Schweizerische Zeitschrift für GanzheitsMedizin
Komplementärmedizin ■ Ernährungsmedizin ■ Gesundheitsprävention
Andy Suter Silvia Bommer Acute and chronic sinusitis: treatment with a homeopathic sinus spray Results of a clinical study on the efficacy and tolerability of the homeopathic “Sinuforce Spray”
Reprint from Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin 2003;15(5):233–238
Original Articles
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin 15, 233–238 (2003). Verlag für GanzheitsMedizin, Basel. www.ganzheitsmedizin.ch
Andy Suter Acute and chronic sinusitis: Silvia Bommer treatment with a homeopathic sinus spray Results of a clinical study on the efficacy and tolerability of the homeopathic “Sinuforce Spray” Sinusitis is a widespread disease Treatment with the homeopathic “Sinuforce Spray” significantly reduced both the
score for individual sinusitis symptoms and the total score for symptoms in patients
at some time in their life [1]. Thus about
with acute or chronic sinusitis. The higher initial score of patients with acute sinusitis
was reduced to a greater extent than the score in patients with chronic sinusitis. Side-
effects consisted of one case each of dry nose and epistaxis. The vast majority of thephysicians and the patients considered the “Sinuforce Spray” in acute or chronic
sinusitis to have very good or good efficacy and judged the tolerability to be very good
tions shows a tendency to increase [2].
Chronic sinusitis alone affects about5% of the Central European population
Key words: Acute and chronic sinusitis, homeopathic nasal spray, tolerability, relief of
recent years [4]. Acute sinusitis is oneof the most frequent infections in the
Akute und chronische Sinusitis: Therapie mit einem homöopathischen Stirnhöhlenspray
Resultate einer klinischen Studie zur Wirksamkeit und Verträglichkeit des
Eine Therapie mit dem homöopathischen ‘Sinuforce Spray’ verringerte sowohl den Score
der einzelnen Sinusitis-Symptome als auch den Gesamtscore der Symptome bei Patien-
ten mit einer akuten oder chronischen Sinusitis signifikant. Bei höherem anfänglichem
Gesamtscore verzeichneten die Patienten mit einer akuten Sinusitis unter Behandlung
mit ‘Sinuforce Spray’ eine wesentlich stärkere Reduktion des Symptomscores als die
Patienten mit einer chronischen Sinusitis. Als Nebenwirkungen traten nur je ein Fall von
stark ausgetrockneter Nase und Epistaxis auf. Die überwiegende Mehrheit der behan-
delnden Ärzte sowie der Patienten schrieb der Therapie mit ‘Sinuforce Spray’ bei aku-
ter und chronischer Sinusitis eine sehr gute oder gute Wirksamkeit zu und bewertete
die Verträglichkeit als sehr gut oder gut .
Schlüsselwörter: Akute und chronische Sinusitis, homöopathischer Stirnhöhlenspray,
Verträglichkeit, Symptomlinderung, ‘Sinuforce Spray’
current estimates for the USA, theprevalence of acute bacterial sinusitisin adults with symptoms of sinusitis inGeneral Practices is up to 38%, where-
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin Original Articles
sis was carried out as an ‘intention-to-
treat analysis’ in all patients who had
were equivalent to ‘not perceptible’,
‘slightly perceptible’, ‘perceptible’ and
‘severe’, at the start of the study and
results of a clinical surveillance study,
Demographic data
quantified as ‘poor’, ‘satisfactory’,
drug consisting of Hydrastis canaden-
‘good’ and ‘very good’ by the physician
sis D6, Lemna minor D4, Luffa opercu-lata D6, Cinnabaris D8 and Kalium
any gender (Table 1). Fifty-three of the
with very good tolerability of the treat-
patients as ‘poor’, ‘satisfactory’, ‘good’
duration of the illness of 2.56 years.
