Varieties of silence - a mixed-methods study exploring reasons and justifications for nondisclosure of the use of complementary therapies to physicians in Finland.

Background: In health care, two in three users of complementary therapies (CT) stay silent about their CT use. Disclosure of CT use to physicians is important for patient safety, participation, and shared decision-making. Common reasons for CT nondisclosure include patients´ expectations of physicians' unaccepting response to disclosure, physicians not asking, and patients believing it is unnecessary.