01a Introducing anthroposophic medicine
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Publication Anthroposophic Medicine, an Introduction; and a Book Review of Anthroposophy and Science(2017-08) Bartelme, Ricardo R.Anthroposophic medicine (AM) is a complex, individualized, multimodal, and integrative system of medicine and an art of healing based on both natural science and the transformed, spiritual science as found in Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophy. A careful and comprehensive study of anthroposophy and AM, as provided in Anthroposophy and Science: An Introduction, can be a new way to see science and the legitimacy of the new direction provided by anthroposophy. The clinical, scientific application of anthroposophy to the field of medicine is AM with its multidimensional diagnostic approach, its various natural remedies, and novel nonpharmacological modalities. These are all aimed at a direction of complete healing of the ill person in their 4-fold nature. Moreover, anthroposophy and AM may provide the approach and direction to begin to truly integrate the field of integrative medicine so that it is both scientific and fully human.Publication Anthroposophic Medicine: A Short Monograph and Narrative Review—Foundations, Essential Characteristics, Scientific Basis, Safety, Effectiveness and Misconceptions(2020) Bartelme, Ricardo R.Abstract
Introduction: Anthroposophic medicine is a form of integrative medicine that originated in Europe but is not well known in the US. It is comprehensive and heterogenous in scope and remains provocative and controversial in many academic circles. Assessment of the nature and potential contribution of anthroposophic medicine to whole person care and global health seems appropriate.
Methods: Because of the heterogenous and multifaceted character of anthroposophic medicine, a narrative review format was chosen. A Health Technology Assessment of anthroposophic medicine in 2006 was reviewed and used as a starting point. A Medline search from 2006 to July 2020 was performed using various search terms and restricted to English. Books, articles, reviews and websites were assessed for clinical relevance and interest to the general reader. Abstracts of German language articles were reviewed when available. Reference lists of articles and the author’s personal references were also consulted.
Results: The literature on anthroposophic medicine is vast, providing new ways of thinking, a holistic view of the world, and many integrating concepts useful in medicine. In the last 20 years there has been a growing research base and implementation of many anthroposophical concepts in the integrated care of patients. Books and articles relevant to describing the foundations, scientific status, safety, effectiveness and criticisms of anthroposophic medicine are discussed.
Discussion: An objective and comprehensive analysis of anthroposophic medicine finds it provocative, stimulating and
potentially fruitful as an integrative system for whole person care, including under-recognized life processes and psychospiritual aspects of human beings. It has a legitimate, new type of scientific status as well as documented safety and effectiveness in some areas of its multimodal approach. Criticisms and controversies of anthroposophic medicine are often a result of lack of familiarity with its methods and approach and/or come from historically fixed ideas of what constitutes legitimate science.
Keywords anthroposophic medicine, scientific status, whole person care, integrative medicineCitation: Bartelme, R. R. (2020). Anthroposophic Medicine: A Short Monograph and Narrative Review—Foundations, Essential Characteristics, Scientific Basis, Safety, Effectiveness and Misconceptions. Global Advances in Health and Medicine, 9, 2164956120973634. https://doi.org/10.1177/2164956120973634
