TABLE 2.
Comparison of Selected Characteristics of Male Patients With Duchenne or Becker Muscular Dystrophy by Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use, Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance, Tracking, and Research Network
| Characteristic | Nonusers (n = 90) | Any CAM (n = 272) | CAM Domains |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biologically Based Practices (n = 142) | Manipulative and Body-Based Practices (n = 106) | Mind-Body Medicine (n = 221) | |||
| Disease Phenotype* | |||||
| Early onset | 69 (76.7) | 232 (85.6) | 123 (87.2) | 92 (87.6) | 192 (87.3) |
| Late onset | 21 (23.3) | 39 (14.4) | 18 (12.8) | 13 (12.4) | 28 (12.7) |
| Number of years since diagnosis | 9.4 ± 5.7 | 9.9 ± 5.7 | 10.0 ± 5.9 | 10.0 ± 5.8 | 10.0 ± 5.6 |
| Used wheel chair† | |||||
| Yes | 52 (59.8) | 201 (73.9) | 105 (73.9) | 77 (72.6) | 169 (76.5) |
| No | 35 (40.2) | 71 (26.1) | 37 (26.1) | 29 (27.4) | 52 (23.5) |
| Age first used wheel chair (yr) | 9.9 ± 2.9 | 9.3 ± 2.6 | 9.1 ± 2.4 | 9.2 ± 2.4 | 9.5 ± 2.7 |
| Used NIPPVD | |||||
| Yes | 20 (23.0) | 70 (25.9) | 37 (26.4) | 29 (27.6) | 60 (27.4) |
| No | 67 (77.0) | 200 (74.1) | 103 (73.6) | 76 (72.4) | 159 (72.6) |
| Age first used NIPPVD (yr) | 16.1 ± 3.4 | 15.0 ± 3.3 | 14.5 ± 3.4 | 15.5 ± 3.3 | 14.9 ± 3.2 |
| Vital status at interview | |||||
| Living | 79 (87.8) | 251 (92.3) | 133 (93.7) | 97 (91.5) | 204 (92.3) |
| Deceased | 11 (11.2) | 21 (7.7) | 9 (6.3) | 9 (8.5) | 17 (7.7) |
| CAM Domains |
CAM Therapies |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mind-Body (Excluding Prayer and/or Blessing Only) (n = 160) | Whole Medical Systems (n = 25) | Special Diet (n = 78) | Massage (n = 78) | Aquatherapy (n = 136) |
| 143 (89.4) | 20 (83.3) | 66 (84.6) | 67 (85.9) | 121 (89.0) |
| 17 (10.6) | 4 (16.7) | 12 (15.4) | 11 (14.1) | 15 (11.0) |
| 10.0 ± 5.7 | 9.7 ± 5.5 | 10.0 ± 5.8 | 10.3 ± 5.7 | 9.9 ± 5.7 |
| 125 (78.1) | 19 (76.0) | 56 (71.8) | 62 (79.5) | 107 (78.7) |
| 35 (21.9) | 6 (24.0) | 22 (28.2) | 16 (20.5) | 29 (21.3) |
| 9.6 ± 2.9 | 9.6 ± 2.2 | 9.2 ± 2.7 | 9.4 ± 2.6 | 9.5 ± 2.9 |
| 44 (27.9) | 5 (20.0) | 22 (28.6) | 19 (24.7) | 36 (26.9) |
| 114 (72.2) | 20 (80.0) | 55 (71.4) | 58 (75.3) | 98 (73.1) |
| 14.6 ± 3.3 | 13.8 ± 2.4 | 14.7 ± 3.7 | 15.9 ± 3.0 | 14.4 ± 3.2 |
| 147 (91.9) | 24 (96.0) | 74 (94.9) | 71 (91.0) | 124 (91.2) |
| 13 (8.1) | 1 (4.0) | 4 (5.1) | 7 (9.0) | 12 (8.8) |
Abbreviations:
CAM = Complementary and alternative medicine
NIPPVD = Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation devices
Categorical variables were presented as N (%) and analyzed by the chi-square test or Fisher exact test; continuous variables were presented as mean ± standard deviation and analyzed by the t test. Nonusers were the comparison group. Because of missing values, the total for some categories may not match; because of rounding, percentages may not total 100.
Significant associations between disease phenotype and use of any CAM (P < 0.05), biologically based practices (P < 0.05), manipulative and body-based practices (P < 0.05), mind-body medicine (with or without prayer and/or blessings only) (P < 0.05), and aquatherapy (P < 0.05).
Significant associations between wheel chair use and use of any CAM (P < 0.05), biologically based practices (P < 0.05), mind-body medicine (with or without prayer and/or blessings only) (P < 0.01), massage (P < 0.01), and aquatherapy (P < 0.01).