The placebo effect: the good, the bad, and the ugly
Abstract
The placebo effect is defined as any improvement of symptoms or signs following a physically inert intervention. Its effects are especially profound in relieving subjective symptoms such as pain, fatigue, and depression. Present to a variable extent in all therapeutic encounters, this effect is intensified by hands-on contact with close verbal communication between caregiver and recipient. Thus, it may be used to benefit patients but provides a ready avenue for unscrupulous "healers" of all types. Conventional medical practitioners often intervene in some way and, without knowing what caused the improvement, may claim credit for the apparent benefit. Physicians must be skeptical about apparent "responses" to treatments, using the information described herein to better understand what we are-or are not-accomplishing to provide the best possible outcomes for our patients. Less well studied, the "nocebo effect" defines negative responses to placebo interventions. This latter effect may be quite profound and likely is causative in many maladies believed to have psychic origins.
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Sham surgeries often show significant placebo effects.
“sham surgeries often show significant placebo effects [80]”
From Deep brain stimulation for depression. (2022) · cites this paper as [80]
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Valero, F., González‐Mohíno, F., Alda-Blanco, A., Rodríguez‐Barbero, S., de la Cruz, V. M., Santos‐García, D. J., & Salinero, J. J. (2026) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu18152492
Dai, L., Kuah, X. J., Liu, Z.-D., Hua, H.-B., Yang, Q.-X., Zhao-yuan, S., Shen, J., Yang, Z.-X., Shu, X., Ma, Z.-S., et al. (2026) · Journal of Chinese Integrative Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.joim.2026.10.006
Central and peripheral mechanisms of pain in clinical knee osteoarthritis
Mason, K. J. (2015) · Research Explorer (The University of Manchester)
- Authors
- Tavel, M. E.
- Affiliations
- Indiana University School of Medicine (US)
- Corresponding author
- Tavel, Morton E.
- ORCID
- Tavel, Morton E.
- Venue
- The American Journal of Medicine
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2014-06
- Volume
- 127
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 484-488
- ISSN
- 0002-9343 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2072241292
- Cited by
- 78
- References
- 34
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 2 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 4
- FWCI
- 0.64
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The American Journal of Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Pain Management and Placebo Effect
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
- Keywords
- placebo effect, nocebo effect, subjective symptoms, analgesia, fatigue, depression, physician-patient communication
- MeSH terms
- Attitude of Health Personnel, Humans, Professional-Patient Relations, Psychophysiologic Disorders, Psychophysiology, Causality, Placebo Effect, Nocebo Effect
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