title: Complementary and alternative medications for chronic pelvic pain.
abstract: Chronic pelvic pain is common, but rarely cured, thus patients seek both second opinions and alternative means of controlling their pain. Complementary and alternative medicine accounts for 11.2% of out-of-pocket medical expenditures for adults for all conditions in the United States. Although there are many treatments, rigorous testing and well-done randomized studies are lacking. Dietary changes and physical modalities such as physical therapy have often been included in the category of alternative medicine, but their use is now considered mainstream. This article concentrates on other sources of alternative and complementary medicine, such as dietary supplementation and acupuncture.
authors.affiliation: Obstetrics Gynecology and Women's Health, Saint Louis University, 6420 Clayton Road, St Louis, MO 63117, USA. Electronic address: leongfc@slu.edu.
authors.forename: Fah Che
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Leong
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D002186:Cannabinoids / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000379:methods; D018856:Cystitis, Interstitial / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005994:Glycerophosphates / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D006931:Hyperbaric Oxygenation; D006990:Hypnosis; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D008096:Lithotripsy; D017699:Pelvic Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D002186:Cannabinoids; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D005994:Glycerophosphates
keywords: Alternative medicine; Chronic pelvic pain; Complementary medicine; Endometriosis; Interstitial cystitis