Homeopathic Treatment of Post-acute COVID-19 Syndrome - A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Post-acute COVID-19 Syndrome, also known as Long COVID, is a serious public health concern. Previous clinical studies have shown individualized homeopathy to be superior to placebo for chronic diseases with symptoms similar to Long COVID, such as fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. Objectives: To explore the feasibility of conducting a randomized, placebo-controlled trial of individualized homeopathy using a volunteer physician approach in the treatment of Long COVID. Methods: In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study seventy-seven participants with Long COVID symptoms were randomly assigned to receive individualized homeopathic treatment with either a verum or placebo medicine. Patients were treated monthly via telemedicine by licensed homeopathic physicians in private practice across various states in the United States of America. Primary outcome measures were Fatigue Assessment Score (FAS) and the Physical Composite Score (PCS) and the Mental Composite Score (MCS) of the RAND 36 Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36). All outcomes were evaluated via online questionnaires at baseline, 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Results: No significant difference was detected in means of the FAS, PCS, or MCS between placebo and verum at each of the four time-points assessed. However, two-way repeated measures ANOVA revealed a statistically significant effect over time in favor of placebo for both FAS (F(3, 210)=3.3, p=0.021) and PCS (F(3, 210)=3.28, p=0.022) but not for the MCS. There were 19 reported homeopathic therapeutic aggravations in the verum group compared to 10 in those receiving placebo. Conclusions: The current pilot study confirms the feasibility of performing future studies of homeopathic treatment in Long COVID. The findings suggest that there was a biological difference in the pattern of response to treatment between those participants receiving verum versus placebo, possibly related to the phenomena of homeopathic aggravations. The study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05104749 ID: 0012021).