Taylor James A, Jacobs Jennifer
Department of Pediatrics, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Homeopathy. 2011 Jul;100(3):109-15. doi: 10.1016/j.homp.2011.03.002.
To assess the effectiveness of a homeopathic ear drop for treatment of otalgia in children with acute otitis media (AOM).
Children with AOM were enrolled in the study at the time of diagnosis and randomized to receive either standard therapy alone or standard therapy plus a homeopathic ear drop solution that was to be used on as needed basis for up to 5 days. Parents of children in both treatment groups rated the severity of 5 AOM symptoms twice daily for 5 days in a symptom diary. A symptom score was computed for each assessment with lower scores denoting less severe symptoms. Parents of children randomized to receive ear drops also recorded information regarding symptoms being treated and response to treatment.
A total of 119 eligible children were enrolled in the study; symptom diaries were received from 94 (79%). Symptom scores tended to be lower in the group of children receiving ear drops than in those receiving standard therapy alone; these differences were significant at the second and third assessments (P = 0.04 and P = 0.003, respectively). In addition, the rate of symptom improvement was faster in children in the ear drop group compared with children in standard therapy alone group (P = 0.002). The most common reason for administration of ear drops was ear pain, recorded for 93 doses; improvement was noted after 78.4% of doses for this indication. There were no significant side effects related to use of the ear drops.
This study suggests that homeopathic ear drops were moderately effective in treating otalgia in children with AOM and may be most effective in the early period after a diagnosis of AOM. Pediatricians and other primary health care providers should consider homeopathic ear drops a useful adjunct to standard therapy.
评估一种顺势疗法耳滴剂治疗急性中耳炎（AOM）患儿耳痛的有效性。
AOM患儿在确诊时纳入本研究，并随机分为两组，一组仅接受标准治疗，另一组接受标准治疗加一种顺势疗法耳滴剂溶液，按需使用，最长使用5天。两个治疗组患儿的家长在症状日记中每天两次对5种AOM症状的严重程度进行评分，持续5天。每次评估计算一个症状评分，分数越低表明症状越轻。随机接受耳滴剂治疗的患儿家长还记录了所治疗症状及治疗反应的信息。
共有119名符合条件的儿童纳入本研究；94名（79%）提交了症状日记。接受耳滴剂治疗的儿童组症状评分往往低于仅接受标准治疗的儿童组；这些差异在第二次和第三次评估时具有统计学意义（分别为P = 0.04和P = 0.003）。此外，与仅接受标准治疗的儿童组相比，耳滴剂组儿童症状改善速度更快（P = 0.002）。使用耳滴剂最常见的原因是耳痛，记录了93次用药；该症状用药后78.4%出现改善。使用耳滴剂未出现明显副作用。
本研究表明，顺势疗法耳滴剂治疗AOM患儿耳痛有一定疗效，且在AOM诊断后的早期可能最有效。儿科医生和其他初级卫生保健提供者应考虑将顺势疗法耳滴剂作为标准治疗的有用辅助手段。
