Homoeopathic treatment for chronic cough – a multicentric, prospective, exploratory trial

Context Cough is a major symptom of respiratory and some non-respiratory ailments for which patients usually seek primary medical care. Homoeopathy is frequently used for treatment of chronic cough. Objective This study aims to assess whether homoeopathy is useful for treating chronic cough resulting from Upper airway cough syndrome (UACS), Asthma and related syndromes, or Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Study Design A multi‑centre, exploratory, prospective trial. Study setting The study was conducted in the outpatient departments of 10 centres of CCRH, India from May 2018 – June 2020. Patients Patients of any gender, between 7-65 years of age, presenting with cough lasting >8 weeks, were enrolled. Main Outcome Measure(s) Cough Severity Index (CSI) and EQ-5D-5L scales were used to analyse the outcomes. Results Out of 2397 patients screened only 706 cases, with minimum four follow ups were analysed, on modified Intention to Treat (mITT) basis. CSI and EQ-5D-5L scores were used to analyse the outcomes of the study. The mean of the CSI score at baseline was 19.09 whereas it reduced to 3.89 in the eighth follow-up with p value <0.01. The mean of the EQ-5D-5L score at baseline was 50.59 which increased to 73.79 in the last follow-up, with p-value<0.05. Phosphorus, Arsenic album, Pulsatilla, Sulphur, Lycopodium and Silica were found to be the most frequently prescribed medicines.