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Aim: Primary care physicians need to be aware of the types of traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) used by patients to be able to guide patients away from harmful approaches and to aim them toward useful or at least seeming benign approaches. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of the usage of TCM methods in Turkey and the level of knowledge and attitudes of applicants about these methods. Methods: The universe of this cross-sectional study consisted of individuals aged 18 and over who applied to the Family Health Centers and agreed to participate in the study in 12 provinces in different regions of Turkey between July and December 2016. The questionnaires were applied to the volunteer participants by the researchers using face-to-face interview techniques. The questionnaire had 25 questions. Results: 80.6% of the participants benefited from TCM, and 86.4% stated they believed in the effectiveness of TCM. Women, university graduates of college who had private insurance used TCM (respectively; p=0.031; p=0.004; p=0.000), and women (83.3%) found TCM more useful than men (p=0.005). The most frequent reason for using TCM was "heard that it was useful". Conclusion: The results of our study indicated that a large portion of Turkish primary care patients use TCM and recommend it to their relatives. Therefore, health policies and academic knowledge should be developed in this sense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and aim. The use of complementary medicine applications is increasing due to the interest of society. We aimed to assess the attitudes, behaviors, and awareness of the patients who applied to a primary care unit towards complementary medicine practices. Material and methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted with the voluntary participation of 562 individuals who admitted in a primary care unit. The data was collected through face-to-face interviews through a research questionnaire form and the Complementary, Alternative, and Conventional Medicine Attitudes Scale between 20 June-20 August 2021. The sample size was calculated with the OpenEpi v3.01program and statistical analyzes were performed using the SPSS-24 package program. Results. Their mean age was 39.73±12.95 years and women accounted for 55.5% (n=312) of all participants. The most known complementary medicine methods were phytotherapy, acupuncture, and cup therapy. The information sources of the participants about Complementary Medicine were mostly people around them; only 31.1% of them consulted a doctor. The mean total scale score was 111.45±19.08. Those with chronic diseases, employees, who had COVID-19 disease, high educational status, and those who evaluated their health status as good had more positive attitudes towards complementary medicine practices. A weak negative correlation was found between age and total scale score. Conclusion. Although positive attitudes towards complementary medicine practices are exhibited, health professionals are consulted at very low rates as a source of information. Health care providers must make arrangements and plans to provide this increasing interest from reliable sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background While previous research has shown that trust in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is linked with other unfounded beliefs (e.g. paranormal phenomena or pharmaceutical conspiracies) and that analytic thinking can help alter these beliefs, the role of the ability to evaluate evidence as a protective factor has not been established yet. Methods A cross-sectional design with a hundred participants was used with self-report data from questionnaires and performance test. The dependent variables were the belief in CAM and use of CAM. Predictor variables were scientific reasoning (measured by Scientific Reasoning Scale), critical thinking dispositions (measured by Critical Thinking Disposition Instrument; UF-EMI), religious beliefs (measured by Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire), gender and age. Results Scientific reasoning and religious faith independently predicted belief in alternative medicine, while the role of scientific reasoning in actual reported use of CAM diminished after religious faith, gender and age were introduced to the model. Conclusion The results highlight the fact that it is not enough to appeal to the general critical thinking of people, but we need to teach them some practical skills that would help them to evaluate evidence in other, health-unrelated, contexts as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose : This study was conducted to determine the complementary therapies used by patients diagnosed with lomber and cervical disc hernia with planned surgical intervention in order to relieve the pain. Metods : 92 patients who were hospitalized due to lomber/cervical disc hernia were included in the study between 01 December 2014- 30 June 2015 in Department of Neurosurgery, Training Hospital. During the preoperative period, data in the questionnaire form were filled by direct conversations with the patients. Results : We found of 34 percent of patients used a complementary therapy for pain relief. It was determined that 43.8 percent of the patients were using the complementary methods with the influence of the social environment, 31.3 percent of them used them to reduce the pain and 62.5 percent of patients who use complementary therapies say they benefit from this method. The difference between the gender, medical diagnosis of patients and the application of complementary therapy in later life was statistically significant. Conclusions : The study showed that patients with lumber/cervical disc hernia referred to complementary methods at the time of preoperative pain relief and that the most commonly used complementary method was traction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Abnormal Savda Munziq (ASMq) is a traditional prescription in Uyghur Medicine, and its treatment of complex diseases such as tumors and asthma has been proven to be effective in Uyghur medical clinical practice. The efficacy-enhancing and toxicity-reducing properties of ASMq were studied on mice with transplanted cervical cancer (U27) tumors, which were treated with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in this work. Methods: To investigate the synergistic effect of ASMq and 5-FU on U27 cells, inhibitory effects on cell proliferation were determined through a MTT assay. 48 Kunming mice which were randomly divided in to 6 groups: control group, model group, 5-FU group, 5-FU combine with ASMq low-dose group, 5-FU combine with ASMq medium-dose group, and 5-FU combine with ASMq high- dose group, the inhibition rate of the tumor, the viscera indexes, and the content of serum tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were determined. The expression levels of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) and human papillomavirus type 16 E2 (HPV16 E2) protein were assessed by Western blot. Pathological changes in the liver were observed. Result: The inhibition rates of tumors, the 5-FU + ASMq.H group(80.64%), 5-FU + ASMq.M group (90.67%), 5-FU + ASMq.L group (72.03%) and 5-FU group (66.89%), clearly indicated that the effects of tumor inhibition. The thymus index and spleen index were increased, and the serum concentration of TNF-α increased while ALT and AST concentrations were decreased, and TNF-α protein expression were increased while TGF-β1 and HPV16 E2 were decreased. ASMq might can improve livers central vein hyperemia and interstitial edema, and preserve the radial structure of the hepatic cords. Conclusions: The results suggested that ASMq might reduce toxicity and enhance the efficacy of the chemotherapeutic drug 5-fluorouracil in the treatment of cervical carcinoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Infertility patients are a vulnerable group that often seeks a non-medical solution for their failure to conceive. World-wide, women use CAM for productive health, but only a limited number of studies report on CAM use to enhance fertility. Little is known about traditional and religious forms of therapies that are used in relation to conventional medicine in Turkey. We investigated the prevalence and types of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) used by infertile Turkish women for fertility enhancement. Methods: A face-to-face questionnaire inquiring demographic information and types of CAM used for fertility enhancement were completed by hundred infertility patients admitted to a primary care family planning centre in Van, Turkey between January and July 2009. Results: The vast majority of infertile women had used CAM at least once for infertility. CAM use included religious interventions, herbal products and recommendations of traditional "hodja's" (faith healers). Of these women, 87.8% were abused in the last 12 months, 36.6% felt not being supported by her partner and 80.5% had never spoken with a physician about CAM. Conclusions: Infertile Turkish women use complementary medicine frequently for fertility enhancement and are in need of information about CAM. Religious and traditional therapies are used as an adjunct to, rather than a substitute for, conventional medical therapy. Physicians need to approach fertility patients with sensitivity and should be able to council their patients about CAM accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]