[The placebo effect: is the wish father to the thought?].


Author: de Craen AJ.

Affiliation: Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum, afd. Ouderengeneeskunde, Leiden.
Conference/Journal: Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 
Date published: 2014
Other:
 Volume ID: 158   ,  Pages: A7466   ,  Special Notes: [Article in Dutch]   ,  Word Count: 84  
    

The placebo effect remains an interesting topic for research. Recently, a systematic review estimated the percentage of responders after various placebo interventions in studies assessing prophylactic treatment for migraine. The authors report that after oral, pharmacologic placebos, 22% of patients reported an attack frequency reduction of > 50% and that after sham acupuncture, this percentage was 38%. In this commentary the methodological issues of the paper are discussed, and the conclusion is that in research into placebo effects the wish might be father to the thought.

PMID: 25027219