Stroke Patients in Taiwan

Copyright © 2012 Chien-Chang Liao et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background. The use of complementary and alternative medicine in critical illness is increasing worldwide. This study investigates how traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is used in stroke patients. Methods. Using Taiwan National Health Insurance reimbursement claims, we compared the annual use of TCM between stroke patients and general population, identifying 15,330 patients with a new onset of stroke in 2000–2009. The sociodemographic status andmedical comorbidities between stroke patients receiving TCM services and those without using the service were compared. Results. The use of TCM was higher in stroke patients than in the general population, 27.9 % versus 25.4 % in 2000 and 32.7 % versus 27.8 % in 2009, respectively, and grew consistently from 2000 to 2009. Among stroke patients, women, younger patients, white-collar employees, higher-income residents, and thos