Efficacy of Individualized Homeopathic Medicines in Treatment of Acne Vulgaris: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Acne is estimated to affect 9.4% of the global population, making it the 8th most prevalent disease worldwide. Acne vulgaris (AV) is among the diseases that directly affect quality of life. This trial evaluated the efficacy of individualized homeopathic medicines (IHM) against placebo in AV. METHODS: In this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial conducted at the National Institute of Homoeopathy, India, 126 patients suffering from AV were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either IHM (verum) in centesimal potencies or identical-looking placebo (control). The primary outcome measure was the Global Acne Grading System score; secondary outcomes were the Cardiff Acne Disability Index and Dermatology Life Quality Index questionnaires - all measured at baseline and 3 months after the intervention. Group differences and effect sizes (Cohen's d) were calculated on the intention-to-treat sample. RESULTS: Overall, improvements were greater in the IHM group than placebo, with small to medium effect sizes after 3 months of intervention; however, the inter-group differences were statistically non-significant. Sulphur (17.5%), Natrum muriaticum (15.1%), Calcarea phosphorica (14.3%), Pulsatilla nigricans (10.3%), and Antimonium crudum (7.1%) were the most frequently prescribed medicines; Pulsatilla nigricans, Tuberculinum bovinum and Natrum muriaticum were the most effective of those used. No harms, unintended effects, homeopathic aggravations or any serious adverse events were reported from either group. CONCLUSION: There was non-significant direction of effect favoring homeopathy against placebo in the treatment of AV. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CTRI/2018/11/016248; UTN: U1111-1221-8164.

Comparative risk reduction of complications pertaining to polycystic ovarian syndrome by multiple treatment options.

The aim of study was to find effective treatment option which reduces the risk of complications among patients of polycystic-ovarian-syndrome. A cross-sectional study was conducted from January-2019 to December-2019. Data was collected from 200 patients that have visited hospitals and clinics located in Karachi. A questionnaire was used in the survey. Collected data was analyzed with SPSS-22. Hormonal-imbalance (p=0.0001), polycystic-ovaries (p=0.008), irregular-menstruation (p=0.0001), obesity (p=0.0001), diabetes (p=0.0001) and infertility (p=0.014) significantly treated by allopathic-medications. Hormonal-imbalance (p=0.025), polycystic-ovaries (p=0.0001), irregular-menstruation (p=0.0001), obesity (p=0.046), diabetes (p=0.001), acne (p=0.046), anxiety (p=0.014), depression (p=0.014) and eating disorder (p=0.046) significantly treated by homeopathic-medications. Polycystic-ovaries (p=0.0001), irregular-menstruation (p=0.0001), obesity (p=0.014), diabetes (p=0.0001) and acne (p=0.014) significantly treated by herbal-medications. Allopathic treatment was found effective in reducing risk of complication associated with PCOS; hormonal-imbalance (59%), hirsutism (42%), obesity (89%), diabetes (90%), hypertension (17%), infertility (60%) and anxiety (75%). Risk reduction of complications by Homeopathic treatment; polycystic-ovaries (54%), irregular menstruation (91%) and depression (43%). Combination treatment was found effective in reducing the risk of acne (43%) and eating disorder (100%). Allopathic treatment is effective in reducing the majority of risks of complications and the complications of polycystic-ovaries-syndrome can be significantly controlled with the homeopathic mode of treatment.

Individualised Homeopathic Treatment of Acne-An Analysis of 83 Patients.

BACKGROUND: Acne is a common disorder of the pilosebaceous follicle. The face, back and chest are usually involved. It leads to significant diminution in quality of life. Numerous treatments are documented in therapeutic guidelines. Naturopathic approaches have been proposed in some, but the role of homeopathy is not examined. METHODS: In this study, 83 patients treated for acne with individualised homeopathic medicine alone were reviewed. Most had received conventional acne treatment, with limited success prior to presentation for homeopathy. Each patient was prescribed a single homeopathic medicine and followed up at 6- to 8-week intervals. The individualisation process resulted in 17 different medicines being used in this group. Photographic documentation was obtained per patient, with informed consent. Patients were classified as mild (comedonal acne with no papules or pustules), moderate (inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions) and severe (predominantly inflammatory lesions: pustules, cysts, nodules). Results of treatment were recorded as remission (decrease in new lesion number, duration and intensity), failure to respond, and lost to follow-up (LTF). RESULTS: The average age of patients was 21.5 years (range 11-45 years). The F:M ratio was 55 (66.3%):28 (33.7%). Average pre-treatment duration was 5.5 years (0.25-22 years). Seven (8.4%) patients had mild acne, 37 (44.6%) moderate, and 39 (47%) severe acne. There were 13 (15.7%) LTFs, two (2.4%) failed to respond, and 68 (81.9%) went into remission. Average time to remission was 1.9 months (range 1.5-6 months), with no relapses or side-effects. The most commonly prescribed medicines were Lycopodium (38.6%), Palladium (15.7%) and Platinum (12.1%). CONCLUSION: Individualised homeopathy may be useful for acne therapy. The most useful medicines appeared to be Lycopodium, Palladium and Platinum, though 17 different medicines were used in this study, underscoring the value of individualisation of therapy, a key characteristic of homeopathy.

