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Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2004;158:292.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

The population-based estimate of the prevalence of pediatric complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use in the United States by Davis and Darden¹ based on the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey is interesting but I believe underestimates the problem. In the past decade, the national expenditure on CAM services has increased annually, as has the amount spent on herbals and dietary supplements (H/DS). These H/DS are reported to be the most commonly used CAM therapies in the United States.² This increased use has been particularly noted in those patients with incurable, chronic, and recurrent medical conditions.

In 1999, at least 75% of the 125 US medical schools taught CAM. In 1997, spending for CAM in the United States was $21.2 billion.³ During 1997, 42% of Americans used CAM.⁴ In 1997, total visits to CAM practitioners reached 629 million, which exceeded visits to all of the US primary care practitioners.⁵ In January . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Gerald Ente, MD
State University of New York, Stonybrook
(e-mail: entedoc@aol.com)

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