the meeting was introduced by edwin l. cooper , a very communicative and scientifically participative professor , who illustrated the main aims of the journal ecam , evidence - based complementary and alternative medicine , and roused everyone to contribute publishing scientific - based evidences on homeopathy and other complementary / alternative medical approaches .
he described how the journal born in los angeles ( ucla ) sustained by important collaboration in kanazawa and japan , with assistance from oxford university press .
professor cooper illustrated the electronic submission of all contribution types and hastened peer reviewing that results in free access to electronic publication before the appearance of a hard copy issue .
professor paolo bellavite opened the conference by discussing the historical background of homeopathy , and then developed into a session of open - ended questions . what can be concluded through meta - analysis ?
is it possible to imagine the future of the homeopathic approach by either exceeding and/or incorporating the different doctrines ?
1 ) ; they shape a triangle whose vertices are ( from the top ) as follows : complexity and individuality , similarity and dilutions . daily medical practice and
clinical studies lie on the sides of the triangle and within its area , sustained and supported by other scientific trials : from phase i clinical trials to phases ii  iv trials , from basic research on the  similia principle to electromagnetic properties of water passing through the paradox of very high dilution .
taken together , this could increase the area of the triangle , which determines the acceptance of homeopathic medicine .
similarity : healing is achieved by taking a drug that proved by healthy individuals have yielded symptoms and signs very similar to those of the patients .
similarity : healing is achieved by taking a drug that proved by healthy individuals have yielded symptoms and signs very similar to those of the patients .
the published homeopathic clinical trial and meta - analysis review was very detailed ( as many as 80 studies were reviewed ) .
results varied , and the following observations were extensively discussed during the course of the conference : ( i ) homeopathic research requires more rigorous trials ; ( ii ) clinical studies on asthma , allergies and other respiratory pathologies yielded the best results ; and ( iii ) classic homeopathy requires more specific trail methodology .
special attention was given to a recent famed meta - analysis from the lancet ( 1 ) which addressed the prejudice toward homeopathy , primarily due to the choice of trials that were analyzed .
homeopathic trails must employ more rigorous methodologies : they frequently lack in randomization criteria , placebo use and laboratory markers .
the speaker stressed efficacy in homeopathy , which could be evidenced both referring to complex therapeutic method ( the use of individualized therapy ) and to specific drug effects on specific pathology .
provings , i.e. homeopathic pathogenetic trials ( htps ) , contributed by professor giuseppina pitari .
milestones of homeopathic medicine , htps suffer about large methodological variability : different aims , different described outcomes , placebo usage , supervising , poor remedy description , multivariegated symptoms collections , lack of data analysis , etc .
a possible methodology was described and some indications were discussed on study design ( double - blind placebo - controlled trial ) ( 2 ) , doses and potency of the drug , description of the potentized substance detailing its toxicological effects , time of observation .
carlo m. rezzani concluded the session by describing a research project (  ciflicol ) on clinical report cases : an electronic case sheet can be drawn up and sent to a worldwide database , continuously updated ( www.hmssrl.com ) .
the intriguing discussion about placebo solution preparation was flowed into the description of the  world of high dilutions. the most characteristic and controversial principle of homeopathy is that the potency of a remedy can be enhanced by dilution , in a procedure known as  dynamization or 
potentization. paolo bellavite discussed about basic researches showing limits , successes and possible hypotheses . life has evolved around water , into water , because of water : special water properties permit hydrophobic interaction , very few water molecules go with biological compounds keeping its  imprint , water clusters  activated during homeopathic dynamization can reach a cellular receptor and trigger specific responses .
papers on animal or in vitro models showed the effects of very diluted and potentized on human basophils , chicken embryos , rat duodenum , mouse blood , etc .
hormetic effect were reviewed : stimulus or molecule different doses trigger opposite effects on the same receiver system . as paolo bellavite clearly showed as a system 's ( cells , organs and organisms ) starting conditions can be crucial to treatment results and as some drug effects can be paradoxical , thus supporting the possible use of  similia principle as curative efficient approach ( 3 ) . at the end of the conference the speaker expounded coherence of homeopatic medicine towards the dynamic complexity of diseases .
homeodynamic conditions make possible the organized complexity of life and a pharmacological complex information mimicking disease via 
high homeopathic dilutions are reported to be effective both in humans and animal / in vitro models .
methodological problems in clinical trials can be overcome drawing up a specific approach to clinical homeopathic research with a large approved consensus . 
 verona 's school of homeopathic medicine ( www.omeopatia.org ) organized a day of full immersion in the field of homeopathy , focusing on the validity of this much - debated discipline . 
 there is widespread consensus in the medical community that evidence - based medicine is the best standard for assessing efficacy and safety of healthcare practices , and systematic reviews with strict protocols are essential to establish proof for various therapies . 
 students , homeopathic practitioners , academic and business representatives , who are interested in or curious about homeopathic practices attended the conference . 
Introduction
Clinical Research
Basic Research
Key points