Complementary therapy in allergic rhinitis.

The term complementary/alternative medicine (CAM) refers to those therapeutic and diagnostic approaches different from conventional allopathic medicine. CAM may encompass homeopathy, acupuncture, phytotherapy, antioxidant therapy, and numerous holistic or behavioral techniques. Allergists and physicians of all disciplines are confronted with patients using CAM treatments, making it imperative that they become familiar with the scientific literature surrounding them. Given the high prevalence of allergic diseases and associated costs of CAM treatments, proof of CAM therapies is needed to establish appropriate guidelines for their use. Efficacy of CAM modalities should be established with randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials, including adverse-effects monitoring. Of all the CAM therapies examined to treat allergic rhinitis, some herbal therapies and antioxidants demonstrate a trend toward some clinical efficacy. Researchers have yet to determine how to integrate these CAM modalities into the general treatment paradigm of allergic rhinitis.