Danell, JAB; Danell, R, Spiritualised medicine? A bibliometric study of complementary and alternative medicine (Article, English) PROCEEDINGS OF ISSI 2007: 11TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE ISSI, VOLS I AND II. 2007. p.154-161

[Eugene Garfield]

Email: jenny-ann.brodin at soc.umu.se

Author(s): Danell, JAB (Danell, Jenny-Ann Brodin); Danell, R (Danell, 
Rickard) 

Title: Spiritualised medicine? A bibliometric study of complementary and 
alternative medicine
 
Editor(s): TorresSalinas, D; Moed, HF 

Source: PROCEEDINGS OF ISSI 2007: 11TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE 
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR SCIENTOMETRICS AND INFORMETRICS, VOLS I AND II 
154-161, 2007 

Language: English 
Document Type: Article 

Cited Reference Count: 18 

Conference Title: 11th International Conference of the International-
Society-for-Scientrometrics-and-Informetrics 

Conference Date: JUN 25-27, 2007 

Conference Location: Madrid, SPAIN 

Conference Sponsors: Int Soc Scientrometr & Informetr, CSIC, Minist Educ & 
Ciencia, FECYT, Comunidad Madrid, Eugene Garfield Fdn, Thomson Sci, 
Elsevier, Journal Informetr, Scopus, Ayuntamiento Madrid, Sci Metrix, Univ 
Carlos III Madrid 

Author Keywords: complementary and alternative medicine; bibliometrics; 
publication behaviour; scientific journals 

KeyWords Plus: UNITED-STATES; PREVALENCE 

Abstract: Recent research has shown that complementary and alternative 
therapies (CAM) are increasingly popular in the western world. As a 
consequence, CAM is becoming more integrated into conventional medical 
practices. However, this could be seen as a paradox since most CAM relies 
on spiritual and religious assumptions, sometimes at odds with western 
scientific traditions. The purpose of this paper is to study the 
development of research concerned with CAM. To define and retrieve 
publications on complementary and alternative therapies we use MEDLINE 
Medical Subject Heading (MeSH). In the retrieval process we use all 
entries under category complementary therapies, except traditional 
medicine since this does not denote a specific therapeutic tradition. In 
the article we analyse general patterns concerning the development of 
research activity in different CAM traditions. In the article we conclude 
that the publication activity in CAM increases rapidly, and that the 
changing growth rate of CAM articles is not due to a general expansion of 
Medline. We also find that the character of CAM articles has changed, 
especially at the beginning of the 1990(th), towards more clinical 
oriented research. 

Addresses: Umea Univ, Dept Sociol, Umea, SE-90187 Sweden. 

Publisher Name: INT SOC SCIENTOMETRICS & INFORMETRICS-ISSI 

Publisher Address: KATHOLIEKE UNIV LEUVEN, FACULTEIT E T E W, DEKENSTRAAT 
2, LEUVEN, B-3000, BELGIUM 

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