or ‘very good’. In addition, the patient's
Patients and methods
each nostril. The “Sinuforce Spray” is
out interruption. Altogether, 50 patients
In this open, multicentre clinical trial,
densis D6, Lemna minor D4, Luffaoperculata D6, plus Cinnabaris/Hy-
study protocol. As no significant differ-
drargyrum sulfuratum rubrum D8 and
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin Original Articles Table 1: Characteristics of the study participants
only 28% of the patients attributed the treatment only satisfactory or even poor efficacy (Fig. 2). Intention-to-treat- Per-protocol- population population Tolerability
One patient each suffered from tinni-tus, pain on chewing, extremely dry
nose and epistaxis as side-effects; these
Mean duration ofchronic sinusitis (years)
with the treatment. The majority of physicians assessed treatment with “Sinuforce Spray” to be tolerated very well or well and only 2% of the doctors classified the tolerability of the treat- ment as only satisfactory (Fig. 3). The
patients also found the treatment withthe “Sinuforce Spray” to be well orvery well tolerated and only two
patients ascribed the spray only satis-factory or even poor tolerability. The
great majority, 88.9%, of the patientsanswered the question whether theywould use the spray again positively. Subgroup analysis: chronic versus acute sinusitis In a subgroup analysis, the initial val- ues for the individual symptoms of
sinusitis in the patients with an acuteattack of sinusitis were higher than
those in patients who suffered fromchronic sinusitis. The severity of the
reduced to a greater extent by treat-ment with the “Sinuforce Spray” in thepatients with acute sinusitis than in
Fig. 1. Means and standard deviation of the total sinusitis symptom score at the start and at the
end of the treatment and the difference (n = 81), ***p<0.001.
reductions achieved, however, were statistically significant in both sub- groups, with the exception of the value for ‘other symptoms’ (Table 2). The Efficacy
Spray” from an initial score of 11.2 ±
with a score of 2.3 ± 0.8 points, where-
0.001) (Fig. 1). In accordance with the
ment with “Sinuforce Spray” the patients
cians classified the efficacy of “Sinu-
force Spray” at the end of treatment as
even insufficient efficacy. At the end of
more, the total score for the 9 sinusitis
tion of the total score was 4.6 points.
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin Original Articles Discussion
cacy and tolerability of the homeo-pathic “Sinuforce Spray” in the treat-
ment of acute and chronic sinusitis. The majority of the physicians and
good or good efficacy and tolerabilityfor the spray. Thus there was a
cant reduction of the total score for the
days in the majority of the patients. These results are in agreement with
Fig. 2. Assessment of the efficacy of the homeopathic “Sinuforce Spray” by the doctors and
of the efficacy and tolerability of anoral form with the same active ingre-dients (Hydrastis canadensis D6, Lem-na minor D4, Luffa operculata D6,Cinnabaris D8 and Kalium bichromi-Patients cum D6) as in the “Sinuforce Spray”[4]. In this previous open multicentre
study, 83 patients with acute or chron-ic sinusitis participated. The patients
tablets of “Sinuforce Tablets” daily andthose with chronic disease 2 tabletst.i.d. After a study period of ten days,62.5% of the physicians and 59.5% ofthe patients assigned the oral homeo-pathic preparation very good or goodefficacy in the treatment of acute
sinusitis, while 63.5% of the doctorsand 59.5% of the patients assigned thepreparation very good or good efficacyin the treatment of chronic sinusitis. In
Fig. 3. Assessment of the tolerability of the homeopathic “Sinuforce Spray” by the doctors and patients.
addition, the tolerability of the tablets
Table 2: Means of the individual sinusitis symptoms in patients with acute and chronic sinusitis Acute sinusitis (n=53) Chronic sinusitis (n=27) Symptoms Significance Significance
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin Original Articles References
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Furthermore, there are only a fewplacebo-controlled studies availablefor the efficacy of antibiotic treatment
Authors' address:
of acute bacterial sinusitis. The curerates obtained in these studies vary
Andy Suter, dipl. phil. IISilvia Bommer, med. pract.
Schweiz. Zschr. GanzheitsMedizin
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