[General aspects of homeopathy]

Rev Med Chil. 2009 Jan; 137(1): 115-20Avello L M, Avendaño O C, Mennickent C SHomeopathic medicine is a type of therapy that appeared in Europe at the end of the eighteenth century. At the present time, it is widely accepted in developed countries as a form of alternative medicine. In Chile, health regulation includes homeopathy as pharmaceutical products and homeopathy is also considered a form of complementary medicine, that is well accepted by the public. The scientific rationale of homeopathy is based on an empiric type of thought that goes from the general to the particular. The symptoms that are valued are those that are particular to each sick individual. It uses diluted solutions of plants, minerals, animals and even venoms. There are basically two hypotheses to explain its mechanisms of action: The "immunological memory" and the "memory of water" or the transmission of electromagnetic information of the water. There still is needed to perform new studies to scientifically assess homeopathy and its usefulness, as an accepted alternative therapy.