Complementary and Alternative Medicine Flashcards
What is complementary medicine?
Therapeutic approach that is used together with conventional medicine
What is alternative medicine?
Therapeutic approach which is used instead of conventional medicine
How is CAM different to conventional medicine?
- Practices unproven by science, not considered integral
- Dynamic nature, proven safe and effective, split should really be good and bad medicine
How popular is CAM?
Majority relies of traditional medicine as first-line= no access to essential medicine
20-60% adults in developed, 3-25% herbal complementary cancer
What are the motivations to use CAM?
- Fear/ dislike of conventional treatments (invasive/ radical)
- Failure of conventional medicine to take account of social and personal factors/ sufficient time/ take interest in persons ideas concerns and expectation, lifestyles and life changes
- Disillusion with chronic disease impacts
- Holistic health philosophy
- Greater control
- Consumerism and exercise of choice
- Fear of addiction and adverse effects
- Lack of mutual relationship
What are the types of CAM?
- Mind-body medicine (enhance mind capacity to affect bodily function, meditation and mental healing)
- Energy medicine (body energy field, acupuncture)
- Manipulative and body-based practices (chiropractic or osteopathic manipulation or massage therapy)
- Biologically-based products (herbs/ dietary supplements)
- Whole medical systems (mixture of elements)
What is acupuncture?
- China and Asia, placement of fine needles at specific points along defined meridians in the skin
- Few complications- infection and punctured organs possible
What is aromatherapy?
- Extracts of aromatic plants (essential oils) applied topically after dilution in carrier oil
- Reduce disturbed behaviour and improve motivation in dementia
What is homeopathy?
- Administering infinitesimally low conc of substances that are capable of inducing symptoms similar to pharmacological doses
- Sam medicine in extremely low doses will be curative
- Animal, mineral, synthetic materials
- Alleviate specific symptoms
What is herbal medicine?
- Plants/ plant extracts- minor or self-limiting conditions
- Biologically active compounds
What are the pharmacological effects of herbal medicines?
Digoxin, morphine
- St John’s Wort depression
- Echinacea common cold
- Direct adverse effects and interact with conventional treatments
What are the harms related to herbal medicine?
-Dose-related or idiosyncratic
-hepatic adverse effects
Adulteration= deliberate/accidental with other toxic products
What interactions are related to herbal remedies?
-St John’s Wort= associated with serotonin syndrome when co-administered with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
(hyperforin responsible antidepressant activity induces metabolism of medicines that are substrates of cytochrome P450 system)
-Reduces effect of warfarin, reduces blood conc of immunosuppressants and anti-cancer therapies, increases risk of paracetamol toxicity in overdose
What are other harms related to CAM?
- Economic harm
- Direct harm (medical= cyanide toxicity, electrolyte imbalance, quadriplegia/ psychological= guilt, distortion of perspective)
- Indirect= delay in seeking effective care
- Societal= perpetuates pseudoscience, other contemporary and future patients at risk
How is CAM important to prescribers?
- Widely used in community (adverse effects, patient presentation, interact)
- No need to tell GP
- History recorded, major interactions, yellow card scheme
