1. Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM)

2. Learning objectives What is ‘conventional’ medicine?
How is the scientific method used to determine the efficacy of a particular treatment?
What is a clinical trial? What is ‘double blind’? What is the placebo effect?
What are ‘complementary’, ‘alternative’, and ‘integrative’ approaches to treatment?
What are some (general) benefits and risks of treatment with dietary supplements or herbal medicines?
Understand that scientific studies on Mind-body practices such as tai- chi, yoga, hypnosis, meditation etc as well as holistic approaches such as traditional chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, homeopathy, and naturopathy. have mostly failed to show much benefit of the treatment except generally for pain reduction. This may be due to a lack of such studies (they are very difficult to do well), or a small effect of the treatment that is difficult to pinpoint.

3. Conventional medicine
Pathogens and organic changes to body cause illness
Reductionist — body is like a machine that can be reduced to its parts and individual parts can be treated
Illness is defined by a set of symptoms that are similar for everyone that has the illness.
Investigations into cause of disease happen via scientific method.

4. Placebo effect
Measurable, observable, or reported improvement in health or behavior not attributable to medicine or invasive treatment that has been administered

5. Clinical trials The last step in developing treatments
Control for placebo effect
Double-blind
Assess risks and efficacy of treatment

6. CAM Complementary Medicine: Used WITH conventional medicine
Alternative Medicine: Used in place of conventional medicine
Integrative medicine: CAM treatments integrated into and coordinated with conventional medicine

8. Natural Products
Dietary supplements
Herbal medicines

9. Mind-body practices
Acupuncture and acupressure

10. Mind-body practices
Tai Chi, Qi Gong, Yoga

11. Mind-body practices
Hypnosis

12. Mind-body practices
Meditation

13. Mind-body practices
Massage

14. Mind-body practices
chiropractic medicine

15. Other holistic approaches
Traditional Chinese medicine

16. Other holistic approaches
Ayurvedic medicine

17. Other holistic approaches
homeopathy

18. Other holistic approaches
naturopathy

19. HOW DO WE CHOOSE? Making decisions about CAM is difficult
Very little information
Information on internet is often advertisement or other promotion
Sickness caused by pathogens
Pain
Evaluate YOUR symptoms
Coordinate with a doctor
Don’t delay care that is known to be effective.