Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Persistent Facial Pain

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is described by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) as a group of unconventional medical systems, practices, and products not presently considered part of the conventional biomedical care provided by medical doctors and other conventionally trained health professionals [1]. For most CAM therapies, there are unanswered questions regarding safety, cost-effectiveness, efficacy, and mechanisms of action. Facilitating the scientific evaluation of CAM is a key objective of NCCAM. NCCAM groups CAM therapies into the following five categories: mind– body interventions, manipulative and body-based therapies, biologically based therapies, energy therapies, and alternative medical systems. Mind– body interventions aim to increase the mind’s capacity to enhance bodily function and reduce symptoms. Examples from this category include biofeedback, relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, and yoga and other movement therapies involving a component of mental focus. Spiritual approaches, such as prayer, are categorized as mind–body interventions. Additional mind–body interventions once considered to be outside of conventional medical or dental treatment have achieved integration into multidisciplinary pain treatment and mainstream care on the basis of evidence for their safety and improved treatment outcomes resulting from their inclusion in combined treatments [2]. These include patient education, cognitive-behavioral