[Omeo33] Art 0693 - Homeopathy, 2007, 96 (1), 27-34

[Gino Santini]

Outcomes from homeopathic prescribing in veterinary practice: a 
prospective, research-targeted, pilot study
R.T. Mathie, L. Hansena, M.F. Elliotta and J. Hoare

Background and aims - Targeted research development in veterinary 
homeopathy is properly informed by the systematic collection and 
analysis of relevant clinical data obtained by its practitioners. We 
organised a pilot data collection study, in which 8 Faculty of 
Homeopathy veterinarians collected practice-based clinical and 
outcomes data over a 6-month period.
Methods - A specifically designed Excel spreadsheet enabled recording 
of consecutive clinical appointments under the following headings: 
date; identity of patient and owner (anonymised); age, sex and 
species of patient; medical condition/complaint treated; whether 
confirmed diagnosis, chronic or acute, new or follow-up case; 
owner-assessed outcome (7-point Likert scale: -3 to +3) compared with 
first appointment; homeopathic medicine/s prescribed; other 
medication/s for the condition/complaint. Spreadsheets were submitted 
monthly by e-mail to the project organisers for data checking, 
synthesis and analysis.
Results - Practitioners submitted data regularly and punctually, and 
most data cells were completed. 767 individual patients were treated 
(547 dogs, 155 cats, 50 horses, 5 rabbits, 4 guinea-pigs, 2 birds, 2 
goats, 1 cow, and 1 tortoise). Outcome from two or more homeopathic 
appointments per patient condition was obtained in 539 cases (79.8% 
showing improvement, 6.1% deterioration, 11.7% no change; outcome not 
recorded in 2.4% of follow-ups). Strongly positive outcomes (scores 
of +2 or +3) were achieved in: arthritis and epilepsy in dogs and, in 
smaller numbers, in atopic dermatitis, gingivitis and hyperthyroidism 
in cats.
Conclusions - Systematic recording of data by veterinarians in 
clinical practice is feasible and capable of informing future 
research in veterinary homeopathy. A refined version of the 
spreadsheet can be used in larger-scale research-targeted veterinary 
data collection.

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