Since we are not aware of any meta-analyses of cost-effectiveness-studies, we report in the following the results of the most recent systematic review on this topic. In this review, Ostermann et al. identified 21 studies that reported on economic evaluations of homeopathy, compared to a control group (conventional drugs, placebo, no treatment, and others). The findings can be summarized as follows: in 14 out of 21 studies, homeopathic treatment was either more effective at less or similar costs or equally effective for less costs. One study showed no difference in effectiveness and costs. Six studies showed higher costs for homeopathy. For two of these six studies, specialized economic analyses revealed that the benefit of the homeopathic treatment compensated for the higher costs. Thus, in 16 out of 21 studies, a homeopathic treatment showed some benefit compared to other approaches. Though Ostermann et al. identified methodological weaknesses in several studies, the results seem very interesting and promising, and call for further investigations.
