Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 2005; 10: 31
To determine which factors predict an active interest in CAM in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
We compared 112 participants of a national lay workshop on CAM in IBD of the German Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis Association (DCCV) with 684 patients randomly drawn from all DCCV members and associates.
The duration of illness was shorter in workshop participants than in control patients (P = 0.0035) and fewer patients stated that their disease was currently in ‘remission’ (P = 0.0377). The groups did not differ significantly in their CAM experiences. Workshop participants more often reported the wish ‘to take a holistic therapeutical approach’ (P = 0.0008), to have ‘a different point of view from that of my doctor about the cause of and treatment options for IBD’ (P = 0.038) and the ‘lack of success of conventional therapy’ (P = 0.014) as reasons to use CAM. Workshop participants more often perceived ‘stress’ as having a negative effect on their IBD (P = 0.0001).
A group of IBD patients with an active interest in CAM showed distinct differences from a randomly selected group of IBD patients in their reasons for using CAM, especially in their wish to take a holistic therapeutic approach. Patients who report that stress has a negative effect on their IBD appear to be more likely to be interested in CAM.
The study was supported by the Karl und Veronica Carstens-Foundation and the DCCV.
