It seems that when patients from the inner city make use of alternative medicine as part of their approach to managing asthma, they may not use their prescriptions as directed.

Unfortunately, new research shows that this may actually result in poorer outcomes in terms of disease management.

The study, published in the Annals Of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology looked at 326 adults with persistent asthma. Patients were asked about the use of complimentary and alternative medical (CAM) approaches in the 6 months previous. Those who had used CAM appeared to be less likely to be using prescribed inhaled corticosteroids.

Source: Annals Of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology