O-35 Complementary and Alternative Medicine views and practices for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19 symptoms. A Cross Sectional Analysis in East Trinidad, 2022.
Author(s):
SD Thompson , A Bridgelal-Gonzales
Year of Presentation:
2024
Objective: To assess the attitudes and practices of patients with COVID-19 illness on the use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in the treatment of the COVID-19
Methods: A cross sectional study was designed using an interviewer-administered survey on the use of CAM for the treatment of COVID-19. A convenience sampling was conducted on COVID-19 positive patients who accessed medical care from the primary and tertiary care units of the Eastern Regional Health Authority (ERHA) for the year 2022. Data was collected on demography, comorbidities, types of CAM used, COVID-19 symptoms and attitude to vaccination. Data analysis conducted with Microsoft® Excel® version 2108 and SPSS® version 27.
Results: Of the 200 respondents, the majority (86.5%) used CAM and 72.1% were vaccinated against COVID-19. The commonly used types of CAM were ginger (66.7%) and garlic (45%) and plants (52.9%) such as moringa, neem and fever grass. Less commonly (< 2%) used herbs including cloves and cinnamon and aromatherapy steams involving a variation of oils such as peppermint, eucalyptus or shilling. More than half of the participants believed that CAM helped to prevent/improve their COVID-19 symptoms (56.9%), that CAM helped to shorten the duration of their viral symptoms (50.8 %) and that CAM aided in boosting their immune systems (67.3 %).
Conclusion: The majority of the study population trusted in the use of CAM as a form of treatment for symptoms of COVID-19 illness. Further investigations in to the efficacy of CAM and associated risks of their use and outcome are required.