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Edzard Ernst is the first Professor of Complementary Medicine in the United Kingdom.
In 1993, Ernst left his chair in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) at the University of Vienna to set up the department of Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter. He became director of complementary medicine of the Peninsula Medical School (PMS) in 2002. He is the first occupant of the Laing chair in Complementary Medicine. He was born and trained in Germany — Ernst began his medical career at a homeopathic hospital in Munich[1] — and since 1999 has been a British citizen.
Ernst is the editor-in-chief of two medical journals, Perfusion and Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies[2]. Ernst once contributed a regular column to the Guardian newspaper, frequently reviewing news stories about complementary medicine from an evidence-based perspective.citation needed
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Work in complementary medicine
The world's first professor of complementary medicine,[3] Ernst researches complementary medicine with an emphasis on efficacy and safety. His research mainly surveys, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses of clinical trials; the institute has not performed a clinical trial for some time due to budget constraints.[3] He has over 700 papers published in scientific journals.[1]
Ernst's department at Exeter defines complementary medicine as "diagnosis, treatment and/or prevention which complements mainstream medicine by contributing to a common whole, by satisfying a demand not met by orthodoxy or by diversifying the conceptual frameworks of medicine."[4]
Ernst asserts that, in Germany and Austria, complementary techniques are mostly practiced by qualified physicians, whereas in the UK they are mainly practiced by others. Ernst also argues that the term "Complementary and Alternative Medicine" ("CAM") is an almost nonsensical umbrella term, and that distinctions between its modalities must be made.[5]
Since his research began on alternative modalities, Ernst has become "the scourge of alternative medicine" for publishing critical research.[3] In 2008 publication in the British Journal of General Practice, Ernst's listed treatments that "demonstrably generate more good than harm" was limited to St John's wort for depression; hawthorn for congestive heart failure; guar gum for diabetes; acupuncture for nausea and osteoarthritis; aromatherapy as a palliative treatment for cancer; hypnosis for labour pain; and massage, music therapy, and relaxation therapy for anxiety and insomnia.[3]
In 2008, Ernst and Simon Singh published Trick or Treatment? Alternative Medicine on Trial. The authors challenged Charles, Prince of Wales, to whom the book is dedicated, and the Foundation for Integrated Health on alleged misrepresentation of "scientific evidence about therapies such as homoeopathy, acupuncture and reflexology".[6] Singh and Ernst assert that Britain spends £500 million each year on unproven or disproven alternative therapies.[7]
In a May 1995 Annals of Internal Medicine publication, Ernst detailed the Nazi "cleansing" of the University of Vienna medical faculty that allowed the "medical atrocities" of Nazi human experimentation.[8]
In 2008, Ernst sent an open letter urging the Royal Pharmaceutical Society to crack down on high street chemists that sell homeopathic remedies without warning of the evidence that they have no effect at all on human beings. According to Ernst, this disinformation would be a violation of their ethical code:
- "My plea is simply for honesty. Let people buy what they want, but tell them the truth about what they are buying. These treatments are biologically implausible and the clinical tests have shown they don't do anything at all in human beings. The argument that this information is not relevant or important for customers is quite simply ridiculous."[9]
Other significant posts
Ernst is a member of the 'Medicines Commission' of the British Medicines Control Agency (now part of the MHRA) which determines which substances may be introduced and promoted as medicine.[10] He also sits on the 'Scientific Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products' of the 'Irish Medicines Board'.citation needed He is an external examiner for several university medical schools in several countries.citation needed
Books
- Trick or Treatment? Alternative Medicine on Trial. Transworld Publisher 2008. ISBN 978-0-59-30612-99
- The Oxford Handbook of Complementary Medicine. Oxford University Press 2008. ISBN 978-0-19-920677-3
- Complementary Therapies for Pain Management. An Evidence-Based Approach. Elsevier Science 2007. ISBN 978-0-7234-3400-9
- The Desktop Guide to Complementary and Alternative Medicine. An evidence based approach. Elsevier Science 2006
- Homoeopathy: A Critical Appraisal. 1998. ISBN 0-7506-3564-9 "Professional reference text on homoeopathy is a critical evaluation of the discipline, reviewing the known facts and defining the knowledge gaps. It offers a reliable analysis of the uses of traditional homoeopathic remedies. Illustrated. For medical and professional homoeopaths, students, general practitioners, and health care professionals." Amazon.
References
- ^ a b "Interview: Edzard Ernst".
- ^ Enabling Cookies: Pharmaceutical Press Journals
- ^ a b c d "Complementary therapies: The big con? - The Independent".
- ^ Ernst et al British General Practitioner 1995; 45:506
- ^ http://www.harcourt-international.com/ernst/interview.cfm Interview: Harcourt International
- ^ "Prince of Wales's guide to alternative medicine ‘inaccurate’ - Times Online".
- ^ "The last rites for alternative medicine? - Telegraph".
- ^ Ernst E (May 1995). "A leading medical school seriously damaged: Vienna 1938". Ann. Intern. Med. 122 (10): 789–92. PMID 7717602.
- ^ Ian Sample (2008-07-21). "Pharmacists urged to 'tell the truth' about homeopathic remedies", The Guardian. Retrieved on 2008-07-21.
- ^ http://www.mhra.gov.uk/Committees/Medicinesadvisorybodies/MedicinesCommission/Members/CON002258
- House of Lords: Select Committee on Science and Technology Sixth Report The committee visited the Department at Exeter in 2000.
- student BMJ interview
- Biographical note on the authors of The Desktop Guide to Complementary and Alternative Medicine. An evidence based approach. Elsevier Science 2006
External links
- PMS staff page
- Official FACT website at University of Exeter
- Summary of the department's most important findings eg Homeopathy doesn't work, St John's Wort does.
- Publication lists for the department
- Google scholar: List of publications
- House of Lords Science and Technology - Sixth Report on Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Ernst testified and his department was visited.
- Q&A with Ernst in The International Review of Patient Care
- "Interview with Professor Edzard Ernst, Department of Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, University of Exeter" (January 2004). Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies 8 (1): 32-34. doi:.
- Website for Trick or Treatment? book
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 2 October 2008, at 14:08.
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