Treatment of Acute Childhood Diarrhea With Homeopathic Medicine: A Randomized Clinical Trial in Nicaragua

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 93 (5) ◽  
pp. 719-725 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Jacobs ◽  
Stephen S. Gloyd ◽  
James L. Gale ◽  
L. Margarita Jiménez ◽  
Dean Crothers

Objective. Acute diarrhea is the leading cause of pediatric morbidity and mortality worldwide. Oral rehydration treatment can prevent death from dehydration, but does not reduce the duration of individual episodes. Homeopathic treatment for acute diarrhea is used in many parts of the world. This study was performed to determine whether homeopathy is useful in the treatment of acute childhood diarrhea. Methodology. A randomized double-blind clinical trial comparing homeopathic medicine with placebo in the treatment of acute childhood diarrhea was conducted in León, Nicaragua, in July 1991. Eighty-one children aged 6 months to 5 years of age were included in the study. An individualized homeopathic medicine was prescribed for each child and daily follow-up was performed for 5 days. Standard treatment with oral rehydration treatment was also given. Results. The treatment group had a statistically significant (P < .05) decrease in duration of diarrhea, defined as the number of days until there were less than three unformed stools daily for 2 consecutive days. There was also a significant difference (P < .05) in the number of stools per day between the two groups after 72 hours of treatment. Conclusions. The statistically significant decrease in the duration of diarrhea in the treatment group suggests that homeopathic treatment might be useful in acute childhood diarrhea. Further study of this treatment deserves consideration.

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (9) ◽  
pp. 1036-1043 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Wendt ◽  
S. Schinke ◽  
M. Württemberger ◽  
K. Oberdorfer ◽  
O. Bock-Hensley ◽  
...  

Background.Whole-body washing with antiseptic solution has been widely used as part of eradication treatment for colonization with methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus(MRSA), but evidence for the effectiveness of this measure is limited.Objective.To study the efficacy of whole-body washing with chlorhexidine for the control of MRSA.Design.Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded clinical trial.Setting.University Hospital of Heidelberg and surrounding nursing homes.Patients.MRSA carriers who were not treated concurrently with antibiotics effective against MRSA were eligible for the study.Intervention.Five days of whole-body washing with either 4% chlorhexidine solution (treatment group) or with a placebo solution. All patients received mupirocin nasal ointment and chlorhexidine mouth rinse. The outcome was evaluated 3, 4, 5, 9, and 30 days after treatment with swab samples taken from several body sites.Results.Of 114 patients enrolled in the study (56 in the treatment group and 58 in the placebo group), 11 did not finish treatment (8 from the treatment group and 3 from the placebo group [P= .02]). At baseline, the groups did not differ with regard to age, sex, underlying condition, site of MRSA colonization, or history of MRSA eradication treatment. Eleven patients were MRSA-free 30 days after treatment (4 from the treatment group and 7 from the placebo group [P= .47]). Only groin-area colonization was significantly better eradicated by the use of chlorhexidine. The best predictor for total eradication was a low number of body sites positive for MRSA. Adverse effects were significantly more frequent in the treatment group than in the placebo group (any symptom, 71% vs 33%) but were reversible in most cases.Conclusion.Whole-body washing can reduce skin colonization, but it appears necessary to extend eradication measures to the gastrointestinal tract, wounds, and/or other colonized body sites if complete eradication is the goal.Trial Registration.ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00266448.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 95 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-197
Author(s):  
Susana Molina ◽  
Carolina Vettorazzi ◽  
Janet M. Peerson ◽  
Noel W. Solomons ◽  
Kenneth H. Brown

Objective. To assess the effects of glucose (G)-oral rehydration solution (ORS), rice dextrin (RD)-ORS, and rice flour (RF)-ORS on fluid intake, rapidity of rehydration, and stool output of children with acute diarrhea and mild or moderate dehydration. Methods. The study was a randomized, double-masked clinical trial. One hundred forty-six male infants, ages 3 to 36 months, were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. Clinical evaluations and fluid balances were conducted every 2 to 4 hours for 48 hours. Principal outcome variables were ORS consumption, recovery of hydration status, and fecal output. Results. The groups were similar at admission with regard to age, nutritional status, history of the current episode, and clinical status. There were no differences in ORS consumption by treatment group during any period of study. During the first 6-hour period, patients in group RF had less stool output (16 ± 14 g/kg/body weight) than those in group G (22 ± 20 g/kg) or RD (21 ± 19 g/kg; P < .05). After 12 hours of hospitalization, there were no differences by treatment group. Recovery of hydration status, changes in serum sodium and potassium, and duration of diarrhea in the hospital were similar in all three groups. Conclusion. There was a 24% to 27% reduction in stool output during the first 6 hours of treatment among children who received RF-ORS compared with those who received G-ORS or RD-ORS, but this effect did not persist after the first 12 hours of therapy. Because this difference was of small magnitude and limited duration, it has minor clinical importance. Thus, we conclude that the three solutions had similar efficacy for children with acute, watery diarrhea and mild or moderate dehydration.


