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.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    Review: Ear acupressure to treat allergic rhinitis

    Researchers at RMIT University, in Victoria, Australia reviewed the evidence.

    First, the details.

    • 92 research papers were identified.
    • The methodological quality was assessed using the Jadad scale.
      • 5 studies were of sufficient quality to include in the review.

    And, the results.

    • All included studies involved ear-acupressure treatment.
    • These studies mentioned randomization, but no details were given.
    • None of the 5 studies used blinding or intention-to-treat analysis.
    • Response
      • Ear-acupressure was more effective than herbal medicine.
      • It was as effective as body acupuncture or antihistamine for short-term effect.
      • It was more effective than antihistamine treatment for long-term effect.

    The bottom line?

    The authors concluded, “The benefit of ear-acupressure for symptomatic relief of allergic rhinitis is unknown due to the poor quality of included studies.”

    Doing a poorly designed study is more detrimental to the treatment discipline and healthcare than doing nothing.

    Someone is bound to write and claim anecdotal success. Those who are convinced become defensive, and those who doubt become emboldened.

    5/8/10 17:58 JR

    Comments are closed.