「We updated a previous comprehensive search for placebo-controlled trials of homoeopathy, which covered publications up to August, 1995.12 We searched 19 electronic databases, including specialised homoeopathic and complementary-medicine registries, covering the period from 1995 to January, 2003: MEDLINE, Pre-MEDLINE, EMBASE, DARE, CCTR, CDSR, CINAHL, AMED, MANTIS, Toxline, PASCAL, BIOL, Science Citation Index, CISCOM, British Homeopathic Library, the Homeopathy Abstract page, HomInform Homoeopathic library, NCCAM, and SIGLE. The search terms in MEDLINE were (homeop* OR homoeop* OR homeopathy (MeSH)) AND (placebo* OR placebos (MeSH) OR placebo effect (MeSH) OR sham). Search terms for the other databases were much the same. We also checked the reference lists of relevant papers, including reviews and meta-analyses of homoeopathic interventions, and contacted experts in the specialty. There were no language restrictions.」
Clinical topic Number of trial pairs Respiratory-tract infections 21 (19%) Pollinosis and asthma 16 (15%) Gynaecology and obstetrics 14 (13%) Surgery and anaesthetics 12 (11%) Gastroenterology 12 (11%) Musculoskeletal disorders 11 (10%) Neurology 10 (9%) Other 14 (13%) Table 1: Distribution of pairs of placebo-controlled trials by clinical topic