Author(s):  
Ramakant Yadav ◽  
S. K. Shukla

Background: Migraine is a common health problem in children and adolescents. This study compares the efficacy and safety of propranolol and topiramate in preventing migraine among children and adolescents.Methods: Seventy-six patients (10-18 years of age) with migraine without auras defined by the 2004 International Headache society criteria were included in a prospective double blind clinical trial were allocated to receive propranolol (0.5-2mg/kg per day) or topiramate (1-2mg/kg per day). The primary outcome measure was reduction in 50 % or more headache days in comparison to baseline headache frequency per month. Secondary outcome measures were headache related disability, migraine intensity and duration. Efficacy measures were recorded at the baseline and at 12 weeks of prophylactic treatment.Results: In this study total of 76 patients with mean age of 12.43 years were evaluated, 40 in the propranolol group and 36 in the topiramate group. At the 12-week, the percentage of patients who had a relative reduction of 50% or more in the number of headache days were 67.5% patients in the propranolol group and 75.0% patients in the topiramate group. The monthly migraine frequency, headache related disability, intensity and duration were significantly decreased in both the propranolol and topiramate groups when compared to the baseline. No significant difference was observed between these two groups in term of reduction of frequency, headache related disability, severity and duration of attack. Fatigue, hypotension and exercise induced asthma were main side effects in propranolol group and weight loss, fatigue and loss of appetite, paresthesias in topiramate group.Conclusions: Propranolol and topiramate were found effective and safe for the prevention of paediatric migraines.


2007 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 172
Author(s):  
I Gusti Ngurah Sanjaya Putra ◽  
Sudaryat Suraatmaja ◽  
I Ketut Nomor Aryasa

Background Probiotics has advantages as a supplement formanagement of infants with acute diarrhea. It influences theduration of diarrhea by enhancing immune responses, elaboratesantimicrobial substances and occupies intestinal mucosal sites,inhibits the attachment and the growth of pathogenic organismsby achieving competitive exclusion and microbial balance.Objective To assess the clinical effects of probiotics supplementationon acute diarrhea in infants.Methods This was a double blind, randomized clinical controlledtrial performed on infants aged 1-12 months old with acutediarrhea, hospitalized in Sanglah Hospital, Denpasar. Subjectswere divided into two groups; the treatment group had standardmanagement with adjuvant probiotics, while the control groupreceived standard management with placebo.Results From 70 infants enrolled in this study, the mean durationof diarrhea in treatment group was significantly shorter than thatin the placebo group, 49.03 hours (SE 3.09) (95%CI 42.98;55.08)vs 73.03 hours (SE 3.28) (95%CI 66.61;79.45); P=0.001.Regarding failure of the treatment, probiotics supplementationhad relative risk reduction (RRR) of 67% and absolute riskreduction (ARR) of 57%. In multivariate cox regression analysisit was found that only probiotics supplementation influenced theduration of acute diarrhea in infants.Conclusion Probiotics can shorten the duration of acute diarrhea,and is safe as an adjuvant to standard management for infantswith acute diarrhea.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-96
Author(s):  
Javad Mesbahi ◽  
Shahin Shadnia ◽  
Hossein Hassanian-Moghaddam ◽  
Nasim Zamani ◽  
Peyman Erfan Talab Evini ◽  
...  