Natural language processing of Reddit data to evaluate dermatology patient experiences and therapeutics.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of research studying patient-generated data on Reddit, one of the world's most popular forums with active users interested in dermatology. Techniques within natural language processing, a field of artificial intelligence, can analyze large amounts of text information and extract insights. OBJECTIVE: To apply natural language processing to Reddit comments about dermatology topics to assess for feasibility and potential for insights and engagement. METHODS: A software pipeline preprocessed Reddit comments from 2005 to 2017 from 7 popular dermatology-related subforums on Reddit, applied latent Dirichlet allocation, and used spectral clustering to establish cohesive themes and the frequency of word representation and grouped terms within these topics. RESULTS: We created a corpus of 176,000 comments and identified trends in patient engagement in spaces such as eczema and acne, among others, with a focus on homeopathic treatments and isotretinoin. LIMITATIONS: Latent Dirichlet allocation is an unsupervised model, meaning there is no ground truth to which the model output can be compared. However, because these forums are anonymous, there seems little incentive for patients to be dishonest. CONCLUSIONS: Reddit data has viability and utility for dermatologic research and engagement with the public, especially for common dermatology topics such as tanning, acne, and psoriasis.

Observational study of Arctium lappa in the treatment of acne vulgaris.

INTRODUCTION: Arctium lappa (Lappa) is used in traditional Western and Chinese medicine for acne. It is mentioned in homeopathic literature for acne, but its effect has not previously been evaluated. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of homeopathic medicine Lappa in treatment of acne vulgaris. METHODS: An uncontrolled observational interventional study was conducted on human subjects who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and gave written informed consent. Lappa was prescribed in potencies starting from 6c rising to 1M as required, over a period of 6 months. Objective assessment was change in acne lesion counts supplemented with Global Acne Grading System (GAGS) and subjective assessment by using Acne-Specific Quality of Life questionnaire (Acne-QoL). RESULTS: Out of 34 human subjects, 32 completed the follow-up. Statistical significant results were seen in lesion counts, GAGS and Acne-QoL score (p value <0.001). CONCLUSION: Lappa has shown positive effects in the treatment of acne especially of inflammatory type. Further controlled, randomized studies with larger sample size are desirable. Trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01040390.

Case Reports of Acne and Homeopathy.

BACKGROUND: Acne vulgaris is a self-limiting disorder of the pilosebaceous unit. The aesthetic aspect of the disorder may provoke depression and diminish the quality of life. A number of agents are used for acne treatment, e.g., retinoids, antibiotics, benzoic acid, azelaic acid, and hormones. These agents have side-effects, sometimes severe ones. CASE REPORTS: Presented are 2 cases of severe acne treated with individualized homeopathic medicines. Both patients were treated using the classical method of homeopathy, i.e., a single medicine based on the patient's individual characteristics was prescribed. The cases were documented photographically at onset and during the course of treatment. Both patients went into remission following treatment, and long-term follow-up suggested that the therapy remained efficacious long after cessation of treatment. No significant side effects were noted. CONCLUSIONS: Homeopathic medicines may be useful as stand-alone treatment of patients with severe acne vulgaris. A case series suggested a remission rate of more than 80% using individualized homeopathic treatment. The treatment remained efficacious long after cessation and is not accompanied by significant side-effects. It is to be hoped that this presentation will stimulate research interest into homeopathic medicines as stand-alone or adjunct treatments of acne.

The contraceptive implant.

Contraceptive implants provide long-acting, highly effective reversible contraception. Currently, the only subdermal implant available to women in the United States is the single rod etonogestrel implant, Implanon (N.V. Organon, Oss, the Netherlands) approved by the Food and Drug Administration in July 2006. Implanon is currently approved for 3 years of use, provides excellent efficacy throughout its use, and is easy to insert and remove. Similar to other progestin-only contraceptives, Implanon can cause irregular vaginal bleeding. Implanon has been shown to be safe to use during lactation, may improve dysmenorrhea, and does not significantly affect bone mineral density, lipid profile, or liver enzymes.

