Anjali Miglani and Raj K Manchanda

Prospective, non-randomised, open-label study of homeopathic Zingiber officinale (ginger) in the treatment of acne vulgaris

FACT, 2014, doi: 10.1111/fct.12140

Background - Zingiber officinale (ginger) has a long history of use in traditional medicine, including homeopathy. Studies carried out so far have validated some of the ethno-medicinal observations.Objective - To determine the effectiveness of homeopathic Z. officinale for the treatment of acne vulgaris and to identify its prescribing indications.Methods - A prospective, non-randomised open-label study was conducted on human participants with acne vulgaris. Homeopathic Z. officinale was prescribed in different potencies (6C up to 1M) over a period of 6 months. Outcomes included changes in lesion counts, Global Acne Grading System (GAGS) score, and Acne-Specific Quality of Life (Acne-QoL) score. Data were analysed using paired t-tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests and Pearson's correlation tests.Results - Thirty-two participants enrolled in the study; data for 31 participants were analysed. Statistically significant (P<0.001) changes in lesion counts, GAGS scores and Acne-QoL scores were observed.Conclusion - Homeopathic Z. officinale demonstrates encouraging results in the treatment of facial acne. Further investigation, using a randomised placebo-controlled trial design and a larger sample size is now required to draw firmer conclusions about the effectiveness of this intervention.