Objective: The present study assessed the feasibility of a definitive placebo-controlled trial for evaluating individualized homeopathy (IH) in stage I hypertension (HTN). Design: Double-blind, randomized (IH: 34, placebo: 34), placebo-controlled, parallel arms, pilot trial. Settings/Location: National Institute of Homoeopathy, India. Subjects: Patients suffering from stage I HTN. Interventions: IH and identical-looking placebo. Outcome measures: Feasibility issues, blood pressure (BP) and Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile-2 (MYMOP-2) were assessed for 6 months. Results: The recruitment and retention rates were 44.4% and 85.3%, respectively. Group differences were seemingly higher in the IH group than in the placebo group. Conclusions: Despite challenges in recruitment, an adequately powered efficacy trial appears feasible in the future.
Keywords: essential hypertension; homeopathy; pilot trial; placebo; randomized controlled trial.