Individualized Homeopathic Medicines in the Treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Pilot Trial

Abstract

Introduction: Evidence favoring homeopathy in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) remains scarce. The objective of this pilot trial was to test feasibility of a definitive trial in future. We also experimented whether individualized homeopathic medicines (IH) plus psychological counseling (PC) can produce significantly different effects beyond placebo plus PC in the treatment of GAD. Methods: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel arm, pilot trial was conducted on 62 GAD patients at the National Institute of Homoeopathy, India. GAD-7 questionnaire and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A) were used as the primary and secondary outcomes, respectively, measured at baseline and 3 months. Patients received either IH plus PC (n = 31) or identical-looking placebo plus PC (n = 31). Intention-to-treat sample was analyzed to detect group differences using unpaired t tests. Results: Recruitment and retention rates were 56 and 90%, respectively. Mean age was 31.5 years; 56.5% were male. GAD-7 reductions were non-significantly higher in IH than placebo (p = 0.122). Group differences on HAM-A favored IH significantly (p = 0.018). Effect sizes were small to medium. Calcarea carbonica was the most frequently indicated medicine. No serious adverse events happened. Conclusions: A small but positive direction of anxiolytic effect was observed favoring homeopathy over placebo. A definitive trial appeared feasible in future.