Palliat Med. 1998 Mar; 12(2): 119-21.

Intrathecal baclofen and homeopathy for the treatment of painful muscle spasms associated with malignant spinal cord compression.

Thompson E, Hicks F.

St Margaret's Hospice, Clydebank, Strathclyde, UK.

In this case study we describe a dual approach to the palliation of difficult muscle spasms using intrathecal baclofen via a fully implanted system, together with the homeopathic approach to symptom control. The homeopathy is seen to complement rather than to replace conventional prescribing and using both approaches together appears to have avoided the necessity for increasing drug doses and to have minimized side-effects. As well as encouraging us to take on experience from other disciplines, this case study also suggests that palliative care could be a forum for evaluating the effectiveness of the homeopathic approach in symptom control in carefully designed studies.