Versicherungsmedizin. 1994 Oct; 46(5): 171-4.

[Life threatening complications in alternative medicine--problems in patient education]

Zimmer G, Miltner E, Mattern R.

Institut für Rechtsmedizin, Univ. Heidelberg.

The risk of treatment offered by nonmedical practitioners are demonstrated with six casuistic expertise reports. In four cases the treatment had a lethal outcome, because the underlying illnesses had been underestimated or had not been diagnosed. To the authors opinion a patient's consent in a treatment by nonmedical practitioners is inoperative, because a nonmedical practitioner is on principle unable to inform a patient regularly because of his lack of medical knowledge.