The effect of hepar magnesium on seasonal fatigue symptoms: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effect of the anthroposophic drug hepar magnesium D10 intravenously administered on seasonal fatigue symptoms. DESIGN Time series with two measurements per week, starting before onset of treatment until three measurements after finishing treatment in a regular way. SETTINGS Six anthroposophic general practitioner practices in the Netherlands. SUBJECTS Twenty-three (23) patients with seasonal fatigue symptoms. INTERVENTIONS Hepar magnesium D10 intravenously administered every week. OUTCOME MEASURES Mean division of 24 hours in categories: sleep, rest, everyday activities, and activities that require a large effort; fatigue-related single questions: unusual emotional response to events, problems with short-term memory, the degree to which fatigue after effort continues for longer than 2 hours, the degree to which people at the end of the day have a complete lack of energy; and the degree to which people are still fit after the evening meal; Multidimensional Fatigue Index: general fatigue, physical fatigue, reduced activity, reduced motivation, and mental fatigue; subjective experiences with regard to the effect of the treatment. RESULTS (1) No changes in division in 24-hour categories were found; (2) pretreatment versus post-treatment analyses (after 1 and 2.5 weeks, at the end of treatment, and 1.5 weeks after the end of treatment) demonstrated overall large statistically significant differences. Eighteen (18) of 22 patients (82%) who completed the final questionnaire judged that treatment overall had been effective for their fatigue symptoms. Nine (9) patients (41%) judged a strong improvement and 9 patients (41%) a light improvement as a result of the treatment. Four (4) patients reported no change. On average, patients received treatment 4.5 times. CONCLUSIONS There are clear indications that hepar magnesium D10 intravenously administered can have a positive effect on subsyndromal seasonal affective disorder symptoms of fatigue. A more controlled trial is indicated to study the (long-term) effects of hepar magnesium.