Midwives' use of complementary/alternative treatments.

Background: in recent years, several surveys have suggested that many midwives use some form of complementary/alternative therapy (CAT), often without the knowledge of obstetricians.

Objective: to systematically review all surveys of CAT use by midwives.

Search Strategy: six electronic databases were searched using text terms and MeSH for CAT and midwifery.

Selection Criteria: surveys were included if they reported quantitative data on the prevalence of CAT use by midwives.

Data Collection And Analysis: full-text articles of all relevant surveys were obtained. Data were extracted according to pre-defined criteria.

Main Results: 19 surveys met the inclusion criteria. Most were recent and from the USA. Prevalence data varied but were usually high, often close to 100%. Much use of CATs does not seem to be supported by strong evidence for efficacy.

Conclusion: most midwives seem to use CATs. As not all CATs are without risks, the issue should be debated openly.