Articles related to COMPLEMENTARY & ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

Forty patients with MS and neuropathic pain were randomized to TENS or interferential current (IFC) five days a week for four weeks. Average self-rated pain and neuropathic pain decreased significantly following both interventions. MusiQol scores improved significantly following TENS or IFC. However, the TENS arm showed significant improvements in more domains than IFC on the MusiQol scale.

Clinically significant anxiolytic and antidepressant benefits were seen in anxious depression patients after TMS in all samples, with average reductions in GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scores of 50% or more. The PHQ-9 scores for both the anxious and nonanxious depression groups improved equally. The worried group, however, scored higher both at the beginning of the study and after TMS, leading to significantly lower categorical rates of response and remission in depressive symptoms. The shift in anxiety and depressive symptoms substantially correlated among individuals who had anxious depression.

Trial participants were instructed on imagery rehearsal therapy — rewriting their recurring nightmare to end on a positive note and then rehearsing that story. Next, targeted memory reactivation was used to link a sound to that positive version of the dream. Those in the study reduced their nightmares from an average of almost 3 per week, to just one every five weeks.

Manuka honey contains amino acids, B-vitamins, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and zinc. It has antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Besides use in wound infection, it may be useful in treating some GI disorders and sore throats.

The 8-week treatment with mindfulness-based stress reduction was a well-tolerated treatment option with comparable effectiveness to a first-line medication for patients with anxiety disorders in this randomized clinical trial of 276 adults with anxiety disorders.

Eighty-eight children ages 6 through 12 were randomized to daily pine bark extract, methylphenidate, or placebo for 10 weeks. Total ADHD-Rating Scales scores decreased 29% with pine bark extract, 45% with methylphenidate, and 5% with placebo. Hyperactivity/impulsivity decreased 34% with pine bark extract and 36% with methylphenidate and increased 1% with placebo. Inattention decreased 25% with pine bark extract, 52% with methylphenidate, 9% with placebo. Adverse events were reported 5 times more frequently with methylphenidate than with pine bark.