Aims & Scope
International Journal of Complementary Medicine (IJCO) publishes rigorous, evidence-based research on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) modalities, their clinical efficacy, safety profiles, mechanisms of action, and integration into conventional healthcare systems. We prioritize studies that advance scientific understanding of CAM therapies through controlled trials, systematic reviews, and mechanistic investigations.
Core Research Domains
Traditional Medicine Systems
- Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) including acupuncture, acupressure, and herbal formulations
- Ayurvedic medicine: diagnostic approaches, therapeutic interventions, and pharmacological studies
- Indigenous and ethnomedicine practices with documented therapeutic applications
- Comparative effectiveness studies between traditional and conventional treatments
- Standardization and quality control of traditional medicine products
Natural Products & Botanical Medicine
- Herbal medicine: phytochemical analysis, pharmacokinetics, and clinical efficacy
- Dietary supplements and nutraceuticals: safety, bioavailability, and therapeutic effects
- Essential oils and aromatherapy: mechanisms and clinical applications
- Probiotics and gut microbiome interventions in health and disease
- Drug-herb interactions and safety profiles
Mind-Body Interventions
- Meditation and mindfulness-based interventions: neurobiological mechanisms and clinical outcomes
- Yoga therapy: biomechanical, physiological, and psychological effects
- Tai Chi and Qigong: balance, fall prevention, and chronic disease management
- Biofeedback and neurofeedback applications
- Hypnotherapy and guided imagery for pain and symptom management
Manual & Physical Therapies
- Chiropractic care: spinal manipulation techniques and musculoskeletal outcomes
- Massage therapy: therapeutic mechanisms and clinical applications
- Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT)
- Reflexology and pressure-point therapies
- Craniosacral therapy and myofascial release techniques
Secondary Focus Areas
Integrative Medicine Approaches
Studies examining the integration of CAM with conventional medicine in clinical settings, including patient outcomes, healthcare utilization, cost-effectiveness analyses, and interprofessional collaboration models. Research on integrative oncology, pain management, and chronic disease care.
Energy & Biofield Therapies
Reiki, therapeutic touch, healing touch, and other biofield modalities with rigorous study designs. Research must include objective outcome measures, appropriate controls, and transparent reporting of methods. Mechanistic studies exploring proposed energy-based healing mechanisms.
Sensory-Based Therapies
Music therapy, sound therapy, light therapy, and color therapy applications in clinical populations. Studies examining neurophysiological responses, psychological outcomes, and therapeutic protocols. Research on sensory integration approaches for developmental and neurological conditions.
Specialized CAM Applications
Homeopathy with rigorous methodology, hydrotherapy and aquatic therapy interventions, cupping therapy and traditional bloodletting practices, magnetic therapy and electromagnetic field applications. All studies must meet high standards of scientific rigor and reporting.
Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine
Nutrition therapy and functional medicine approaches, health coaching and behavior change interventions, preventive medicine strategies using CAM modalities. Research on diet-disease relationships and nutritional interventions for chronic conditions.
CAM in Special Populations
Pediatric CAM applications with safety considerations, geriatric complementary medicine approaches, women's health and men's health CAM interventions, palliative care and end-of-life CAM applications, mental health and psychiatric CAM therapies.
Emerging Research Areas
Digital Health & CAM Technologies
Mobile health applications for CAM delivery, telemedicine and virtual CAM consultations, wearable devices for monitoring CAM interventions, artificial intelligence applications in personalized CAM treatment planning, virtual reality and augmented reality CAM therapies.
Precision & Personalized CAM
Genomic and metabolomic approaches to individualized CAM treatments, pharmacogenomics of herbal medicines, biomarker-guided CAM therapy selection, systems biology approaches to understanding CAM mechanisms, personalized nutrition and lifestyle interventions.
CAM Policy & Healthcare Systems
Health policy analysis related to CAM integration, regulatory frameworks for CAM products and practitioners, health economics and cost-effectiveness of CAM interventions, public health implications of CAM utilization, ethical and legal considerations in CAM practice.
CAM Education & Training
Educational interventions for healthcare professionals in CAM, curriculum development for integrative medicine programs, competency assessment in CAM modalities, patient education and health literacy in CAM, interprofessional education in integrative healthcare.
Article Types & Editorial Priorities
Expedited Review (2-3 weeks to first decision)
Regular Review Timeline (4-6 weeks to first decision)
Requires Exceptional Scientific Merit
Editorial Standards & Requirements
Reporting Guidelines
- CONSORT for randomized controlled trials
- CONSORT Extension for Non-Pharmacologic Treatments
- STRICTA for acupuncture interventions
- PRISMA for systematic reviews and meta-analyses
- STROBE for observational studies
- CARE for case reports (when applicable)
- SPIRIT for clinical trial protocols
Data & Transparency
- Raw data deposition in public repositories encouraged
- Clinical trial registration required (ClinicalTrials.gov, ISRCTN, etc.)
- Study protocols must be available upon request
- Statistical analysis plans should be pre-specified
- Conflicts of interest must be fully disclosed
- Funding sources must be transparently reported
Ethics & Compliance
- IRB/Ethics committee approval required for human studies
- Informed consent documentation mandatory
- IACUC approval required for animal studies
- Adherence to Declaration of Helsinki principles
- Patient privacy and confidentiality protection (HIPAA compliance)
- Vulnerable population protections when applicable
Preprint & Publication Policy
- Preprints on recognized servers accepted (arXiv, medRxiv, bioRxiv)
- Preprint DOI must be disclosed at submission
- No prior publication in peer-reviewed journals
- Conference abstracts do not preclude submission
- Simultaneous submission to other journals prohibited
- Post-publication updates allowed for data corrections
