[The risks of complementary therapy methods]

Complementary treatments are currently more popular than ever-not least because they are perceived to be innocuous. This perception is, however, almost certainly wrong. Serious complications are being reported with worrying regularity, as is shown by the present article using acupuncture and herbal remedies as examples. The true incidence of such complications is, for the most part, unknown. Only when reliable figures have been provided by systematic investigation will it be possible to undertake a risk-benefit analysis. It follows that a study of this problem is now a matter of urgency.