Complementary and alternative treatment use for autism spectrum disorders

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have rapidly become one of the more frequent reasons for seeking diagnosis and treatment. Depending on health care services available, the standard treatment options are often limited; many parents turn to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) approaches. CAM treatments and some of the factors that may contribute to parents’ decisions to use CAM treatments were examined using a web-based survey. Four general factors emerges as influencing the decision-making processes of parents/caregivers – severity, child acceptance of the treatment, marital status, and educational level. Notably, research support did not emerge as contributing to variance for CAM use.