Individualized homeopathic medicines and Urtica urens mother tincture in treatment of hyperuricemia: an open, randomized, pragmatic, pilot trial

Abstract

Objectives: The quality of management of hyperuricemia has remained sub-optimal owing to unavoidable toxicities, limitations, and dearth of novel advances. Homeopathy has remained under-researched in hyperuricemia. We investigated the clinical effectiveness of three treatment regimens - individualized homeopathy (IH), Urtica urens mother tincture (UUMT), and both (IH + UUMT) along with lifestyle modifications in a sample of 90 patients with hyperuricemia.

Methods: An open, randomized (1:1:1), 3 parallel arms (IH, UUMT, and IH + UUMT), pragmatic trial was conducted at National Institute of Homoeopathy, Kolkata. Outcome measures were serum uric acid (primary), Gout Assessment Questionnaire version 2 (GAQ2, secondary), and Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile version 2 (MYMOP2, secondary); all measured at baseline, and after 3 and 6 months. Intention- to-treat sample was analyzed to detect group differences by unpaired t tests.

Results: Attrition rate was 8.9% (IH: 3, UUMT: 3, IH + UUMT: 2). Groups were comparable at baseline. Reductions in serum uric acid over 3 months were comparatively higher (p=0.057) in the UUMT group than others, however, the differences were narrowed over 6 months (p=0.119). Per protocol analysis of serum uric acid level revealed similar trend of significantly higher reduction in the UUMT group than the other two (3 months: p=0.001; 6 months: p=0.007). No significant differences existed in reductions of GAQ2 scores among the three groups. Few significant differences were detected in MYMOP scores over 3 months favoring IH against others (symptom 2, p=0.001 and wellbeing score, p=0.002), and also over 6 months favoring IH + UUMT against others (symptom 1, p<0.001).

Conclusion: Although all three therapies showed similar improvements, the IH + UUMT group had more positive direction of effects than IH or UUMT alone; however, no definite conclusion could be arrived at. Further trials are warranted with larger sample size. Trial registration: CTRI/2018/05/014026.

Keywords: Urtica urens; clinical trial; homeopathy; hyperuricemia; pragmatic trial; randomized controlled trial.