With more than 50% of patients self-medicating today and with the enormous variety of complementary or alternative medicines (CAM) available, it has become imperative for health care providers to be familiar with, and knowledgeable about, these widely used treatments. In Complementary and Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine, academic clinicians, clinical scientists, well-known practitioners of alternative medicine, and authors of popular works on the subject summarize the facts about complementary cardiovascular medications so that physicians can confidently and intelligently advise their patients. The authors comprehensively explain the background for each important alternative therapy, its rationale, the evidence supporting its use, its possible interaction with standard medicines, and, where possible, what is known about its safety and efficacy. The therapies for treating coronary heart disease (CHD) range from the more commonly encountered herbs, vitamins, supplements, and dietary fats and oils, to such less familiar techniques as acupuncture, homeopathy, massage, chelation therapy, meditation, aroma therapy, prayer, and energy therapies. §Comprehensive and informative, Complementary and Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine offers traditional health care providers not only a critical introduction to the benefits and risks of CAM therapies in cardiovascular medicine, but also a sound basis for effectively counseling patients about the value and risks of these therapies.
