Table 5 |
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Summary of the results of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) economic evaluations with exemplary study quality |
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|
CAM Therapy Compared to Usual Care* |
Patient Population |
Form of Economic Evaluation |
Health Effects of CAM Compared to Usual Care† |
Cost of CAM Compared to Usual Care† |
|
|
|
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|
Liguori et al, 2000 [32] |
Acupuncture |
Patients with migraine |
CEA |
Better |
Lower‡ |
|
Wonderling et al, 2004 [35] |
Acupuncture |
Patients with chronic headache |
CUA |
Better |
Higher‡ |
|
Paterson et al, 2003 [34] |
Acupuncture |
Patients with dyspepsia |
CEA |
Similar |
Similar |
|
Homeopathy |
CEA |
Similar |
Similar |
||
|
Korthals-de Bos et al, 2003 [27] |
Manual therapy |
Patients with neck pain |
CEA CUA |
Better Similar |
Lower¶ |
|
Brefel-Courbon et al, 2003 [50] |
Spa therapy |
Patients with Parkinson's disease |
CEA |
Similar |
Lower |
|
Van Tubergen et al, 2002 [51] |
Combined spa-exercise therapy |
Patients with ankylosing spondylitis |
CEA CUA |
Better Better |
Higher¶ |
|
Tusek et al, 1999 [53] |
Complementary guided imagery |
Cardiac surgery patients |
CEA |
Better |
Lower |
|
van Dixhoorn and Duivenvoorden, 1999 [54] |
Complementary relaxation therapy |
Patients with previous myocardial infarction |
CEA |
Better |
Lower |
|
Jacobsen et al, 2002 [55] |
Complementary professionally-administered stress management training |
Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy |
CEA |
Similar |
Higher‡ |
|
Complementary self-administered stress management training |
CEA |
Better |
Lower‡ |
||
|
Franzosi et al, 2001 [25] |
Complementary omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids |
Patients with recent myocardial infarction |
CEA |
Better |
Higher |
|
Smedley et al, 2004 [68] |
Complementary preoperative and post operative oral nutritional supplementation |
Patients undergoing lower gastrointestinal tract surgery |
CEA |
Better |
Similar |
|
Norris et al, 2004 [56] |
Potassium-rich diet |
Postoperative cardiac patients |
CEA |
Similar |
Lower |
|
Ryan and Gevirtz, 2004 [76] |
Biofeedback-based psychophysiological treatment |
Patients with "functional" disorders (e.g., irritable bowel syndrome) |
CEA |
Better |
Lower |
|
Larsen et al, 2002 [82] |
Complementary custom-made biomechanical shoe orthoses |
Recent military conscripts |
CEA |
Better |
Higher |
|
|
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|
Bold entries indicate that the CAM therapy was shown to be clearly superior to (dominate) usual care. CEA = cost-effectiveness analysis; CUA = cost-utility analysis * The use of the term "complementary" in this column indicates CAM therapies used in addition to usual care. † If tests of statistical significance were performed, costs must be significantly higher or lower (and health effects significantly better or worse), or they were considered "similar." ‡ This study used both a societal and an institutional perspective, and the results were in the same direction. ¶This study used a societal perspective only. All other studies used an institutional perspective only. |
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Herman et al. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2005 5:11 doi:10.1186/1472-6882-5-11 |
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