ArticleBMC complementary and alternative medicine2011
Attitudes towards complementary and alternative medicine in chronic pain syndromes: a questionnaire-based comparison between primary headache and low back pain.
Article in BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 41 citations in OpenAlex.
- [Consensus paper of the German Migraine and Headache Society on the structure of headache care facilities in Germany].Schmerz (Berlin, Germany) · 2014Guideline
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- Acupuncture or low frequency infrared treatment for low back pain in Chinese patients: a discrete choice experiment.PloS one · 2015Trial
- Trial
- Profile of migraine patients in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: a multi-center study.The journal of headache and pain · 2026Article
- Complementary and alternative medicine use and pain characteristics in older Vietnamese adults with chronic pain: A cross-sectional study.Belitung nursing journal · 2026Article
- The Prevalence of Massage Therapy Utilization for Musculoskeletal Conditions: A Systematic Review.International journal of therapeutic massage & bodywork · 2025Article
- Chronic Migraine as a Primary Chronic Pain Syndrome and Recommended Prophylactic Therapeutic Options: A Literature Review.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Bibliometric Analysis of 100 Most Highly Cited Publications on Acupuncture for Migraine.Journal of pain research · 2023Article
- Article
- Article
- Article
- Chronic low back pain patients' use of, level of knowledge of and perceived benefits of complementary medicine: a cross-sectional study at an academic pain center.BMC complementary and alternative medicine · 2017Article
- A critical review of manual therapy use for headache disorders: prevalence, profiles, motivations, communication and self-reported effectiveness.BMC neurology · 2017Review
- A qualitative study of influences on older women's practitioner choices for back pain care.BMC health services research · 2014Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundComplementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) is widely used and popular among patients with primary headache or low back pain (LBP). Aim of the study was to analyze attitudes of headache and LBP patients towards the use of CAM.
methodsTwo questionnaire-based surveys were applied comparing 432 primary headache and 194 LBP patients.
resultsIn total, 84.75% of all patients reported use of CAM; with significantly more LBP patients. The most frequently-used CAM therapies in headache were acupuncture (71.4%), massages (56.4%), and thermotherapy (29.2%), in LBP thermotherapy (77.4%), massages (62.7%), and acupuncture (51.4%). The most frequent attitudes towards CAM use in headache vs. LBP: "leave nothing undone" (62.5% vs. 52.1%; p = 0.006), "take action against the disease" (56.8% vs. 43.2%; p = 0.006). Nearly all patients with previous experience with CAM currently use CAM in both conditions (93.6% in headache; 100% in LBP). However, the majority of the patients had no previous experience.
conclusionUnderstanding motivations for CAM treatment is important, because attitudes derive from wishes for non-pharmacological treatment, to be more involved in treatment and avoid side effects. Despite higher age and more permanent pain in LBP, both groups show high use of CAM with only little specific difference in preferred methods and attitudes towards CAM use. This may reflect deficits and unfulfilled goals in conventional treatment. Maybe CAM can decrease the gap between patients' expectations about pain therapy and treatment reality, considering that both conditions are often chronic diseases, causing high burdens for daily life.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.