Conventional medicine in the United States treats ailments with prescription medicines, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, and medical devices, such as InterStim. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) refers to health care systems, practices, and products that are not part of the conventional medicine treatment approaches. CAM therapies most often used to treat IC symptoms include biofeedback, diet-based therapies, herbal remedies, massage, yoga, and Pilates.
According to a 2007 National Institutes of Health (NIH) study, nearly 40 percent of American adults use some form of CAM therapy. People with IC often turn to CAM when seeking symptom relief. IC clinicians and researchers are integrating CAM into treatment protocols.
Practitioners use complementary medicine along with conventional medicine. Using the dietary supplement Prelief to reduce IC symptoms in conjunction with the conventional IC therapy Elmiron is an example of this.
Practitioners use alternative medicine in place of conventional medical care. Using acupuncture alone to treat IC, with no other conventional therapies, is an example of using alternative medicine.
Integrative medicine combines conventional medicine and CAM treatments for which there is scientific evidence of safety and effectiveness. Integrative medicine draws from many disciplines, both conventional and complementary and combines standard medical treatments with CAM practices that scientific research to have the most promise.
There are four main categories of CAM:
- Biologically-based practices: These therapies rely on dietary supplements, herbal remedies, and other natural products. Many of the prescription medicines that doctors use today have their origins in these types of natural, plant-based substances. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers herbal remedies to be dietary supplements, not medicines. Use the FDA’s site to locate consumer information and alerts regarding supplements. Examples of biologically-based IC therapies include:
- Aloe vera
- CystaProtek
- Cysta-Q
- Dietary supplements
- Diet-based therapies
- Herbs and other products from plants, enzymes, etc.
- Prelief
- Energy medicine: Energy medicine leverages the concept that all people have subtle energy fields within them that they emit. Practitioners of energy medicine believe that a disturbance in these energy fields causes disease. Types of energy medicine are:
- Acupuncture
- Acupressure
- Ayurveda
- Biofeedback
- Energy healing therapy/Reiki
- Magnet therapy
- Qi gong
- Reiki
- Therapeutic touch
- Manipulative and body-based practices: These types of therapies involved a hands-on approach, physically working with the body:
- Alexander technique
- Chiropractic manipulation
- Feldenkreis
- Massage therapy
- Osteopathic manipulation
- Physical therapy
- Reflexology
- Trager psychophysical integration
- Mind-body medicine: Mind-body medicine focuses on how the mind and body interact. Examples of mind-body medicine used by people with IC include:
- Art therapy
- Dane
- Guided imagery
- Meditation
- Movement therapies
- Music therapy
- Pilates
- Prayer
- Support groups
- Tai chi
- Yoga
To learn more about CAM research, check out the NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) website:
- Find up-to-date info on CAM therapies and their uses in treating specific diseases
- Check out NCCAM’s A to Z Guide to CAM.
- Use NCCAM’s Evaluating Web-based Health Resources section to help you be an informed NCCAM consumer.
To search for research studies
- CAM on PubMed: Citations from peer-reviewed journals on various CAM studies, including IC.
- NCCAM-funded studies on PubMed: A special section on PubMed that provides abstracts on NCCAM-funded CAM studies.
- Cochrane Collaboration Complementary Medicine Reviews: Offers research reports on health and medicine, including CAM therapies (use the “Complementary Medicine” search field).
CAM for IC is the theme of the summer 2009 issue of the ICA Update by watching the ICA Forum: A to Z on IC.
The ICA Shop may contain resources of interest to you:
- Guided imagery CDs
- IC and Diet Brochure
- Physical Therapy Brochure
- Confident Choices: A Cookbook for IC and Overactive Bladder
- Confident Choices: Customizing the IC Diet
- A Taste of the Good Life: A Cookbook for an IC Diet
- IC and Diet Transcript
- DVD! New Dawn Pilates Volume 1
- Heal Pelvic Pain
- Classic Stretch Exercise Video
Posted August 25, 2009