Complementary, alternative and integrative medicine for autism: an umbrella review and online platform
The use of complementary, alternative and integrative medicine (CAIM) is highly prevalent among autistic individuals, with up to 90% reporting having used CAIM at least once in their lifetime. However, the evidence base for the effects of CAIM for autism remains uncertain. Here, to fill this gap, we conducted an umbrella review of meta-analyses exploring the effects of CAIM in autism across the lifespan and developed a web platform to disseminate the generated results. Five databases were searched (up to 31 December 2023) for systematic reviews with meta-analyses exploring the effects of CAIM in autism. Independent pairs of investigators identified eligible papers and extracted relevant data. Included meta-analyses were reestimated using a consistent statistical approach, and their methodological quality was assessed with AMSTAR-2. The certainty of evidence generated by each meta-analysis was appraised using an algorithmic version of the GRADE framework. This process led to the identification of 53 meta-analytic reports, enabling us to conduct 248 meta-analyses exploring the effects of 19 CAIMs in autism. We found no high-quality evidence to support the efficacy of any CAIM for core or associated symptoms of autism. Although several CAIMs showed promising results, they were supported by very low-quality evidence. The safety of CAIMs has rarely been evaluated, making it a crucial area for future research. To support evidence-based consideration of CAIM interventions for autism, we developed an interactive platform that facilitates access to and interpretation of the present results ( https://ebiact-database.com ).
Authors
- Gloria Porcu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9871-4129)
- Micheal Sandbank (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6562-8267)
- Samuele Cortese (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5877-8075)
- Lucie Jurek (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7568-568X)
- Richard Delorme (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5614-3663)
- Mikaïl Nourredine (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0952-0091)
- Serge Caparos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6922-4449)
- Joaquim Raduà (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1240-5438)
- Paolo Fusar‐Poli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3582-6788)
- Klara Kovarski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3926-5087)
- Corentin J. Gosling (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1133-9344)
- Ariane Cartigny
- Marco Solmi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4877-7233)
- Laure Boisseleau
- Elisa Murgia
Institutions
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- University of Ottawa (CA)
- Institut Pasteur (FR)
- King's College London (GB)
- Institut Universitaire de France (FR)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (GB)
- Université Paris Cité (FR)
- University of Pavia (IT)
- Ottawa Hospital (CA)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Université Paris Nanterre (FR)
- NYU Langone Health (US)
- Sorbonne Paris Cité (FR)
- Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (FR)
- Hospices Civils de Lyon (FR)
- Laboratoire de Psychologie du Développement et de L’Education de l’enfant (FR)
- Hôpital Robert-Debré (FR)
- Centre Hospitalier Le Vinatier (FR)
- Consorci Institut D'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi I Sunyer (ES)
- University of Southampton (GB)
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (CA)
- Université Paris 8 (FR)
- University of Bari Aldo Moro (IT)
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (DE)
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Human Behaviour
- Published
- 2025-08-28
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-025-02256-9
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.72
Funders
- National Institute for Health and Care Research
- Department of Health and Social Care
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Research Executive Agency