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Complementary medicine: state of the evidence

The term complementary medicine embraces a wide range of diverse therapies and diagnostic methods. Previous terms have included fringe medicine, unconventional medicine, unorthodox medicine, natural medicine and, the most widely used, alternative medicine. Complementary medicine (CM) is now the preferred description as practitioners of these therapies now see them as supplementing rather than replacing orthodox medicine. A high proportion of patients of doctors and other healthcare professionals attend complementary practitioners or self-administer complementary remedies, often without the knowledge of their doctor1. The purpose of this paper is to present a broad overview of research on complementary medicine, with special attention to studies of efficacy of the major therapies and to potential adverse effects, so that clinicians may make informed decisions when discussing such issues with their patients. In addition the field offers many fascinating and important opportunities for research on such issues as the evaluation of complementary treatments in particular, the assessment of non-specific placebo factors, the reasons for seeking complementary therapy, the role of beliefs about health and medicine, and the relationship between patients and complementary practitioners.