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CTRI Number  CTRI/2020/10/028617 [Registered on: 26/10/2020] Trial Registered Prospectively
Last Modified On: 19/05/2023
Post Graduate Thesis  Yes 
Type of Trial  Interventional 
Type of Study   Homeopathy 
Study Design  Randomized, Parallel Group, Placebo Controlled Trial 
Public Title of Study   Homoeopathic treatment of sciatica pain 
Scientific Title of Study   Individualized homoeopathic medicines in sciatica pain: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, pilot trial 
Trial Acronym   
Secondary IDs if Any  
Secondary ID  Identifier 
U1111-1259-5038  UTN 
 
Details of Principal Investigator or overall Trial Coordinator (multi-center study)  
Name  Siddharth Kumar Das 
Designation  Postgraduate Trainee 
Affiliation  Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital 
Address  Department of Homoeopathic Materia Medica; OPD no. 4; Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani (Drainage Canal Road), Doomurjala

Haora
WEST BENGAL
711104
India 
Phone  8981835382  
Fax    
Email  dassiddharthkumar@gmail.com  
 
Details of Contact Person
Scientific Query
 
Name  Dr Trishita Basu 
Designation  Lecturer 
Affiliation  Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital 
Address  Department of Homoeopathic Materia Medica; OPD no. 4; Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani (Drainage Canal Road), Doomurjala

Haora
WEST BENGAL
711104
India 
Phone  8334941727  
Fax    
Email  drtrishita85@gmail.com  
 
Details of Contact Person
Public Query
 
Name  Prof Dr Shubhamoy Ghosh 
Designation  Professor and Head 
Affiliation  Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital 
Address  Department of Pathology and Microbiology; OPD no. 4; Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani (Drainage Canal Road), Doomurjala

Haora
WEST BENGAL
711104
India 
Phone  9831034229  
Fax    
Email  shubhamoy67@gmail.com  
 
Source of Monetary or Material Support  
Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani (Drainage Canal Road), Doomurjala, Howrah 711104, West Bengal 
 
Primary Sponsor  
Name  Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital 
Address  Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani, Drainage Canal Road, Doomurjala, Howrah 711104, West Bengal 
Type of Sponsor  Government medical college 
 
Details of Secondary Sponsor  
Name  Address 
None  NA 
 
Countries of Recruitment     India  
Sites of Study  
No of Sites = 1  
Name of Principal Investigator  Name of Site  Site Address  Phone/Fax/Email 
Siddharth Kumar Das  Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital  Department of Materia Medica; OPD no. 4; Dr. Bholanath Chakraborty Sarani (Drainage Canal Road), Doomurjala, Howrah 711104
Haora
WEST BENGAL 
8981835382

dassiddharthkumar@gmail.com 
 
Details of Ethics Committee  
No of Ethics Committees= 1  
Name of Committee  Approval Status 
Institutional Ethical Committee  Approved 
 
Regulatory Clearance Status from DCGI  
Status 
Not Applicable 
 
Health Condition / Problems Studied  
Health Type  Condition 
Patients  (1) ICD-10 Condition: M543||Sciatica,  
 
Intervention / Comparator Agent  
Type  Name  Details 
Intervention  Individualized homoeopathic medicines in centesimal potencies  Intervention is planned as administering indicated homoeopathic medicines in centesimal potencies, as decided appropriate to the case or condition. In centesimal scale, each dose shall consist of 4 globules (no. 30) of cane sugar, medicated with the indicated medicine (preserved in 90% v/v ethanol) to be taken orally on clean tongue with empty stomach; dosage and repetition depending upon the individual requirement of the cases. All medicines will be procured from a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-certified firm. All patients will be given general advices on posture maintenance, applying hot fomentation to back, use of firm bed, spinal extensor exercises, and avoiding lifting heavy weights. Route of administration of medicine: Oral. Duration of therapy: 3 months. 
Comparator Agent  Placebo  This arm will receive placebo, indistinguishable in appearance from verum. Each dose of placebo shall consist of 4 globules (no. 30) of cane sugar, moistened with rectified spirit, to be taken orally on clean tongue with empty stomach; dosage and repetition depending upon the individual requirement of the cases. All patients will be given general advices on posture maintenance, applying hot fomentation to back, use of firm bed, spinal extensor exercises, and avoiding lifting heavy weights. Route of administration of medicine: Oral. Duration of therapy: 3 months. 
 
