The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

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  • Recent Comments

    A possible role for yoga as a complementary therapy for HIV

    One of the complications of HIV infection is the loss of complex motor coordination. This can be evaluated using the mirror star-tracing task. There are variations on this test, but essentially the patient traces a star using the outline in a mirror.

    Now, a study in 26 healthy people shows that one month of yoga was associated in fewer errors in a modification of the star-tracing task where the star was six pointed with the outline made up of 60 circles (4 mm in diameter).

    • The yoga group showed significant improvement in the number of circles crossed
    • Fewer circles left out for the right hand
    • More circles crossed with the left hand alone in the control group

    The investigators concluded. “One month of yoga improved reversal ability, eye-hand co-ordination, speed, and accuracy — which are necessary for mirror star tracing.”

    I’m not aware of a study where yoga was used to improve these skills in people with HIV. But it might be worthwhile.

    Photo: Your amazing brain

    10/22/06 11:40 JR

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