Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Homeopathic prescribing for chronic conditions in equine veterinary practice in the UK.
- Journal:
- The Veterinary record
- Year:
- 2010
- Authors:
- Mathie, R T et al.
- Affiliation:
- Faculty of Homeopathy
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
In a study involving twelve veterinarians who specialize in homeopathy for horses in the UK, data was collected from 777 appointments over a year. They looked at 289 horses with chronic conditions, such as arthritis and laminitis, and tracked how these horses responded to homeopathic treatments. Most of the horses were also receiving some form of conventional or alternative treatment alongside homeopathy. The results showed that a small number of horses were still on conventional medications, while a larger portion was using other complementary therapies. Overall, the study highlights the use of homeopathy in managing chronic health issues in horses, but it doesn't provide specific outcomes on how effective the treatments were.
Abstract
Twelve Faculty of Homeopathy veterinarians recorded data systematically at 777 consecutive homeopathic appointments for horses over a period of 12 months. A spreadsheet enabled the recording of information, which included the date of appointment; horse and owner identity (anonymised); sex of horse; main medical problem treated; whether the condition was chronic or acute; whether the appointment was new or a follow-up; owner-assessed clinical outcome on a seven-point scale, ranging from -3 to +3, compared with the first appointment; homeopathic medicine(s) prescribed; and whether any conventional or other complementary/alternative medicine (CAM) was being used concurrently to treat the condition. Data from 289 horses comprised a total of 305 individual conditions identified as chronic in nature, of which 234 had a follow-up assessment. At the final appointment for chronic cases during the study period, 4.3 per cent were receiving conventional medication and 17.1 per cent were being given another CAM treatment in addition to homeopathy. The eight chronic conditions most frequently treated with homeopathy were: arthritis, headshaking, laminitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sweet itch, dermatitis, sarcoidosis and Cushing's syndrome.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20173108/