Do Bach flower remedies have a role to play in pain control?

Predictors of positive opinion about Bach Flower Remedies in adults from three Latin-American countries: An exploratory study

The current study aimed to determine if positive opinions about BFR interacts with spirituality in adults from three Latin-American countries using a CHAID algorithm. Participants were 703 adults from Cuba (n = 319), Costa Rica (n = 252) and Chile (n = 132).

PREDICTORS

demographic data, received information, received treatment, spirituality, dispositional optimism and willingness to use a placebo intervention were measured and analyzed. A supervised classification which included a training phase (n = 423) and a test phase (n = 280) was employed. Received information about BFR, spirituality and education were selected as significant predictors of the positive opinion about BFR (>90% of correct classifications).

Exploring the Effectiveness of External Use of Bach Flower Remedies on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND

A randomized, pilot, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted with the aim of evaluating the effectiveness of a cream based on Bach flower remedies (BFR) on symptoms and signs of carpal tunnel syndrome.

METHODS

Forty-three patients with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome during their "waiting" time for surgical option were randomized into 3 parallel groups: Placebo (n = 14), blinded BFR (n = 16), and nonblinded BFR (n = 13). These groups were treated during 21 days with topical placebo or a cream based on BFR.

RESULTS

Significant improvements were observed on self-reported symptom severity and pain intensity favorable to BFR groups with large effect sizes (η2partial > 0.40). In addition, all signs observed during the clinical exam showed significant improvements among the groups as well as symptoms of pain, night pain, and tingling, also with large effect sizes (φ > 0.5). Finally, there were significant differences between the blinded and nonblinded BFR groups for signs and pain registered in clinical exam but not in self-reports.

CONCLUSION

The proposed BFR cream could be an effective intervention in the management of mild and moderate carpal tunnel syndrome, reducing the severity symptoms and providing pain relief.

Bach Flower Remedies for psychological problems and pain: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Bach Flower Remedies are thought to help balance emotional state and are commonly recommended by practitioners for psychological problems and pain. We assessed whether Bach Flower Remedies (BFRs) are safe and efficacious for these indications by performing a systematic review of the literature.

METHODS

We searched MEDLINE, Embase, AMED, and the Cochrane Library from inception until June 2008 and performed a hand-search of references from relevant key articles. For efficacy, we included all prospective studies with a control group. For safety, we also included retrospective, observational studies with more than 30 subjects. Two authors abstracted data and determined risk of bias using a recognised rating system of trial quality.

RESULTS

Four randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and two additional retrospective, observational studies were identified and included in the review. Three RCTs of BFRs for students with examination anxiety, and one RCT of BFRs for children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) showed no overall benefit in comparison to placebo. Due to the number and quality of the studies the strength of the evidence is low or very low. We did not find any controlled prospective studies regarding the efficacy of BFRs for pain. Only four of the six studies included for safety explicitly reported adverse events.

CONCLUSION

Most of the available evidence regarding the efficacy and safety of BFRs has a high risk of bias. We conclude that, based on the reported adverse events in these six trials, BFRs are probably safe. Few controlled prospective trials of BFRs for psychological problems and pain exist. Our analysis of the four controlled trials of BFRs for examination anxiety and ADHD indicates that there is no evidence of benefit compared with a placebo intervention.