Nutrition and skin: Kids are not just little people.

There has been a surge of new data regarding the pathophysiology of skin diseases. We are appreciating the sophisticated interplay among the skin, the immune system, and the environment. More elegant and highly specific medicines have been designed to target certain immune mediators of the adaptive immune system. In parallel fashion, we are learning more about the elegance of the innate immune system and how nutrition as early as the prenatal period can affect the priming of other immune cells. Concerns about the long-term impact of new immune-modulating medicines-especially in the pediatric population-have patients asking their dermatologists for nutritional alternatives to medical therapies. Nutrients and nutritional therapies appear to play a role at different ages for different dermatoses. Probiotics are showing promise as a therapeutic option for patients older than 1 year for atopic dermatitis. Systemic contact allergens appear to be a bigger burden on the adult population with atopic dermatitis. Obesity is a growing concern for both children and adults with psoriasis. Milk and high glycemic foods have a strong impact on the teenage acne population. Vitamins A and D are addressed as piece of the alopecia areata puzzle. Zinc and homeopathy are presented finally as possible treatments to the everlasting wart.

Seijo-bofu-to, Jumi-haidoku-to and Toki-shakuyaku-san suppress rashes and incidental symptoms in acne patients.

Seijyo-bofu-to, Jumi-haidoku-to and Toki-shakuyaku-san effectively suppressed acne rashes as well as incidental symptoms. The synergistic activities of the ingredients in the Kampo formulations might produce these effects. In contrast, distinct suppression of incidental symptoms was not found with antimicrobials. The cause of adverse effects in antimicrobials has not yet been clarified and different degrees of suppression of incidental symptoms among the Kampo formulations exist.

Conhecemos bem os chamados policrestos? Manifestações da acne em Arsenicum album e Pulsatilla nigricans / Do we know polycrests well? Manifestations of acne in Arsenicum album and Pulsatilla nigricans

A acne é uma ocorrência comum, que basicamente consiste na inflamação dos folículos cutâneos, eventualmente seguida de infeção. Os objetivos do tratamento convencional são reduzir a produção das glândulas sebáceas, acelerar a renovação celular cutânea, diminuir a infecção e evitar a disseminação da infecção. Para tanto, dispõe-se de uma ampla variedade de agentes para aplicação tópica ou uso sistêmico. No entanto, a própria existência de tal variedade de abordagens aponta para o fato de que nenhuma modalidade terapêutica é completamente efetiva. A homeopatia pode constituir um valioso tratamento para a acne, na medida em que leva em consideração os sintomas e sinais mais peculiares da condição patológica reunidos em configurações sindrômicas. O presente artigo é dedicado à análise das características da acne correspondentes aos medicamentos homeopáticos Arsenicum album e Pulsatilla nigricans.

Acne is a common occurrence that basically consists in inflammation of the skin follicles eventually followed by infection. The aims of conventional treatment are to reduce the sebaceous production, increase the skin cell turnover, reduce infection and hinder the spread of infection. For that purpose, several topical and systemic agents are available. However, that very broad range of therapies points to their relative effectiveness. Homeopathy might represent a valuable treatment of acne inasmuch as it takes intrinsically consistent and coherent configurations of the most peculiar signs and symptoms of diseases into consideration. The present article describes the typical characteristics of acne corresponding to homeopathic medicines Arsenicum album and Pulsatilla nigricans.

Homeopatia em imagens: Diagnóstico diferencial da acne, parte I / Homeopathy in images: Differential diagnosis of acne, part I

Considerada do ponto de vista homeopático, a acne não é meramente uma patologia a ser curada, mas carrega em si indicadores semiológicos tanto para sua cura, quanto para o diagnóstico do remédio de fundo (constitucional tipológico) do paciente. Este é o primeiro de uma série de artigos dedicados à análise das características individualizantes da acne. São utilizadas, primariamente, a semiologia visual e a análise através de grupos de medicamentos homeopáticos. A Parte I aborda uma discussão geral da acne do ponto de vista homeopático e apresenta o grupo de medicamentos derivados do enxofre.(AU)

Homeopatia em imagens: Diagnóstico diferencial da acne, Parte II / Homeopathy in images: Differential diagnosis of acne, Part II

Considerada do ponto de vista homeopático, a acne não é meramente uma patologia aser curada, mas carrega em si indicadores semiológicos tanto para sua cura, quantopara o diagnóstico do remédio de fundo (constitucional tipológico) do paciente. Este é o segundo de uma série de artigos dedicados à análise das característicasindividualizantes da acne. São utilizadas, primariamente, a semiologia visual e a análise através de grupos de medicamentos homeopáticos. A Parte II está dedicada aomedicamento homeopático Hepar sulphur e ao seu diagnóstico diferencial com o radicalenxofre.

