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Oscillococcinum

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See also: Clinical homeopathy and Homeopathy

Oscillococcinum is a homeopathic remedy that is claimed to relieve the symptoms of influenza (flu). It is one of the most popular of all homeopathic remedies, particularly in France. It is unusual in that it is a proprietary preparation; the name Oscillococcinum is owned by a French company, Boiron, its sole manufacturer.

Origin

The word Oscillococcinum was coined by the French physician Joseph Roy (1891-1978) during his military duty after he examined the blood of victim of the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1917[1]. He believed that diseases as varied as eczema, rheumatism, tuberculosis, measles and cancer were all caused by a vibrating bacterium he claimed to have seen and named Oscillococcus. It has been known for some time that this was false: eczema and rheumatism are not caused by bacteria, and measles is caused by a virus far too small for Roy to have observed in his optical microscope.

No researcher has subsequently presented a peer-reviewed report of an independent sighting of Oscillococcus, raising doubt amongst microbiologists over Roy's observations.

Preparation

The ingredients of a 1 gram tube of Oscillococcinum are listed as:

  • Active: Anas Barbariae Hepatis et Cordis Extractum HPUS 200CK (extract of the liver and heart of wild duck, diluted 200 times)
  • Inactive: 0.85g Sucrose, 0.15g Lactose

Method

  1. Fill a sterile one litre bottle with a mixture of pancreatic juice and glucose
  2. Take one Barbary duck, chop off its head, extract its liver and heart
  3. Add 35g (1.2oz) of the duck's liver and 15g (0.5oz) of its heart to the bottle.
  4. Let the bottle stand for 40 days; the liver and heart will dissolve
  5. Fill a clean glass container (of any size) with ultra-pure distilled water
  6. Add one drop of the duck mixture
  7. Shake vigorously succussion
  8. Empty the container
  9. Refill the container with water
  10. Repeat the steps of shaking, emptying and re-filling 200 times
  11. Use the resultant water to moisten 5mg lactose tablets.

The homeopathic view of its use

However widespread the use or history of Oscillococcinum, the homeopathic view remains:

§ 162 Sometimes happens, owing to the moderate number of medicines yet known with respect to their true, pure action, that but a portion of the symptoms of the disease under treatment are to be met with in the list of symptoms of the most appropriate medicine, consequently this imperfect medicinal morbific agent must be employed for lack of a more perfect one.
§ 163 In this case we cannot indeed expect from this medicine a complete, untroubled cure; for during its use some symptoms appear which were not previously observable in the disease, accessory symptoms of the not perfectly appropriate remedy[2]

Homeopaths normally treat patients according to the the Law of Similars. When a remedy is just subscribed on the diagnosis "flu", then this aspect is not met and results are dubious.[3]

The Efficacy of Oscillococcinum

There is debate over the efficacy of Oscillococcinum. After diluting the original mixture 200 times not a single molecule of its supposed active ingredients will be present in the final product. Scientifically it is impossible for this product to influence an individual's state of health.

Since it is used for the relief of symptoms of flu, a self-limiting disease which lasts for a variable number of days, the best it could do is shorten the duration of those symptoms. If one takes Oscillococcinum and one's flu goes away, then it is easy to attribute this to the Oscillococcinum. However, the infection would have resolved anyway.

Various clinical trials of Oscillococcinum have been conducted. Some seem to show that Oscillococcinum can reduce the duration of the symptoms of flu. The statistical significance and the scientific rigor of these studies is debated, and in any case the placebo effect could be the result of taking Oscillococcinum.

In one meta-analysis of the published clinical studies, the authors reported that the studies showed that Oscillococcinum possibly reduced the duration of the flu by about six hours, but has no effect on preventing it. They concluded the data are not strong enough to make a general recommendation to use Oscillococcinum for flu.[1] Another systematic review has concluded that the popularity of Oscillococcinum was unsupported by the current evidence as to its efficacy.[2]

Notes

  1. ^ The True Story of Oscillococcinum, Jan Willem Nienhuys, 27/08/2003, homeowatch.org
  2. ^ The Organon of the Healing Art
  3. ^ The homeopathic view on the widespread use of Oscillococcinum
  1. ^ Vickers AJ, Smith C. Homoeopathic Oscillococcinum for preventing and treating influenza and influenza-like syndromes., Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2004;(1):CD001957. PMID 14973976
  2. ^ van der Wouden JC, Bueving HJ, Poole P. Preventing influenza: an overview of systematic reviews. Respir Med. 2005 Nov;99(11):1341-9. Epub 2005 Aug 19. PMID 16112852
  3. Oscillococcinum, le joli grand canard. Science et Pseudo-sciences, Cahiers bimestriels de l'Association Française pour l'Information Scientifique, No 202, mars-avril 1993.
  4. Anas Barbariae, Hepatis et Cordis Extractum. The Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States, monograph #0137, June 1989.


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