Abstract

UROLITHIASIS AND HOMOEOPATHY: A CASE SERIES

Girish Gupta*, Anit Acharya and Chaturbhuja Nayak

ABSTRACT

Background: Urolithiasis is considered as a multifactorial recurrent disease, distributed worldwide in urban, rural, non-industrial and industrial regions with different chemical composition of analysed stones in context to various risk factors. The conventional treatment along with shock wave lithotripsy has proved to be quite expensive with increase in stone recurrences and complications. Homoeopathy has emerged as an evidence-based medicine (EBM) that requires strong clinical evidences to prove its plausibility. The aim of the study was to assess of the clinical effectiveness of homoeopathic remedies in the treatment of urolithiasis in a typical clinical setting. Methods: A retrospective study of five patients of urolithiasis was performed in a clinical setting. The clinical status of each patient, supported by the ultrasonography imaging was done as per the outcome assessment criteria. Lycopodium clavatum was given as an individualised medicine followed by Sarasaparilla as an organ specific medication, based on the totality of each patient‟s symptoms. Results: There was symptomatic relief of all the patients and the post-treatment ultrasonography showed no calculi after the homoeopathic interventions. Lycopodium clavatum followed by Sarsaparilla was effective in removal of the calculi from right kidney (20%), left kidney (40%) and both the kidneys (40%). Conclusions: Though medicines like Lycopodium clavatum and Sarsaparilla have been documented in homoeopathic literature to be useful for right -sided urolithiasis, yet in the cases included in the present case series, both these medicines have acted favourably in left- sided as well as right- sided urolithiasis. Besides treating with individualised medicines as per classical homoeopathy, there are other approaches to get the desired results, as evident from this study, where the constitutional medicine, Lycopodium clavatum was supported by another organ/disease specific medicine, i.e.Sarsaparilla, following the concept of clinical homoeopathy. However, further research studies with larger sample size and better outcome assessment tools are suggested.

Keywords: Urolithiasis; homoeopathy; Lycopodium clavatum; Sarsaparilla.