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Use of Alternative Medicines in Parasomnias for Adults and Children

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Abstract

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) practices are becoming attractive approaches for a variety of medical disorders. This is especially so with the rising concerns of adverse reactions from drugs. With over 18,000 CAM articles cited in PubMed, they are being more accepted and integrated into mainstream medicine. CAM approaches may offer safe and effective treatment as adjunct or stand-alone treatment. This chapter reviews CAM therapies that may be more frequently used for parasomnias: acupuncture, homeopathy, herbs and supplements, aromatherapy, and hypnosis. An explanation of what these modalities are, along with data on safety, potential use, and available evidence is summarized. There are very few clinical studies utilizing CAM therapies for parasomnias. However, the following observations can be made: Treatment of nocturnal enuresis has the most supportive evidence with clinical studies advocating the use of acupuncture, homeopathy (homotoxicology), and hypnosis. Overall, hypnosis proves to be the most versatile for treatment of parasomnias with clinical studies supporting its use in nocturnal enuresis, sleepwalking, night terrors, and nightmares. While other CAM approaches lack clinical studies to support their use in parasomnias, they may still prove useful in reducing stress and anxiety, which can be underlying factors in parasomnias.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Assist. Prof. Youngran Chung M.D.

  2. Raby Institute for Integrative Medicine at Northwestern, LLC, Chicago, IL, USA

    Robert C. Dumont M.D., FAAP

  3. 846 N. Euclid Ave., 60302, Oak Park, IL, USA

    Assist. Prof. Youngran Chung M.D. & Robert C. Dumont M.D., FAAP

Authors
  1. Assist. Prof. Youngran Chung M.D.
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  2. Robert C. Dumont M.D., FAAP
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Correspondence to Youngran Chung M.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Harvard Medical School, Associate Professor, Department of Neuro, Boston Children's Hospital, Longwood Avenue 300, Boston, 02115, Massachusetts, USA

    Sanjeev V. Kothare

  2. Feinberg School of Medicine, Alexian Brothers Medical Center, Northwestern University, Biesterfield Road 800, Elk Grove Village, 60007, Illinois, USA

    Anna Ivanenko

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Chung, Y., Dumont, R. (2013). Use of Alternative Medicines in Parasomnias for Adults and Children. In: Kothare, S., Ivanenko, A. (eds) Parasomnias. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7627-6_29

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7627-6_29

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-7626-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-7627-6

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