Midwives' use of complementary/alternative treatments

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• 作者：Edzard Ernst ; MD ; PhD ; FMed Sci ; FSB ; FRCP ; FRCP Ed ; ^{Edzard.Ernst@pms.ac.uk} (Professor of Complementary Medicine) ; Leala K. Watson ; BSc (Hons) (Information Specialist)
• 关键词：Alternative medicine ; Midwifery ; Prevalence ; Evidence
• 刊名：Midwifery
• 出版年：2012
• 出版时间：December, 2012
• 年：2012
• 卷：28
• 期：6
• 页码：772-777
• 全文大小：148 K

文摘

Background

in recent years, several surveys have suggested that many midwives use some form of complementary/alternative therapy (CAT), often without the knowledge of obstetricians.

Objective

to systematically review all surveys of CAT use by midwives.

Search strategy

six electronic databases were searched using text terms and MeSH for CAT and midwifery.

Selection criteria

surveys were included if they reported quantitative data on the prevalence of CAT use by midwives.

Data collection and analysis

full-text articles of all relevant surveys were obtained. Data were extracted according to pre-defined criteria.

Main results

19 surveys met the inclusion criteria. Most were recent and from the USA. Prevalence data varied but were usually high, often close to 100 % . Much use of CATs does not seem to be supported by strong evidence for efficacy.

Conclusion

most midwives seem to use CATs. As not all CATs are without risks, the issue should be debated openly.