From the homeopathic perspective, acne is not merely a disease to be healed, butcarries semiologic markers for both its treatment and to diagnose the constitutional(typological) medicine of the patient. This is the second of a series of articles devoted to analyze the individualizing characteristics of acne. For this purpose, visual semiology and analysis by means of classes of homeopathic medicines are used. Part II is devoted to homeopathic agent Hepar sulphur and its differential diagnosis relative to the sulfur class.

Homeopatia em imagens: Diagnóstico diferencial da acne, parte I / Homeopathy in images: Differential diagnosis of acne, part I

Considerada do ponto de vista homeopático, a acne não é meramente uma patologia a ser curada, mas carrega em si indicadores semiológicos tanto para sua cura, quanto para o diagnóstico do remédio de fundo (constitucional tipológico) do paciente. Este é o primeiro de uma série de artigos dedicados à análise das características individualizantes da acne. São utilizadas, primariamente, a semiologia visual e a análise através de grupos de medicamentos homeopáticos. A Parte I aborda uma discussão geral da acne do ponto de vista homeopático e apresenta o grupo de medicamentos derivados do enxofre.

Homeopatia em imagens: Diagnóstico diferencial da acne, Parte II / Homeopathy in images: Differential diagnosis of acne, Part II

Considerada do ponto de vista homeopático, a acne não é meramente uma patologia aser curada, mas carrega em si indicadores semiológicos tanto para sua cura, quantopara o diagnóstico do remédio de fundo (constitucional tipológico) do paciente. Este é o segundo de uma série de artigos dedicados à análise das característicasindividualizantes da acne. São utilizadas, primariamente, a semiologia visual e a análise através de grupos de medicamentos homeopáticos. A Parte II está dedicada aomedicamento homeopático Hepar sulphur e ao seu diagnóstico diferencial com o radicalenxofre.

From the homeopathic perspective, acne is not merely a disease to be healed, butcarries semiologic markers for both its treatment and to diagnose the constitutional(typological) medicine of the patient. This is the second of a series of articles devoted to analyze the individualizing characteristics of acne. For this purpose, visual semiology and analysis by means of classes of homeopathic medicines are used. Part II is devoted to homeopathic agent Hepar sulphur and its differential diagnosis relative to the sulfur class.

Abordagem Homeopática da acne

Este trabalho apresenta um levantamento bibliográfico sobre o estudo da acne, descrevendo muitos pontos importantes sobre a sua fisiopatologia, quadro clínico, diagnóstico e tratamentos convencionais, além de descrever os cuidados locais e as interferências da dieta sobre a acne, e enfatiza a possibilidade terapêutica homeopática, desde a semiologia visual da acne até a busca dos medicamentos constitucionais dos pacientes, considerando que a terapêutica homeopática se baseia na totalidade sintomática de cada indivíduo. (AU)

This paper presents a literature review on the study of acne, describing many important points about the pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis and conventional treatments, as well as describe the local care and interference of diet on acne, and emphasizes the possibility homeopathic treatment from the look of acne semiotics to the pursuit of constitutional medicines of patients, whereas homeopathic therapy is based on symptomatic totality of each individual. (AU)

[Research to achieve a homeopathic lotion]. / Cercetari în vederea realizarii unei lotiuni homeopatice.

A formulation of homeopathic lotion was elaborated. It uses as mother-solutions: the Calendula tincture and the Fumaria tincture prepared according to the homeopathic rules, and a vegetal soft extract conventionally named by us Pt2a, and the 42 C alcohol was used as a vehicle. All dilutions were made at 3CH. The pH, the refraction index and the electrical conductivity of the three solutions prove a good stability of the preparation. The 2 CH a dilution was well tolerated at the administration with juvenile acne and the simple dry phthiriasis, an improving being noted after 3-4 days of treatment.

