Health care practices that are not part of the traditional Western health care system—from acupuncture, yoga, and Tai Chi to vitamin supplements and medical marijuana—are typically labeled complementary or alternative medicines by the mainstream. RAND conducts evidence-based research on alternative approaches to illness prevention and treatment as well as studies aimed at understanding the place of complementary and alternative medicines within the health care system.
Journal Article
In this chapter, we present the PBOA instruments that have been used to determine outcomes in acupuncture clinical research, and highlight measures that are feasible, practical, economical, reliable, valid, and responsive to clinical change.
Journal Article
If CIM is to be considered in broader healthcare strategies, its economic impact must be determined.
Content
The SC-EPC conducts systematic reviews and technology assessments of all aspects of health care. Sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the center is one of 14 nationwide.
Journal Article
Use of and spending on complementary and alternative medicine have flattened out. Including providers of these services in new delivery systems such as accountable care organizations could help slow growth in national health care spending.
Past Event
Ian Coulter, who holds the Samueli Institute Chair in Policy for Integrative Medicine at RAND, was joined by fellow experts in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to discuss patient use of CAM and how hospitals, universities, and the U.S. military are integrating CAM into traditional medical practices throughout the United States.
Multimedia
On July 18, 2012, Ian Coulter, who holds the Samueli Institute Chair in Policy for Integrative Medicine at RAND, was joined by fellow experts in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to discuss patient use of CAM and how hospitals, universities, and the U.S. military are integrating CAM into traditional medical practices throughout the United States.
Journal Article
Evidence suggests that probiotics are associated with a reduction in antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD).
Journal Article
This editorial uses a recent meta-analysis on the effects of vitamin C on blood pressure to highlight pitfalls in nutrition research design.
Journal Article
A comprehensive systematic review of economic evaluations of complementary and integrative medicine (CIM) to establish the value of these therapies to health reform efforts.
Journal Article
Complementary alternative medicine (CAM) and integrative medicine (IM) represent non-traditional approaches to health care practice that have become increasingly popular in the United States and throughout the world.
Report
An expert panel considered issues pertaining to the development, assessment, and regulation of multicomponent dietary supplements for the military to enhance performance and promote health.
Report
Explores quality and utilization of diabetes care in China.
Report
Considers regulation of dietary supplement use in the military and comparable civilian organizations, policies regulating purchase of dietary supplements, and issues to be considered in crafting military policies about supplement use and education.
Journal Article
The move toward comparative effectiveness research may be a positive one for complementary and alternative medicine, but a more critical evaluation might be in order.
Journal Article
Patient education integrated with acupuncture had a sufficiently promising effect on cancel-related fatigue that a larger randomized controlled trial is warranted.
Journal Article
The existing scientific literature does not adequately address questions about the safety of probiotics.
Journal Article
This book chapter gives an introduction on how to read and how to do a systematic review or a meta-analysis, and discusses advances and limitations of this method.
Journal Article
Probiotics is the use of microorganisms in complementary and alternative medicine to prevent and treat certain illnesses. This review outlines the challenges associated with the design, implementation, data analysis, and interpretation of clinical trials in humans involving probiotics.
Journal Article
The way a questionnaire or scale is administered can affect the outcome.
Journal Article
A systematic review of research on integrated health care found little evidence regarding effectiveness, but integrative health care appears to be safe.
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