This volume includes the full Health Technology Assessment (HTA) report on effectiveness, appropriateness, safety and costs of homoeopathy in health care. The report was commissioned by the Swiss health authorities to inform decision-making on the further inclusion of homoeopathy in the list of services covered by statutory health insurance. Other studies carried out as part of the Swiss Complementary Medicine Evaluation Programme (PEK) caused a massive stir due to their schematic and exclusively quantitative (negative-)outcomes for homoeopathy.

The present report, in contrast, offers a differentiated evaluation of the practice of homoeopathy in health care. It confirms homoeopathy as a valuable addition to the conventional medical landscape - a status it has been holding for a long time in practical health care.

Background and objectives of the HTA

Introduction to the specialty of homoeopathy principles and definition
Homoeopathy: research and research problems
General problems with clinical trials in research
HTA homoeopathy methods and material
International utilization of complementary medical approaches
CAM conditions and use in Switzerland
Overview of systematic reviews on the clinical efficacy of homoeopathy
Clinical studies on the effectiveness of homoeopathy for the indication URTI/A (Upper respiratory tract infections and Allergic Reactions)
Safety of homoeopathic use
Cost-effectiveness of homoeopathy.-Full discussion of HTA results.