Alternative Medicine

About Alternative Medicine?

What Do Physicians Think About Alternative Medicine? by Cathy Wong A survey of 276 Colorado physicians was published in the May 2002 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine. Physicians were asked about their attitudes toward alternative medicine and their pattern of recommendation and personal use. Here are the interesting findings: At the doctor's office, patients are sometimes asked about their use of alternative therapies. 8% always ask about alternative therapy use 23% asked their patients about alternative therapy use more than half of the time 52% asked about alternative therapy use less than half of the time 17% never ask Many doctors do not feel comfortable discussing alternative therapies with their patients. 9% had a very positive attitude toward discussing alternative therapies with patients 35% had a somewhat positive attitude 40% were neutral 14% had a somewhat negative attitude 2% had a very negative attitude Patients want information from their doctors about the safety and effectiveness of alternative therapies. In this study, 59% of the doctors had been asked about alternative therapies. Patients requested information about: Acupuncture (59%) Herbal (botanical) medicine (55%) Chiropractic (52%) Alternative medicine in general (49%) Massage therapy (41%) Special diet (35%) Megavitamins (32%) Biofeedback (29%) Relaxation (28%) Homeopathy (21%) Folk Medicine (17%) Yoga (16%) Hypnosis (14%) Nearly half (48%) of the doctors surveyed had recommended alternative medicine to a patient. Interestingly, 24% of the doctors had personally used alternative medicine, and this was strongly associated with the likelihood of recommending alternative medicine to patients. Some of the therapies doctors personally used were: massage therapy (24%), relaxation techniques (17%), alternative medicine in general (16%), herbal therapy (14%), yoga (11%), and acupuncture (10%). Doctors are interested in learning more about alternative medicine to address patient concerns. In this survey, 60% of doctors wanted to learn more, 24% said they were unsure or maybe wanted to learn more, and 16% said they did not want to learn more. The doctors recommended these therapies to their patients: Massage therapy (48%) Relaxation techniques (41%) Acupuncture (35%) Biofeedback (35%) Chiropractic (30%) Alternative medicine in general (28%) Herbal medicine (21%) Yoga (16%) Hypnosis (15%) Note: Surveys were delivered to 705 physicians. Of these, 302 (43%) were returned. This must be considered when interpreting the survey results because they may not accurately reflect the physician population. Reference Corbin Winslow L, Shapiro H. Physicians want education about complementary and alternative medicine to enhance communication with their patients. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2002:162:1176-81.

Alternative Medicine

Alternative medicine includes practices that differ from conventional medicine. Some alternative medicine practices are homeopathy, naturopathy, chiropractic, and herbal medicine. A typical definition is "every available approach to healing that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine".[1] Alternative medicine practices may be based on unconventional belief systems or philosophies; biological data and observations or biochemical principles;[2] and some may not follow the scientific method. They may incorporate spiritual, metaphysical, or religious underpinnings, untested practices, pre-modern medical traditions, or newly developed approaches to healing. If an alternative medical approach, previously unproven according to orthodox scientific or regulatory methodologies, is subsequently shown to be safe and effective, it may then be adopted by conventional practitioners and no longer considered "alternative". "Alternative medicine" is often categorized together with complementary medicine using the umbrella term Complementary and alternative medicine or CAM.

Contemporary use of alternative medicine

Many people utilize mainstream medicine for diagnosis and basic information, while turning to alternatives for what they believe to be health-enhancing measures. Studies indicate that alternative approaches are often used in conjunction with conventional medicine. Edzard Ernst wrote in the Medical Journal of Australia that "about half the general population in developed countries use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)."[4] A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health in the United States, found that in 2002, 36% of Americans used some form of alternative therapy in the past 12 months, 50% in a lifetime — a category that included yoga, meditation, herbal treatments and the Atkins diet.[5] If prayer was counted as an alternative therapy, the figure rose to 62.1%. 25% of people who use CAM do so because a medical professional suggested it.[6] Another study suggests a similar figure of 40%.[7] A British telephone survey by the BBC of 1209 adults in 1998 shows that around 20% of adults in Britain had used alternative medicine in the past 12 months.[citation needed] The use of alternative medicine in developed countries appears to be increasing. A 1998 study showed that the use of alternative medicine had risen from 33.8% in 1990 to 42.1% in 1997.[8] In the United Kingdom, a 2000 report ordered by the House of Lords suggested that "...limited data seem to support the idea that CAM use in the United Kingdom is high and is increasing."[9] In many developing countries, allopathic medicine is available to few, due to lack of resources and poverty; therefore, traditional remedies may comprise the vast majority of medical treatment offered. Such traditional remedies often closely resemble alternative therapies

Use of alternative medicine alongside conventional medicine

A major objection to alternative medicine is that it is done in place of conventional medical treatments. As long as alternative treatments are used alongside conventional treatments, the majority of medical doctors find most forms of complementary medicine acceptable.[citation needed] A recent study[5] of US adults indicated that a majority (54.9%) of CAM users cited belief that it would help when combined with conventional medical treatments as a factor in their use. It is advisable for patients to inform their medical doctor when they are using alternative medicine, because some alternative treatments may interact with orthodox medical treatments, and such potential conflicts should be explored in the interest of the patient. However, many fear that conventional practitioners may be biased or uninformed about alternative care and worry that disclosure of use may damage their doctor-patient relationship.[citation needed] The issue of alternative medicine interfering with conventional medical practices is minimized when it is turned to only after conventional treatments have been exhausted. Many patients feel that alternative medicine may help in coping with chronic illnesses for which conventional medicine offers no cure, only management. Over time, it has become more common for a patient's own MD to suggest alternatives when they cannot offer effective treatment.