News Briefs
News Briefs
Many U.S. Women Use CAM, but Not Specifically to Help with Menopause
CAM use among midlife U.S. women is high, although CAM is not used specifically for menopausal concerns, a study says.
Researchers in the study wanted to obtain national estimates of CAM use for U.S. midlife women. To do this, the researchers looked at data from the 2002 National Health Interview Survey. The survey, which had a 74% response rate, included a CAM supplementary questionnaire. The analysis looked at the more than 3,600 female respondents between 45 and 57 years of age who had answered all of the relevant questions.
The researchers found that 45% of women 45-57 years of age had used some form of CAM within the last 12 months. Approximately 25% used biologics (e.g., herbs) or mind-body (e.g., biofeedback) modalities, whereas only 15% used body work (massage and chiropractic medicine). Use did not vary by age, but white race, higher education, and residence in the West were associated with increased use. Only 45% of CAM users mentioned its use to a medical provider. The most cited reason for using CAM involved treatment of pain, with only 3% mentioning menopause. However, the odds for use of CAM were almost twice as high for women with menopausal symptoms in the past year compared with women with no symptoms.
The results were published ahead of print in the on-line version of the journal Menopause in November.
Diabetes Not an Independent Predictor of CAM Use, Study Finds
A new study has found a dramatic increase in overall use of CAM in adults with diabetes, although diabetes was not an independent predictor of overall use of CAM.
To determine national patterns and correlates of CAM use among adults with diabetes, researchers compared CAM use in 2,474 adults with diabetes to 28,625 adults without diabetes. These adults had participated in the 2002 National Health Interview Survey on CAM use.
Eight CAM use categories were created, including dietary, herbal, chiropractic, yoga, relaxation, vitamin, prayer, and other (acupuncture, Ayurveda, biofeedback, chelation, energy healing or Reiki therapy, hypnosis, massage, naturopathy, and homeopathy), according to the study abstract, published in the November issue of the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. An overall CAM use category also was created that excluded vitamins and prayer.
Patterns of use were compared with chi-square and independent correlates of CAM use with multiple logistic regression controlling for relevant covariates. STATA was used for analysis.
The researchers found that prevalence of overall use of CAM did not differ significantly by diabetes status. Diabetes was not an independent predictor of overall use of CAM. However, persons with diabetes were more likely to use prayer, but less likely to use herbs, yoga, or vitamins than people without diabetes after controlling for relevant covariates. Independent correlates of overall use of CAM differed by age, income, employment, comorbidity, and health status between people with and without diabetes.
Many Physicians Not Comfortable Counseling Patients about CAM Treatments
A recent study found that many internists aren't comfortable counseling patients about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments or referring them to a CAM practitioner.
To evaluate the attitudes of physicians at an academic medical center toward CAM therapies and the physicians' knowledge base regarding common CAM therapies, researchers e-mailed 660 internists at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and sent them a link to a web-based survey.
According to the results, published in the December 2006 issue of Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 76% of the 233 physicians who responded to the survey had never referred a patient to a CAM practitioner. However, 44% stated that they would refer a patient if a CAM practitioner were available at their institution.
Fifty-seven percent of physicians thought that incorporating CAM therapies would have a positive effect on patient satisfaction, and 48% believed that offering CAM would attract more patients. Most physicians agreed that some CAM therapies hold promise for the treatment of symptoms or diseases, but most of them were not comfortable counseling their patients about most CAM treatments. Prospective, randomized controlled trials were considered the level of evidence required for most physicians to consider incorporating a CAM therapy into their practice.
Although many physicians are interested in helping their patients make informed decisions, most do not feel qualified to do so, the researchers say. "The study highlights the need for educational interventions and the importance of providing physicians access to evidence-based information regarding CAM."
CAM use among midlife U.S. women is high, although CAM is not used specifically for menopausal concerns, a study says.Subscribe Now for Access
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