A systematic review on the effect of Islamic complementary and alternative medicine in disease and symptom management

Abstract

Islamic Complementary and Alternative Medicine (ICAM) has gained increasing attention as a therapeutic option for various health conditions. Although CAM has been extensively covered in previous systematic reviews, there remains a scarcity of literature focusing on therapies that incorporate or originate from Islamic principles. Therefore, this systematic review aims to describe the clinical benefits of ICAM interventions in managing various diseases across both hospital and community settings. A comprehensive search across Scopus, Wiley, ScienceDirect, and Cochrane databases initially identified 639 articles, with 45 studies ultimately included after screening. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal checklists for randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental studies were utilized to assess the quality of the evidence. The vast majority of studies (84.4%) were conducted in Iran, with the remainder originating from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. Regarding the types of interventions, ICAM primarily utilized herbal therapies (66.7%), followed by physical therapies such as acupressure and massage (8.8%), dietary modifications (6.6%), and aromatherapy (6.6%). The most frequently targeted conditions included hypoactive sexual desire disorder, premenstrual syndrome, dysmenorrhea, pain, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D), depression, and anxiety. The findings demonstrated positive effects across various health conditions, although the benefits were not entirely consistent across all interventions. Regarding methodological quality, the risk of bias was generally low, though several studies lacked clarity regarding blinding and allocation concealment. Overall, ICAM shows promise in addressing a wide range of health conditions, particularly through herbal and lifestyle-based interventions. However, further rigorous trials are warranted to strengthen the evidence base and ensure both the safety and efficacy in practice.

Keywords: Anxiety, complementary therapies, dysmenorrhea, herbal medicine, Islam, pain management, premenstrual syndrome, randomized controlled trials, systematic reviews