Study of 20 Cases of Otitis Media Successfully Treated with Homoeopathic Medicines—A Case Series

Abstract

Abstract Background Otitis is a general term for inflammation or infection of the ear. Otitis media is the presence of inflammation or infection in the middle ear. Homoeopathy is the most popular treatment among the complementary and alternative medicine therapies sought for otitis media. Several studies revealed promising role of homoeopathic treatment in otitis media. The present study comprises the role of homoeopathic medicines in the treatment of 20 cases of otitis media. Materials and Methods It is a case series of 20 cases of otitis media which is unicentric retrospective observational study. Data was collected after consecutive appointments of patients visiting one outpatient clinic of Regional Research Institute for Homoeopathy, Guwahati, during the 12 months, January 2019 to January 2020. Individualised homoeopathic medicines were administered according to the rules of homoeopathy. In this study, outcome related to impact on daily living scale was used to assess the patient's well-being. The outcome score recorded at the last follow-up appointment per case was thus the single value analysed. Result Among the patients (n = 20) included in the study, the number of patients belonging to female category was 10, (50%) while 10 patients (50%) were male, with a ratio of 1:1. Several medicines (n = 8) were prescribed and administered as follows: Belladonna (n = 1, 5%), Chamomilla (n = 1, 5%), Kali muriaticum (n = 2, 10%), Kali sulphuricum (n = 4, 20%), Mercurius dulcis (n = 2, 10%), Mercurius solubilis (n = 7, 35%), Pulsatilla (n = 2, 10%), Silicea (n = 1, 5%). No patient required antibiotics. Out of 20 cases, only four patients needed second prescription. Change of prescription was done in only one case among them. Higher potency was administered for the other three cases. 16 patients followed-up and 4 patients were dropped out after first prescription. Of these 16 follow-ups, there was a positive outcome in 12 (60%), negative in 2 (10%) and no change in 2 (10%) patients. In our study, outcome did not depend on the age but on medicine. Correctly chosen remedy with strict homoeopathic principle shows maximum improvement. When duration of illness was analysed, it was found that cases with complaints of short duration improve early, whereas cases with long duration of illness took much time to recover or remained status quo. Conclusion The study reflected the importance of homoeopathic prescribing in the treatment of otitis following strict homoeopathic principles.