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Complementary and Alternative Medicine Topic Homepage
Complementary and Alternative Medicine Overview
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is the diagnosis, treatment and/or disease prevention which complements mainstream medicine. CAM contributes to a common whole by satisfying a demand not met by orthodoxy, or by diversifying the conceptual frameworks of medicine.1 This area of medicine has benefited from a gradual recognition in Europe since the 1990’s.2
The use of CAM has dramatically increased...
... worldwide over the past twenty years.3 In the countries of the European Union, for which statistics are available, CAMs are used by 20-50% of the population.2 This means that currently more than 100 million Europeans use CAM.3 Therapies most commonly used in Europe are; homeopathy, acupuncture, herbal medicine, anthroposophical medicine, naturopathy, traditional Chinese medicine, osteopathy and chiropracty.3 However, the recognition and the using of these practices differ widely between European countries.3
CAM is increasingly used in parallel with traditional therapies in the treatment of chronic diseases, in particular in treating patients with cancer.4 Faced with an increased usage of CAM, several articles point out the importance of educating both patients, and more importantly, health professionals.5,6 It is essential that doctors can discuss the role of CAM therapies with their patients in a non-judgmental and open manner, and endeavor to provide accurate information in order to allow patients to make an informed decision.5
Unfortunately, little scientific data resulting from tests are available to measure the effectiveness, safety techniques and products of CAM.3 The recognition of CAM can therefore be achieved through scientific validation of the practices involved2, and the implementation of a clear regulatory framework for these practice and marketing of associated products.3
1. Beers M.H. et al. The Merck manual of medical information. Merck research laboratories. Second home edition. 2003, 1704-1707.
2. Parlement européen. Rapport du 16 mars 1997 sur le statut des médecines non conventionnelles. Commission de l'environnement, de la santé publique et de la protection des consommateurs. PE 216.066 - A4-0075/97.
3. EICCAM : European Information Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. November 2008. Booklet available online.
4. Tovey P. et al. Oncologists’ and specialist cancer nurses’ approaches to complementary and alternative medicine and their impact on patient action. Social Science & Medicine. June 2007 ; 64 (12) : 2550-2564.
5. Molassiotis A. et al. Complementary and alternative medicine use in colorectal cancer patients in seven European countries. Complementary Therapies in Medicine. December 2005 ; 13 (4) : 251-257.
6. Scott J.A. et al. Use of complementary and alternative medicine in patients with cancer: A UK survey. European Journal of Oncology Nursing. June 2005 ; 9 (2) : 131-137.
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Drug News
VANTAGE study shows Vercise DBS (Boston Scientific) demonstrates motor function benefits in Parkinson's Disease
19-06-2013Patients with Parkinson's disease using the Boston Scientific Corporation Vercise DBS (deep brain stimulation) System showed a significant improvement in motor scores according to interim data from...
Phase III trial shows Ilaris (Novartis) allows discontinuation of corticosterioids in sJIA
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Clinical Trials
Safety of Spinal Anesthesia in Patients With Tibial Shaft Fracture
15-02-2013There is a elevated risk of acute compartment syndrome (ACS) related to tibial shaft fractures due to oedema and reduced blood flow in traumatised tissues. This may lead to lack of oxygen and even necrosis. Symptoms of ACS are severe pain, hypoaesthesia, pain during flexion of the ankle and swollen leg in clinical..
... examination. Paralysis and lack of distal pulses are late symptoms of ACS.
Many experts think that effective relief of pain caused by regional anaesthesia (RA) may hide the symptoms of the ACS. This may be incorrect. The evidence of dangers related to RA is based on old patient-series and single case-reports. Some of these studies report the symptoms of ACS (hypaesthesia and even pain) being caused by RA. Majority of the conclusions in these studies cannot be confirmed by an expert of RA. It is also possible that there are more hemodynamic changes related to general anaesthesia (GA) which may predispose to ACS. There are no modern, randomized and controlled studies of the safety of RA in patients with tibial shaft fracture.
Acupuncture in Infantile Colic - a Three Armed Randomized Multi Center Trial (ACU-COL)
29-12-2012The purpose of this prospective randomized three armed, multi center study is to compare the effect of two types of acupuncture and no acupuncture in 2-8 weeks old infants with infantile colic. Group A will get standardized minimal acupuncture in LI4, group B will get individualized acupuncture in different points..
... according to symptoms and group C will not get acupuncture. Parents (who register the infants crying) and the nurse they meet at the study CHC are blinded.
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Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels., a novel therapeutic agent for diabetes: Folk medicinal and pharmacological evidences
Complementary Therapies in Medicine
May 2013
Objectives: During the past few decades numerous folk medicinal and scientific investigations on the antidiabetic effects of jambolan (Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels) have been reported. However no comprehensive evidence-based review is available. Hence this review was aimed to summarize the antidiabetic effects of..
Effects of music on physiological and behavioral responses of premature infants: A randomized controlled trial
Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice
May 2013
Introduction: Despite persuasive theories about the beneficial effects of music and singing in developmental care for premature infants, few small studies are available in this regard. We conducted this study to investigate the physiological and behavioral responses of premature infants to recorded lullaby music and..
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Should we do CO breath tests to identify pregnant women who are smoking?
on doc2doc... tests are not being used as lie detector tests.Do you think it will spoil these important relationships? Should GPs do the tests instead ...
US Task Force says no point in screening for oral cancers
on doc2doc... and brush cytopathology. These screening tests, as well as adjunct tests, have not been adequately tested in primary care nondental settings. http ...
Should we do CO breath tests to identify pregnant women who are smoking?
on doc2docShould we do CO breath tests to identify pregnant women who are smoking? I am against testing - why not advice every pregnant woman ( plus her partner ...
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