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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Use of alternative therapies in older outpatients in the United States and Japan
— prevalence, reporting patterns and perceived effectiveness | | Author(s) | Joseph H Flaherty, Ryutaro Takahashi, JoAnne Teoh |
| Journal title | Journals of Gerontology: Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, vol 56A, no 10, October 2001 |
| Pages | pp M650-M655 |
| Keywords | Alternative medicine ; Attitude ; Comparison ; United States of America ; Japan. |
| Annotation | Alternative medical therapies (ATs) - also called unconventional medicine and complementary medicine - are widely used in the industrialised world. This study used a questionnaire to interview 593 outpatients aged 59+ of geriatric outpatient clinics in Saint Louis, Missouri (180 whites, 106 African Americans) and Tokyo (307 Japanese). Use of one or more AT was greatest among older Japanese (74.3%), followed by white Americans (61.6%), and African Americans (47.2%). Most common were lifestyle diet, herbal therapy, massage, acupuncture, and acupressure. The white and African American groups were more frequent users of relaxation techniques and spiritual healing. Contrary to previous studies of the general population, the use of one or more AT did not correlate with any sociodemographic variables. Reported use of AT to doctors was low in all three groups (42% to 48%); and perceived effectiveness was high (84% to 92%). Although chronic conditions were common reasons for using ATs, non-medical reasons were also common. Health care professionals need to be more aware of and to understand use of ATs. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-011130212 A |
| Classmark | LK3: DP: 48: 7T: 7DT |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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