Preventive Screening of Women Who Use Complementary and Alternative Medicine Providers

Abstract

Background: Many women use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Although CAM use has been associated with reductions in conventionally recommended pediatric preventive care (e.g., vaccination), little is known about associations between CAM use and receipt of recommended preventive screening in women. Methods: Using Washington State insurance data from 2000 to 2003, the authors generated clustered logistic regression models, examining associations between provider-based CAM use and receipt of screening tests for Chlamydia trachomatis, breast cancer, and cervical cancer: (1) contrasting women who used CAM providers only (alternative use) and women who used both conventional and CAM providers (complementary use) with women who used conventional care only and (2) testing associations between screening and use of four specific CAM provider types-naturopathic physicians, chiropractors, massage therapists, and acupuncturists. Results: Both alternative and complementary use was associated with reduced Chlamydia screening. Cancer screening increased with complementary use but decreased with alternative use of CAM. Use of naturopathy was associated with decreased mammography, whereas all four CAM therapies were positively associated with Papanicolaou testing. Conclusions: When used in conjunction with conventional care, use of provider-based CAM may signal high interest in various types of health-promoting behavior, including cancer screening. Negative associations between CAM and Chlamydia screening and between naturopathy and mammography require additional study. Interventions with CAM providers and their patients, aimed at improving rates of conventionally recommended screening, might encourage greater focus on preventive care, an important task when CAM providers serve as women's only contact with the healthcare system.

Disease severity is associated with the use of complementary medicine to treat or manage type-2 diabetes: data from the 2002 and 2007 National Health Interview Survey

“…Thus, one might hypothesize that individuals with diabetes are more likely to use CM if they have more severe diabetes and/or one or more complications associated with the disease. However, there are also data from the general population showing that CM is associated with a number of positive health behaviors that would be part of a wellness lifestyle [18] including regular levels of exercise [15], nonuse of tobacco [15,19,20], nonuse or moderation in use of alcohol [15,21], healthy diet choices [21] and preventive screening [22]. It may also be that individuals oriented toward a wellness lifestyle will be more likely to use CM for their diabetes.…”

Influenza vaccination among chiropractic patients and other users of complementary and alternative medicine: Are chiropractic patients really different?

“…Interestingly, our findings suggest that younger Non-Chiropractic CAM Users were actually more likely than the other groups to have been vaccinated for influenza, perhaps reflecting the health-seeking behaviors of this group as a whole (Downey, et al, 2009; Nahin, et al, 2007). …”

Are personal characteristics of massage therapists associated with their clinical, educational, and interpersonal behaviors?

“…(39) They concluded that when women use CAM providers as an alternative to (vs. along with) their medical doctor, the recommendations given by that provider may be their main source of encouragement to seek out preventive screening. Future research should investigate the frequency with which massage therapists encourage routine preventive screenings such as mammograms, Pap tests, and colonoscopies.…”