Objective: Delirium is one of the most common complications in patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). Delirium is a definite cause for more extended hospital stays, higher mortality rates, and possibly persistent cognitive decline in the future. Antipsychotics have been frequently evaluated as first drugs of choice, but the most appropriate, evidence-based treatment is yet to be discovered. This study aims to compare the efficacy of haloperidol and olanzapine in patients admitted to our toxicology ICU. Methods: This double-blind, randomized controlled clinical trial was undertaken on 35 ICU admitted patients with delirium in Loghman Hakim hospital in Tehran, Iran. The diagnosis was based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-V) criteria for delirium, and clinical toxicologists included the patients according to the study’s inclusion and exclusion criteria. Patients received either haloperidol or olanzapine based on computerized randomization. The severity of delirium was measured with the Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale (MDAS) scoring on days 0 and 3 of ICU-admission. Results: The total sample size was 35 in which 16 patients received haloperidol, and 19 patients received olanzapine. The doses of haloperidol and olanzapine were 3 mg three times a day and 5 mg three times a day, respectively. There was no significant difference in baseline characteristics and the scores of MDAS between groups. Conclusion: Olanzapine and haloperidol have the same efficacy in the management of delirium in toxicology ICU-admitted patients. They can be interchangeably used for delirium treatment in these patients.


Author(s):  
Mohammad Ali Mapar ◽  
Ali Asghar Hemmati ◽  
Ghazal Namdari

Introduction: Generally affecting women, melasma is the acquired disorder of hyperpigmentation, and researches are still ongoing to find an effective, fast, and low-side-effect drug treating this disease. The present study is aimed at comparing the efficacy of topical metformin and placebo in the treatment of melasma. Methods: Sixty patients with melasma were treated in placebo and topical metformin recipient groups in a double-blind clinical trial. In addition to the demographic and laboratory findings of patients before and after the intervention, the MASI Score of patients in weeks 0, 4, 8, and 12 of the study and then one month after the study were analyzed using SPSS version 20 software. Results: The mean age of the studied patients was 35.25 ± 7.11 years. No significant difference was observed between the phenotypes (P= .49) and the type of melasma (P= .63) in the two groups. The mean MASI score of patients at the time of being included in the study in the placebo group was 10.47 ± 3.08; and in the metformin group, it was 11.93 ± 4.64 (P = .16). Compared to the beginning of the study, the MASI scores were significantly decreased in both groups of placebo (P = .00) and metformin (P = .00) one month after the end of the study; nevertheless, no statistically significant difference was observed between the MASI Scores of two groups in any of the study periods (P > .05). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that metformin cream significantly declines the patients’ MASI score and does not have any effect on patients’ laboratory markers. Of course, no significant difference was observed between the MASI scores of the patients receiving metformin and the placebo group; however, the MASI score decrease trend continued until the 12th week; while in the placebo group, no significant decrease was seen after eight weeks.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Kiyoshi Takamatsu ◽  
Mariko Ogawa ◽  
Tsuyoshi Higuchi ◽  
Takashi Takeda ◽  
Kunihiko Hayashi ◽  
...  

Objective. Kampo medicine, a traditional Japanese medicine, is widely used in Japan, especially in the field of menopause medicine. However, few studies have shown evidence-based effects. This study aimed to confirm the effects of kamishoyosan on menopausal symptoms with a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial. Methods. Subjects were randomly allocated to groups that received either kamishoyosan (n = 101) or a placebo resembling kamishoyosan (n = 104). The primary outcomes were the change in the number of hot flashes, depression scores, improvements of anxiety, quality of life (QOL), and menopausal symptoms before and 4 and 8 weeks after initiation of treatment with the study drug. The secondary outcome was drug safety. Results. After 8 weeks, the number of hot flashes decreased after treatment in both groups, but there was no significant difference between the two groups. The changes in SDS scores showed the same results. Moreover, no significant differences were observed between the two groups in assessments with the STAI, SF-36, and JSOG menopausal index. No serious adverse effect was reported. Conclusions. This first placebo-controlled double-blind randomized trial with kamishoyosan demonstrated that it was safe and had some effects on climacteric symptoms, but not significant compared with placebo. Some problems, such as placebo effects, in the study of Kampo therapy for menopausal symptoms, were revealed. This trial is registered with the trial registration number. UMIN 000006042.


1992 ◽  
Vol 161 (5) ◽  
pp. 665-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Vallejo ◽  
J. Olivares ◽  
T. Marcos ◽  
A. Bulbena ◽  
J. M. Menchón

A double-blind clinical trial of clomipramine versus phenelzine was carried out on 30 patients suffering from DSM–III obsessive–compulsive disorder. The study period was 12 weeks, and the maximum doses used (from the fifth week on) were 225 mg/day for clomipramine (14 patients) and 75 mg/day for phenelzine (12 patients); four patients dropped out. Obsessive symptoms improved significantly in both drug groups, but there was no significant difference between groups. Depressive symptoms improved before obsessive ones.


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