Chelation Therapy

On Feb 1, our Cleveland TV station had a program about University Hospitals in Cleveland had the Chief of Cardiology announce that they are starting a study on chelation therapy for heart attack patients removing plaque out of arteries with EDTA infusion.  This treatment has been around for some time but lacked the approval of the medical field. The NIH has backed up this study at UH.  What stance does CCF take on this adventure of alternative medicine.

[Cleveland Clinic]

dee gee,

Thanks for the post.

There has been no randomized large trial to show benefit of chelation therapy in cardiac disease.  The randomized

The fact that the NIH has funded this study is a step in proving the benefit or lack of benefit of the therapy.  It does not necessarily mean that th NIH backs the hypothesis of the study but feels that it merits evaluation.

The expenditures for the use of alternative therapies equals that of conventional therapies in our society.  While I have no doubt that some of those therapies work, many do not and may have some harm. It is dissapointing that those thrapies do not recieve the same scrutiny as conventional therapies.  Hopefully, the move to fund these trials will add evidence that will allow us to incorporate the therapies that work and eliminate those that have no or detrimental benefit.

I do not currently recommend chelation therapy until I see proven benefit and safety in my patients.  

hope thats a start.