Little P, Moore M, Kelly J, Williamson I, Leydon G, McDermott L, et al. Ibuprofen, paracetamol, and steam for patients with respiratory tract infections in primary care: pragmatic randomised factorial trial. BMJ: British Medical Journal. 2013;347:f6041. Bhopal RS. The inter-relationship of folk, traditional and Western medicine within an Asian community in Britain. Soc Sci Med. 1986;22(1):99–105. Brendler T, van Wyk BE. A historical, scientific and commercial perspective on the medicinal use of Pelargonium sidoides (Geraniaceae). J Ethnopharmacol. 2008;119(3):420–33. Our results suggest that progression to a full randomised phase III trial is feasible. The feasibility trial has identified some key modifications which will be needed. It would be easier to choose only one formulation to test (liquid or tablet). Although most patients reported that they would prefer tablets, the Cochrane review [ 30] suggested that the liquid may be more effective. If the liquid is to be taken into a full trial, a more convenient dosage method may need to be provided as many patients struggled accurately to count 30 drops per dose. If a full study uses both liquid and tablet preparations, we would need to adapt the design to prevent imbalance in the antibiotic use. This could be achieved by individual randomisation (tablet/liquid/active/placebo) or through stratification of practices according to prior antibiotic prescribing history.

Adults and children 12+ should take one tablet three times a day (morning, midday, evening). Tablets should be swallowed whole with a little water. The tablets should not be chewed. Baars EW, Zoen EBV, Breitkreuz T, Martin D, Matthes H, Schoen-Angerer TV, et al. The Contribution of Complementary and Alternative Medicine to Reduce Antibiotic Use: A Narrative Review of Health Concepts, Prevention, and Treatment Strategies. Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2019;2019 (no pagination). Kaloba contains Pelargonium sidoides, a member of the geranium family. It has long stalked leaves that are mildly aromatic, heart shaped and velvety.

5 Pharmacological properties

film-coated tablet contains 20 mg of extract (as dry extract) from the roots of Pelargonium sidoides DC (1 : 8 - 10) (EPs® 7630) Extraction solvent 11% ethanol (w/w). This medicinal product does not require any special storage conditions. 6.5 Nature and contents of container

Signs indicating changes in liver function have been reported after taking Kaloba; however, the causal relationship between these effects and the use of the product has not been demonstrated. In very rare cases (≤ 1/10,000), serious hypersensitivity reactions with swelling of the face, dyspnoea and drop in blood pressure may occur. Serious hypersensitivity reactions with swelling of the face, breathlessness and decrease in blood pressure.Serious hypersensitivity reactions with swelling of the face, breathlessness and drop in blood pressure. Like all medicines, this product can have side-effects, although not everybody gets them. They are listed below. This formulation is not suitable for children under 12 years of age. 4.5 Interaction with other medicinal products and other forms of interaction MLW: Conceptualisation, funding acquisition, investigation, methodology, formal analysis, supervision, writing – original draft, review and editing. CS: investigation, methodology, project administration, resources, supervision, validation, visualisation, writing – review and editing. SW: Formal analysis, writing – review and editing. BLS: Conceptualisation, Formal analysis, methodology, software, visualisation, writing – original draft, review and editing. DS: Investigation, project administration, formal analysis, writing – review and editing. AW: Conceptualisation, Methodology, software, Formal analysis. AM: project administration, investigation. EW: Data curation. SZ: Formal analysis (health economics), writing – original draft, review and editing. GY: Formal analysis (health economics), writing – review and editing. FW: Funding acquisition, supervision, writing – review and editing. RY: investigation, writing – review and editing. JB: PPI contributor, conceptualisation, writing – review and editing. MB: PPI contributor, conceptualisation, writing – review and editing. GG: Conceptualisation, methodology, supervision, writing – review and editing. GL: methodology, supervision, writing – review and editing. PL: Conceptualisation, methodology, writing – review and editing. CB: Conceptualisation, methodology, writing – review and editing. ADH: Conceptualisation, methodology, writing – review and editing. MM: Conceptualisation, Funding acquisition, methodology, project administration, supervision, writing – review and editing. The author(s) read and approved the final manuscript. Corresponding author