A meta-analysis of hypnotically induced analgesia: How effective is hypnosis?

Over the past two decades, hypnoanalgesia has been widely studied; however, no systematic attempts have been made to determine the average size of hyp noanalgesic effects or establish the generalizability of these effects from the laboratory to the clinic. This study examines the effectiveness of hyp nosis in pain management, compares studies that evaluated hypnotic pain red uction in healthy volunteers vs. those using patient samples, compares hypn oanalgesic effects and participants' hypnotic suggestibility, and determine s the effectiveness of hypnotic suggestion for pain relief relative to othe r nonhypnotic psychological interventions. Meta-analysis of 18 studies reve aled a moderate to large hypnoanalgesic effect, supporting the efficacy of hypnotic techniques for pain management. The results also indicated that hy pnotic suggestion was equally effective in reducing both clinical and exper imental pain. The overall results suggest broader application of hypnoanalg esic techniques with pain patients.