), Pulsatilla nigricans (n = 14) and Phosphorus (n = 12) were found to be the most effective medicines in treating schizophrenic patients.
Conclusion: The study reflects the positive role of homoeopathic medicines in the management of patients suffering from schizophrenia as measured by BPRS. Randomized controlled trials are suggested to assess the efficacy of homoeopathic medicine in schizophrenia.