Have you ever wondered how often patients use complementary medicine approaches for medical treatment? Well, in 2012 the National Health Interview Survey found that 30% of US adults and approximately 12% of children used complementary medicine treatment options. Using this same survey, the report below also shows that more than half of Americans aged 18 years or older (which is 125 million people) had a musculoskeletal pain disorder and more than 40% of these patients used a complementary health approach for treatment. In this report, “musculoskeletal pain disorders included lower back pain, sciatica, neck pain, joint pain or related conditions, arthritic conditions, and other musculoskeletal pain disorders not included in any of the previous categories.”
Clarke TC, Nahin RL, Barnes PM, Stussman BJ. Use of complementary health approaches for musculoskeletal pain disorders among adults: United States, 2012. National health statistics reports; no 98. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2016.