[Fwd: [spinedocs] Physicians Divided on Impact of CAM on U.S. Health Care]

September 10, 2005

Forwarded from another listserv.

Art

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Press Release Source: HCD Research

Physicians Divided on Impact of CAM on U.S. Health Care

Friday September 9, 11:40 am ET

Aromatherapy Fares Poorly

Acupuncture Touted

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 9, 2005--A new national survey of more

than

700 physicians revealed that they are divided evenly on the impact of

complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) on U.S. health care.

Approximately 36% believe it has a negative impact, 35% believe it has a

positive impact and 20% feel CAM has no impact.

Despite their close division on the impact of CAM on U.S. health care, 64%

of doctors reported that they have recommended complementary treatments to

their patients, while 36% indicated they have not. Sixty-three percent

would

be willing to recommend them under some circumstances and 65% believe that

the National Institutes of Health should fund research on CAM.

The survey which probed physicians' views on controversial techniques such

as acupuncture, therapeutic touch and homeopathy, was conducted by HCD

Research and The Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religion and Social

Studies

of The Jewish Theological Seminary, during September 1-2. The margin of

error for the study was plus or minus 3% at a 95% level of confidence.

The well-known alternative and complementary therapies including

acupuncture, chiropractic and massage received higher marks for their

effectiveness than treatments such as aromatherapy, electromagnetic field

therapies, homeopathy and naturopathy.

Among the findings:

More than half of the physicians (59%) believed that acupuncture can be

effective to some extent.

Nearly half of the physicians (48%) believed that chiropractic can be

effective, while 29% indicated that it is ineffective, and 57% of

physicians

reported that massage therapies can be effective.

A mere 10% of physicians reported aromatherapy to be effective. Similarly,

only 12% indicated that electromagnetic field therapies were effective, and

16% of physicians believed that homeopathy and naturopathy were

effective to

some degree.

While a plurality of doctors (46%) felt that alternative approaches

could be

helpful to patients in some cases, 28% felt that they could be harmful.

Thirteen percent believed that the putative helpfulness of CAM was due to

the placebo effect.

" The one trait that all complementary and alternative therapies share is

the

fact that they are not conventionally used, " noted Glenn Kessler,

co-founder

and managing partner, HCD Research. " However, they are not all the same and

as we see in this study, physicians clearly recognize that each therapy

must

be judged on its own merits. "

" The message here is that techniques, like acupuncture, which have made it

into the mainstream, are recognized by physicians as useful complements to

scientific medicine, " said Dr. Alan Mittleman, Director of the Finkelstein

Institute. " Other therapies remain on the fringe and are viewed with

suspicion. Nonetheless, physicians seem willing to let their patients --

and

future research -- decide what has credibility and what doesn't. "

To view detailed results for this poll, please go to:

http://publish.hcdhealth.com/P1007/

Editors/Reporters: For more information on the poll, or to speak with Dr.

Mittleman or Glenn Kessler, please contact Sherry Kirschenbaum, JTS

Director

of Media Relations, at (212) 678-8953 (kirschenbaum@...) or Vince

McGourty, M & M Communications, Inc., at (908) 638-5555 or

(vinmcg@...).

HCD Research is a marketing and advertising research company headquartered

in Flemington, NJ. The company's services include traditional and web-based

marketing and advertising research. HCD Research is also the developer of

readmylipz.com, a political ad testing web site for the 2004 Presidential

campaign. For additional information on HCD Research, access the company's

web site at www.hcdi.net or call HCD Research at 908-788-9393.

The Finkelstein Institute provides a venue to advance dialogue at the

intersection of religion and public affairs. Founded in 1886 as a

rabbinical

school, The Jewish Theological Seminary today is the academic and spiritual

center of Conservative Judaism worldwide, encompassing a world-class

library

and five schools. JTS trains tomorrow's religious, educational, academic

and

lay leaders for the Jewish community and beyond. Visit the JTS website at

www.jtsa.edu

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Contact:

JTS

Sherry S. Kirschenbaum, 212-678-8953

kirschenbaum@...

or

M & M Communications, Inc.

Vince McGourty, 908-638-5555

vinmcg@...

--

M. Perle, D.C., M.S.

Professor of Clinical Sciences

Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering

University of Bridgeport

Bridgeport, CT 06601 USA

www.bridgeport.edu/~perle <http://www.bridgeport.edu/%7Eperle>

Ethics Articles www.chiroweb.com/columnist/perle

<http://www.chiroweb.com/columnist/perle/>

Speaker's Bureau www.ncmic.com/6026/speakers.htm

<http://www.ncmic.com/6026/speakers.htm>

------------------------------------------------------------------------

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September 10, 2005

Nothing too surprising, really. I am pretty sure that the third of MDs who think

that CAM is harmful (an odd question, it sounds like, in that either the

technique was beneficial OR harmful) are handing out cox-2 inhibitors like they

are candy.

Freeman

[Fwd: [spinedocs] Physicians Divided on Impact of CAM on

U.S. Health Care]