Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 1997; 2: 184
To uncover suspected adverse effects (AEs) of complementary medicine.
Study A: We solicited the experiences of GPs in four English counties (total 1521). 686 GPs responded (45.1% of sample). 343 (50% of respondents) said they had encountered AEs of CM. 253 GPs (37%) gave a total of 291 reports of non-serious AEs to a variety of therapies. However, 78 GPs (11.4%) gave 107 reports which named serious AEs, most often to the manipulative therapies (28/52) but also to acupuncture (2 hepatitis B infections, 1 pneumothorax, and 1 lodged broken needle), aromatherapy (1 allergic reaction and 1 cardiac arrhythmia) and hypnotherapy (1 severe hallucination and 1 emotional distress). Of the serious indirect effects, homoeopathy received the largest number of reports (21/44), including examples of suspected interference with orthodox care. Study B: We solicited reports of AEs to CM from members of the public. 121 reports of suspected AEs were received, some serious, and 7 of the most serious were confirmed from the patients’ medical records.
CM should not be assumed to be risk free: therapies can be directly or indirectly (e.g. by hindering truly effective medical treatment) harmful. These figures imply that at least 5.1% of GPs (or approx. 1700 nationally) could produce a similar report of a potentially serious direct or indirect AE.
