GUEST EDITORIAL

Homeopathy and dental caries: implications fordental practice and veterinary research

The treatment of dental disease, whether periodontalor dental caries has been a significant point of interestfor homeopaths. Over the last 200 years homeopathyhas looked for a cure for what was invariably a painfulevent: a visit to the dentist! This has led to a repertorywith a multitude of rubrics and a myriad of remediespurporting to cure dental ailments. So it is of greatinterest that an article published in this issue ofHomeopathy deals with the prevention of dental cariesusing a homeopathic medicines in an animal model.1

There are implications both for the practice ofhomeopathy and research.The ‘Similia Principle’ is the foundation of homeop-

athy, and particular symptoms are often important inthe choice of the right medicine. However, somesymptoms and signs described in repertories andMateria Medica are very doubtful, since the old studiesfrom which they derive were performed without precisemethodological criteria. This complicates clinic prac-tice and leads practitioners to depend on personalexperience.The systematic study of human pathogenesis is

difficult for technical and ethical reasons. On the otherhand, homeopathic veterinary practice is often basedon the extrapolation of human pathogenesis andclinical observation to animals. In many experimentalstudies on ultra high dilutions in animals physical andbehavioural changes occur as a background to themain experimental results. An example is seen in thepaper by Almeida et al. in this issue: some of theanimals treated with Kreosotum lost their fur. Thispoints to the need for more systematic studies onanimal pathogenetic models. This is a challenge forresearchers in the near future.Fluoride has been shown to be effective in the

prevention of dental decay. It seems a natural

progression to use a homeopathic preparation offluoride in research on the possibility of preventingcaries. The pathogenesis of caries in humans is multi-factorial. Only a few specific bacteria responsible fordental caries have been positively identified. Yet not allpeople who are carriers of these bacteria developdental caries and there is great individual variation insusceptibility. Many other factors must also be presentto produce cariogenic plaque, the matrix of bacteriaand complex polysaccharides where decay occurs.We need to address the multi-factorial conditions

whereby decay occurs. On the homeopathic level arethere groups or types of people who are moresusceptible to caries? Is our chocolate loving, thirsty(for fizzy drinks) Phosphorous type particularly suscep-tible? This article is stimulating making us consider thedisease process at multiple different levels both fromthe dental, homeopathic and research perspectives.It would be wonderful to think that homeopathy has

the answer to dental caries. But despite this work, it islikely that the prevention of dental decay withhomeopathic medicines is some way in the future.

Peter DarbyFaculty of Homeopathy, Brazil

Leoni Villano BonaminFaculdade de Ci#encias da Sa !ude de S *ao Paulo—FACIS,

S *ao Paulo, Brazil

E-mail: leoni@sti.com.br

References

1 Almeida NT, D’Almeida V, Pustiglione M. The effect offluorine and homeopathic medicines in rats fed cariogenic diet.Homp 2004; 93: 138–143.

ARTICLE IN PRESS

Homeopathy (2004) 93, 119r 2004 The Faculty of Homeopathy

doi:10.1016/j.homp.2004.05.005, available online at www.sciencedirect.com