Controlled clinical trials evaluating the homeopathic treatment of people with human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune deficiency syndrome

CONTEXT: Homeopathic medicine developed significant popularity in the nineteenth century in the United States and Europe as a result of its successes treating the infectious disease epidemics during that era. Homeopathic medicine is a medical system that is specifically oriented to using nanopharmacologic and ultramolecular doses of medicines to strengthen a person's immune and defense system rather than directly attacking the microbial agents. OBJECTIVES: To review the literature referenced in MEDLINE and in nonindexed homeopathic journals for placebo-controlled clinical trials using homeopathic medicines to treat people with AIDS or who are human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive and to consider a different theoretical and methodological approach to treating people with the viral infection. FINDINGS: A total of five controlled clinical trials were identified. A double-blinded, placebo-controlled study was conducted on 50 asymptomatic HIV-positive subjects (stage II) and 50 subjects with persistent generalized lymphadenopathy (stage III) in whom individualized single-remedy homeopathic treatment was provided. A separate body of preliminary research was conducted using homeopathic doses of growth factors. Two randomized double-blinded, placebo-controlled studies were conducted with a total of 77 people with AIDS who used only natural therapies over a 8-16-week period. Two other studies were conducted over a 2.5-year period with 27 subjects in an open-label format. SETTINGS: The first study was conducted by the Regional Research Institute for Homeopathy in Mumbai, India, under the Central Council for Research in Homeopathy, with the approval of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. The second body of studies was conducted in clinic settings in California, Oregon, Arizona, Hawaii, New York, and Washington. RESULTS: The first study found no statistically significant improvement in CD4 T-lymphocytes, but did find statistically significant pretest and post-test results in subjects with stage III AIDS, in CD4 (p = 0.008) and in CD8 (p = 0.04) counts. The second group of studies found specific physical, immunologic, neurologic, metabolic, and quality-of-life benefits, including improvements in lymphocyte counts and functions and reductions in HIV viral loads. CONCLUSIONS: As a result of the growing number of people with drug-resistant HIV infection taking structured treatment interruptions, homeopathic medicine may play a useful role as an adjunctive and/or alternative therapy.