La homeopatía frente a casos con tratamiento convencional / Treating patients on conventional drugs homeopathically

Durante mucho tiempo se creyó que un paciente no podía ser tratado con Homeopatía si es que, al momento de la consulta, se encontraba siguiendo un tratamiento alopático. Los doctores Morrison y Herrick establecen las pautas generales que deben seguirse al respecto y los inconvenientes que aparecen al momento de tratar de remplazar la medicina convencional por la medicina homeópata. Una parte del trabajo rescata la opinión que tienen algunos pacientes acerca de los dos sistemas clínicos terapéuticos, así como las expectativas de la familia (y de la sociedad, por extensión) en torno al método clínico configurado por Samuel Hahnemann. (AU)

For a long time it was believed that a patient could not be treated with Homeopathy if, at the time of consultation, was following an allopathic treatment. The doctorsHerrick Morrison established the general guidelines to be followed in this regard and disadvantages that appear when trying to replace the conventional medicine homeopathic medicine. Part of the work rescues the opinion they have some patients on the two treatment clinical systems as well as the expectations of the family (and society by extension) about the clinical method set by Samuel Hahnemann. (AU)

La homeopatía frente a casos con tratamiento convencional / Treating patients on conventional drugs homeopathically

Durante mucho tiempo se creyó que un paciente no podía ser tratado con Homeopatía si es que, al momento de la consulta, se encontraba siguiendo un tratamiento alopático. Los doctores Morrison y Herrick establecen las pautas generales que deben seguirse al respecto y los inconvenientes que aparecen al momento de tratar de remplazar la medicina convencional por la medicina homeópata. Una parte del trabajo rescata la opinión que tienen algunos pacientes acerca de los dos sistemas clínicos terapéuticos, así como las expectativas de la familia (y de la sociedad, por extensión) en torno al método clínico configurado por Samuel Hahnemann.

For a long time it was believed that a patient could not be treated with Homeopathy if, at the time of consultation, was following an allopathic treatment. The doctorsHerrick Morrison established the general guidelines to be followed in this regard and disadvantages that appear when trying to replace the conventional medicine homeopathic medicine. Part of the work rescues the opinion they have some patients on the two treatment clinical systems as well as the expectations of the family (and society by extension) about the clinical method set by Samuel Hahnemann.

Restovar--new low-dose, combined, oral contraceptive. Effects on serum proteins, free testosterone and clinical efficacy.

PIP: A combined oral contraceptive (OC, Restovar, Organon) containing 0.0375 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.75 mg lynestrenol was investigated. Various clinical and laboratory variables were studied in 164 women over 1376 treatment cycles. No pregnancies occurred. In common with other low-dose combined preparations, Restovar also caused some intermenstrual bleeding but acceptability was good in the majority of women. The frequency of general complaints was low. The estrogen-sensitive proteins, ceruloplasmin and transcortin, increased in proportion to the estrogen content of the preparation. The estrogen-androgen-sensitive proteins, sex hormone binding globulin, and thyroxin binding globulin, increased to a rather high level. Free testosterone decreased significantly. The elevation of sex hormone binding globulin level was accompanied by a decrease in free testosterone. The strong increases in sex hormone binding globulin and thyroxin binding globulin indicate that the preparation has a very low androgenic activity. The latter was confirmed in 2 women with initially low sex hormone binding globulin levels who showed a marked improvement in hirsutism and acne during treatment; this improvement was correlated with an increase in sex hormone binding globulin and decreased free testosterone levels.^ieng

Ovulation inhibitors containing cyproterone acetate or desogestrel in the treatment of hyperandrogenic symptoms.

An open, randomized, multicenter study was carried out to compare two oral contraceptives as regards their therapeutic efficacy in androgenization symptoms such as acne, seborrhea and hirsutism in women. The preparations used were the combination of 2 mg cyproterone acetate (CPA) with 0.035 mg ethinyl estradiol (EE) (Diane 35, Schering AG, Berlin-West) and 0.150 mg desogestrel (DG) with 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol (Marvelon, Organon, Oss, The Netherlands). The duration of therapy was 9 months. The combination of CPA-EE was used by 83 patients for 658 cycles and the combination of DG-EE by 79 women for 618 cycles. No pregnancy occurred under either therapy. Both preparations are well tolerated. However, some side-effects, such as reduced libido, nervousness and breast tenderness, were observed more frequently (p less than 0.05) in the DG-EE group than among the users of the CPA-EE combination. The therapeutic outcome was better in the CPA-EE group, especially in cases of facial acne (p less than 0.05). Seborrheic symptoms also responded better to the CPA-EE therapy. The results show that the CPA-EE combination is superior to the DG-EE combination in the treatment of acne and seborrhoea.