Demand for integrative medicine among women in pregnancy and childbed: a German survey on patients’ needs

Abstract

BackgroundAlthough integrative medicine is gaining increasing attention and is claiming more and more its place in modern health care, it still plays a marginal role in conventional maternity care. The present study aims to examine the patterns of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) use and the demand for integrative therapies, including CAM, relaxation therapies, nutritional counseling, and psychological assistance, among women in pregnancy and childbed.MethodsThe survey was conducted from April 2017 to July 2017 by means of a pseudo-anonymous 38-item questionnaire at the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich. Eligible participants were women hospitalized due to pregnancy related complications and women in childbed. Descriptive statistics were generated to determine patterns of CAM use and demand for integrative therapeutic approaches. Univariate analysis was used to detect associations between patients’ characteristics and their interest in the different integrative therapies. Furthermore, binary logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio of demand for CAM.ResultsA total of 394 out of 503 patients participated in the survey (78%). 60% declared using CAM in general, 45% specifically in relation to their pregnancy or childbed. Most commonly used modalities were vitamins (31% of all patients), yoga (24%), and herbal supplements (23%). Most popular sources of recommendation of CAM use were midwives and gynecologists. Integrative therapy options patients would have wanted alongside conventional maternity care were CAM (64%), relaxation therapies (44%), dietary counseling (28%), and psychological counseling (15%). Furthermore, associations between patients’ sociodemographic characteristics and their demand for integrative therapies were identified.ConclusionsThe results of this study demonstrate that there is a considerable demand for integrative medicine and widespread use of CAM among women during pregnancy and childbed in Germany. Maternity health care providers should be aware of these findings in order to be able to better address patients’ needs and wishes. Our study findings should be interpreted with regard to patients in an hospital setting.

Pharmacological Effect of Quercetin in Hypertension and Its Potential Application in Pregnancy‐Induced Hypertension: Review of In Vitro, In Vivo, and Clinical Studies

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“…Therefore, endothelial dysfunction seems to have a complex relationship with hypertension preceding the development of pathological disorders in the cardiovascular system [87] while improvements in endothelial function could contribute to lower blood pressure. Not only numerous pharmacological studies but also clinical and epidemiological investigations have shown an inverse correlation between dietary flavonoid consumption and chronic degenerative diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases (CVD) [70, 90, 91]. Results of systematic reviews and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies have shown that a high flavonoid intake is associated with lower mortality from CVD.…”

The Effect of Hatha Yoga on Low Back Pain and Sleep Quality in Nulliparous Pregnant Women: A Clinical Trial Study

“…Based on the criteria of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) for the category of mind and body-based practices (16), yoga is one of the most common sports and is available in different countries around the world (17). There are several types of yoga styles of which one of the most commonly used during pregnancy is Hatha yoga.…”

Efficacy of Combined Herbal Capsule on Sexual Function in Postmenopausal Women: A Triple-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Regarding the prevalence of sexual problems due to atrophic vaginitis caused by hypoestrogenemia during menopause (8) and the interest of women in the use of complementary medicines (22), investigating the effects of herbal drugs especially phytoestrogens is necessary. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of combined herbal capsules on the sexual function of postmenopausal women.…”