HOMIS Database of Homeopathic Intervention Studies in Human Diseases: An Update

Background: Therapeutic effects of homeopathy have faced controversy since its early development, despite a substantial empirical body of research. Over recent decades, researchers have been steadily expanding the body of literature. Maintaining an updated database of the literature, such as HOMIS, is important to organize clinical evidence, to help inform future studies. Methods: Seven online sources, as well as one print library, were scanned for homeopathy trials for the years 2021 to 2024. We included studies that compared a homeopathic product or intervention with a control regarding the therapeutic or preventive outcome of a disease (classified according to the International Classification of Diseases-11). The data were extracted independently by two reviewers and analyzed descriptively. The data were merged with the data from the previous HOMIS review. Results: Sixty studies met the inclusion criteria, which added to the 636 references in the earlier HOMIS database, for a total of 696 studies in total. Of the newly added studies, 45 had a therapeutic purpose, eleven had a preventive purpose, and three had both. Ninety-three percent were randomized controlled trials ( n = 55), whereas the rest were non-randomized studies ( n = 4). The leading comparator was placebo ( n = 42). The type of homeopathic intervention was classified as complex ( n = 6), individualized ( n = 36), and routine ( n = 17). The included studies explored the effect of homeopathy mainly on COVID-19 infection ( n = 13) and a total of 23 medical conditions. The overall picture emerging from the 696 studies shows a professionalization of the field with a predominance of peer-reviewed studies published in English. Conclusion: This revised bibliography outlines the state of clinical research on homeopathy in terms of intervention studies. The information it provides will support future reviews, potentially examining the most researched conditions, their clinical effects, and the potential biases in the studies included.