Complementary and alternative medical (CAM) therapies encompass a broad spectrum of practices and beliefs (1). From an historical standpoint, they may be defined “. as practices that are not accepted as correct, proper, or appropriate or are not in conformity with the beliefs or standards of the dominant group of medical practitioners in a society” (2). From a functional standpoint, complementary (.”alternative”) therapies may be defined as interventions neither taught widely in medical schools nor generally available in hospitals.
