Homeopathy for Tonsillitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis
What is this project about?
Tonsillitis is a common condition, particularly among children and adolescents, with viral infections accounting for up to 70% of cases. Treatment of acute tonsillitis generally involves symptomatic management, including analgesics and antipyretics. Bacterial cases, particularly those caused by Group A Streptococcus, are treated with antibiotics such as penicillin or amoxicillin. Recurrent tonsillitis may necessitate a tonsillectomy, a surgical procedure recommended when conservative treatments fail. Adverse events associated with treatment include antibiotic resistance due to overprescription and surgical risks, such as postoperative bleeding and pain.
This project aimed to assess the effectiveness of homeopathy for Tonsillitis in terms of symptom relief and reduced antibiotic consumption, providing patients, practitioners and stakeholders with clear, comprehensive and objective information for a condition routinely treated with homeopathy.
Research Group
- Dr Esther van der Werf, Homeopathy Research Institute, London, UK
- Ms Rachel Roberts, Homeopathy Research Institute, London, UK
- Dr Alyson Huntley, Centre for Academic Primary Care, Bristol Medical School, Bristol, UK
- Dr Rachel Perry, The National Institute for Health and Care Research Applied Research Collaboration West (NIHR ARC West) at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust, UK
- Professor Nai Ming Lai, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Taylor’s University, Malaysia.
Lead researcher
Dr Esther van der Werf MSc PhD Dip IACH (Hom)
Clinical Research Lead
Homeopathy Research Institute
Esther has an MSc in Epidemiology and MSc in Health Policy & Management from Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. In 2006 she obtained her PhD on epidemiology and the urinary tract from Erasmus University Rotterdam. Esther is a qualified classical homeopath, trained in homeopathy at the International Academy of Classical Homeopathy (Professor George Vithoulkas, Greece).
She has more than 20 years’ experience of clinical research and project management and subsequently worked as an epidemiologist at University of Medical Centre Utrecht and University of Applied Sciences Leiden in the Netherlands. In 2015 Esther joined the Centre of Academic Primary Care of the University of Bristol, UK, to continue her research on Integrative Medicine and infectious diseases. From August 2018 until August 2019, she initiated and led the research group on Integrative Medicine at the School of Medicine of Taylor’s University, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, followed by 2 years leading the Integrative Medicine research department at Louis Bolk Institute in The Netherlands.
Why is this project important?
Tonsillitis is a frequent condition, particularly among children and young adults. Acute tonsillitis accounts for a significant proportion of sore throat cases, with incidence estimates of around 100–300 cases per 1,000 children annually. Chronic or recurrent tonsillitis affects a smaller proportion of the population, with prevalence estimates ranging from 5–10% in children and adolescents, and lower rates in adults.
Patients, clinicians and other stakeholders can only make informed choices about the use of medicines if they have good quality, robust information. This project served to provide clarity for a common condition for which the evidence that homeopathy can be considered effective is promising. With antibiotic resistance a growing issue in healthcare, any evidence-based treatment option which reduce their use will be of major benefit.