Inclusion Criteria  
Age From  18.00 Year(s)
Age To  65.00 Year(s)
Gender  Both 
Details  1. Patients experiencing low back pain radiating to lower limb (unilateral or bilateral) since 3 months or more (2018/19 ICD-10-CM diagnosis code M54.31); confirmed by straight leg raising (SLR) test
2. Age range 18-65 years and patients of either sex
3. Literate patients; ability to read and write in Bengali and/or English
4. Patients providing written informed consent 
 
ExclusionCriteria 
Details  1. Patients suffering from uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, thyroid diseases
2. Patients having history of surgery to the lower back
3. Patients suffering from disc prolapse, psoriatic arthritis and gout, cases willing for or requiring immediate surgical intervention or already underwent any major spinal or hip surgery in last 6 months
4. Patients who are undergoing treatment with NSAIDs during 6 weeks prior to enrolment in the study
5. Spinal corticosteroid injection within 6 months
6. Diagnosed cases of unstable psychiatric illness
7. Pregnant, puerperal and lactating women
8. Self-reported immune-compromised state
9. Substance abuse and/or dependence 
 
Method of Generating Random Sequence   Computer generated randomization 
Method of Concealment   Pre-numbered or coded identical Containers 
Blinding/Masking   Participant, Investigator, Outcome Assessor and Date-entry Operator Blinded 
Primary Outcome  
Outcome  TimePoints 
Sciatica bothersomeness index (SBI) and sciatica frequency index (SFI)  At baseline, every month, up to 3 months 
 
Secondary Outcome  
Outcome  TimePoints 
Roland Morris pain and disability questionnaire (RMPDQ)  At baseline, every month, up to 3 months 
Short form McGill pain questionnaire (SF-MPQ)  At baseline, every month, up to 3 months 
Oswestry LBP questionnaire  At baseline, every month, up to 3 months 
 
Target Sample Size   Total Sample Size="60"
Sample Size from India="60" 
Final Enrollment numbers achieved (Total)= "60"
Final Enrollment numbers achieved (India)="60" 
Phase of Trial   Phase 2/ Phase 3 
Date of First Enrollment (India)   27/10/2020 
Date of Study Completion (India) 18/08/2022 
Date of First Enrollment (Global)  Date Missing 
Date of Study Completion (Global) Date Missing 
Estimated Duration of Trial   Years="1"
Months="6"
Days="0" 
Recruitment Status of Trial (Global)
Modification(s)  
Not Applicable 
Recruitment Status of Trial (India)  Completed 
Publication Details   None yet; to be published later 
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement

Will individual participant data (IPD) be shared publicly (including data dictionaries)?  

Brief Summary
Modification(s)  

Sciatica is a debilitating condition in which the patients experience pain in the distribution of the sciatic nerve or associated lumbosacral nerve root. Homeopathy is claimed to be beneficial for sciatica pain; still, systematic research evidence remains compromised. To objective of the trial was to examine the efficacy of individualized homeopathic medicines (IHMs) against identical-looking placebos in the treatment of sciatica pain. A double-blind, randomized (1:1), two parallel arms, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Howrah, West Bengal, India. Participants were randomized equally to receive either verum (n = 30; IHMs plus concomitant care) or control (n = 30; placebos plus concomitant care). Primary outcome measures were Sciatica Bothersome Index (SBI) and Sciatica Frequency Index (SFI) scores; and secondary outcomes were Roland Morris Pain and Disability Questionnaire (RMPDQ), Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ), and Oswestry Low Back Pain Questionnaire (OLBPQ) scores; all of them were measured at baseline, and every month, up to 3 months. Intention-to-treat sample (n = 60) was analyzed. Group differences were examined by two-way (split-half) repeated measure analysis of variance, primarily taking into account all the estimates measured at monthly intervals, and secondarily, by unpaired t-tests comparing the estimates obtained individually every month. The level of significance was set at P less than 0.025 and 0.05 two-tailed for the primary and secondary outcomes respectively. Group differences could not achieve significance in SBI (P = 0.044), SFI (P = 0.080), and RMPDQ scores (P = 0.134); but were significant for SF-MPQ (P = 0.007) and OLBPQ (P = 0.036). Gnaphalium polycephalum (n = 6; 10%) was the most frequently prescribed medicine. No harm, serious adverse events, and intercurrent illnesses were recorded in either of the groups. Although the group differences in the primary outcomes were not large enough to be statistically significant favoring homeopathy against placebos, still, promising effects were detected in the secondary outcomes and the secondary analyses. Independent replications are warranted to confirm the findings.

 
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