A clinical study to ascertain the effectiveness of homoeopathic medicines in the treatment of scalp psoriasis1
Thirty male and female participants with a clinical diagnosis of scalp psoriasis diagnosed by a dermatologist, attending the psoriasis research outpatient clinic at the Government Homoeopathic Medical College in Kerala, were included in this study.
The gathered data was qualified via the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) following administration of a single, individualized, homeopathic medicine during participant examinations every two to three weeks.
Treatment outcome was assessed upon improvement in the participant’s symptoms and any changes in the PASI score and DLQI before and after treatment.
PASI assesses body surface area, erythema, induration and scaling. The severity score ranges from 0 to 72 and is a useful measure to assess response to a particular treatment.
DLQI measures the impact of skin disease on the patient’s quality of life over the past seven days, consisting of ten items, six dimensions and a summary total score. Each question can be answered with one of four responses: not at all, little, a lot or very much, with scores of 0, 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The total score ranges from 0 (the best score) to 30 (the worst score). It is useful in clinical practice because of its brevity and simplicity.
The significance test was conducted to confirm the final statistical analysis using the relevant statistical techniques. The paired t-test was employed as the DLQI significance test because there were scores before and after therapy. The data, however, were not normally distributed for PASI and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to evaluate significance. The observed Wilcoxon signed-rank test difference was found to be significant (P = 0.001). Therefore, the researchers rejected the null hypothesis and accepted the alternate hypothesis that there is a significant difference in the PASI score of patients with scalp psoriasis before and after treatment with individualized homeopathic medicine.
At the conclusion of the study,
Twenty two participants had significant reductions in erythema, induration and scaling on analysis of the outcomes following treatment, eight had no change in these symptoms.
DLQI evaluations conducted before and after the trial, twenty eight participants quality of life improved.
PASI scores decreased in twenty two participants, remaining unchanged in eight.
DLQI ratings dropped in twenty eight participants reporting an improvement in their quality of life within the research period through better work efficiency, enhanced interpersonal relationships, everyday activities, social and recreational activities and raised confidence levels. In two participants there was no improvement.
Eight three percent of study participants were male. Almost 60% of participants had suffered psoriasis for between 1 and 10 years, 40% for more than 10 years. A strong positive family history of psoriasis among the first-degree relatives was observed in 46% of participants.
This study was supported by the Kerala University of Health Sciences.
Nair RK and Sasi AK, 2023. A clinical study to ascertain the effectiveness of homoeopathic medicines in the treatment of scalp psoriasis. J Intgr Stand Homoeopathy. 6:95-101. Available from: https://jish-mldtrust.com/a-clinical-study-to-ascertain-the-effectiveness-of-homoeopathic-medicines-in-the-treatment-of-scalp-psoriasis/