Prevalence of Complementary Medicine Use in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

Introduction: The objective of this systematic review was to determine the global prevalence of complementary medicine (CM) use among children and adolescents.

Method: Seven databases and the reference lists of included studies were searched for pertinent observational studies. Studies were limited to those published in English from July 1, 2013. Included studies were appraised using the JBI checklist for prevalence studies.

Results: Twenty studies were eligible for inclusion (385,527 participants). Most studies were assessed as having low risk of bias. Meta-analyses revealed a 23.0% (95% confidence interval, 0.226-0.234; 17 studies) short-term (≤ 12 month) prevalence and a 77.7% (95% confidence interval, 0.760-0.794; six studies) lifetime prevalence of CM use in children and adolescents. Differences in CM use were evident across countries and regions.

Discussion: The findings of this review indicate that the use of CM in children and adolescents is high and widespread and may be increasing.