Frequency of Unconventional Treatment Use in Psychiatric Patients

This study was conducted to determine the frequency of unconventional treatment use by psychiatric patients in Tehran.

In this cross-sectional study, 404 patients diagnosed with psychiatric disorders were studied. The participants responded to a checklist and filled a questionnaire about their demographic characteristics.

Simultaneous use of conventional and unconventional treatment was seen in 39.4% of patients, and among them, herbal therapy was the most common type (20.5%). No relationship was observed between patient satisfaction and the use of such treatment (p=0.347).

There is a high frequency of unconventional treatment use in psychiatric patients. However, the exact reasons for patients’ tendency towards such approach and also advantages and disadvantages of its application need more investigation.