Harnessing the placebo effect: a promising method for curbing the opioid crisis?

Bernstein, Michael H.; Magill, Molly; Beaudoin, Francesca L.; Becker, Sara J.; Rich, Josiah D.

doi:10.1111/add.14385

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…It is hypothesised that, by harnessing placebo effects for certain conditions, practitioners may help to reduce over-prescribing and unwanted side effects associated with commonly administered medications (including painkillers and antidepressants); some researchers suggest that transparently prescribed placebos may play a promising part in tackling the opioid crisis. 24,43 Notwithstanding the potential value of this innovative research program for patients, at least three concerns must be addressed before OLPs can become routine in clinical care. First, future methodologically robust research into OLPs must identify the specific practitioner, patient and treatment factors that are relevant to eliciting placebo effects.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of placebos in family medicine: Implications of evidence and ethics for general practitioners

Blease¹

2019

Aust J Gen Pract

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Charlotte R Blease Background Placebo use is prevalent in primary care. A wealth of discourse on the ethical use of placebos in clinical contexts invariably assumes that placebos oblige practitioners to peddle in deception. However, the recent surge in empirical findings within the field of 'placebo studies' provides a very different perspective: namely, that placebos may yet prove to be both effective and ethical. Objective The aim of this article is to synthesise state-of-the-art scientific and bioethical research to provide up-to-date recommendations on placebo use for general practitioners. Discussion After disambiguating placebo concepts, this article outlines experimental studies into placebo effects and explores the ethical and evidence-based arguments for prescribing placebos. Evaluating the latest research into 'open-label placebos', it can be surmised that there are not yet persuasive grounds to incorporate these treatments into routine clinical care. Notwithstanding, the quality of physician interactions may go some way to harnessing remedial placebo effects among patients.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of placebos in family medicine: Implications of evidence and ethics for general practitioners

Blease¹

2019

Aust J Gen Pract

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Estudillo-Guerra et al report an interesting case study from a prior pilot OLP study ( 26 ) where a patient was successfully able to taper off oxycodone using a placebo conditioning paradigm without experiencing an increase in pain. Leveraging placebos to reduce opioid use is one of the most important translational aspects of placebo research ( 27 ) with some initial evidence of efficacy ( 26 , 28 ). Sezer et al report a pre-registration of another such trial where patients are randomized to Treatment as Usual (TAU) or TAU plus four OLP injections for post-operative pain.…”

Section: Special Issue Articlesmentioning

confidence: 99%