Table 1
Breakdown of RCTs by CAM Modality
| Modality/Intervention | No. of RCTs | Total No. of Participants | Ref. | No. of Publications with Level I/II Evidence (AAN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alternative Medical System | ||||
| Traditional Chinese medicine | 1 | 4 | 34 | 0 |
| Mind–Body Interventions | ||||
| Dance therapy | 2 | 43 | 18,19 | 1 |
| Music therapy | 3 | 85 | 15–17 | 2 |
| Exercise/physical therapy based | 7 | 303 | 24–30 | 6 |
| Nutraceuticals/Dietary Supplementation | ||||
| Aminooxyacetic acid | 1 | 7 | 44 | 1 |
| Cannabinoids | 3 | 88 | 47–49 | 3 |
| CoQ10 | 2 | 783 | 42,43 | 2 |
| Creatine | 4 | 632 | 51–54 | 2 |
| d-alpha-tocopherol | 1 | 73 | 41 | 1 |
| Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) | 4 | 748 | 56–59 | 4 |
| Idebenone | 1 | 100 | 41 | 1 |
| Levocarnitine | 2 | 33 | 60,61 | 1 |
| Triheptanoin | 1 | 23 | 59 | 0 |
| Dietary changes | 5 | 288 | 65–69 | 0 |
[i] Note: All CAM RCTs identified through the literature search are identified in this table. All studies were classified as different levels of evidence by AAN guidelines.8 The number of publications with levels I/II evidence are denoted in the last column. There are multiple CAM modalities that did not have any RTCs for their efficacy in HD. The following were specifically searched for without any currently published human RTCs: (1) Alternative Medical System (Ayurvedic medicine, aromatherapy, traditional healers, biofeedback, chelation therapy), (2) Mind–body interventions (acupuncture, reiki, tai chi, qi gong, guided imagery), and (3) Nutraceuticals/dietary supplementation (epigallo and glutamate).
Abbreviations: AAN, American Academy of Neurology; CAM, Complementary and Alternative Medicine; EPA, Eicosapentaenoic Acid; RCTs, Randomized controlled trial.