Substantial recovery rate with placebo effect in headache treatment

New study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

2011-05-23

(Press-News.org) Lombard, IL, May 23, 2011 – Headache is a very common complaint, with over 90% of all persons experiencing a headache at some time in their lives. Headaches commonly are tension-type (TTH) or migraine. They have high socioeconomic impact and can disturb most daily activities. Treatments range from pharmacologic to behavioral interventions. In a study published online today in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, a group of Dutch researchers analyzed 119 randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) and determined the magnitude of placebo effect and no treatment effect on headache recovery rate.

"Although the intention of control and placebo interventions in research studies is to be relatively ineffective, the question rises as to what factors might cause improvement seen in these groups," commented corresponding investigator Arianne P. Verhagen, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of General Practice, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. "The aim of this study was to analyze the observed effects in the 'no treatment' and placebo control groups in clinical trials with TTH and migraine patients."

In the headache clinical trials studied, the "no treatment" and placebo groups had a high overall recovery rate of 36%. Control groups in pharmacological trials showed a higher response rate than the behavioral (non-pharmacological) trials (38.5% vs. 15.0%). Patients had higher recovery rates in the acute treatments compared with the prophylactic treatments (39.6% vs. 32.8%). Knowing that a substantial portion of patients improve without treatment is important when considering the benefits and risks of daily headache treatment.

Pharmacological treatment typically starts when non-pharmacological treatments like lifestyle changes, relaxation therapy, cognitive therapy, and reassurance do not work. Many of the prescribed or over-the-counter medications, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), may lead to adverse events and medication overuse headache. Considering the risks of adverse events, the authors recommend that "the prescription of medication needs to be carefully considered and evaluated with each individual patient. Because of the recovery results in 'no treatment' control groups in pharmacological trials, the question rises whether or not this way of prescription is always preferable over no treatment (wait and see) especially in the TTH population."

###The article is "Headache: The Placebo Effects in the Control Groups in Randomized Clinical Trials; An Analysis of Systematic Reviews" by Femke M. de Groot, BSc, Annieke Voogt-Bode, BSc, Jan Passchier, PhD, Marjolein Y. Berger, MD, Bart W. Koes, PhD, and Arianne P. Verhagen, PhD. It will appear in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, Volume 34, Issue 5 (June 2011), DOI 10.1016/j.jmpt.2011.04.007, published by Elsevier.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Statutory Rape Charge Dismissed in North Carolina

2011-05-23

Raleigh criminal attorney Patrick Roberts at the Roberts Law Group PLLC defended a North Carolina man against the statutory rape charges. A man who was caught engaging in sexual acts with a minor by the young woman's mother pled guilty to a misdemeanor in exchange for the dismissal of more serious statutory rape charges. The man pled guilty to contributing to the delinquency of a minor and assault on a female. The man fell prey to a common situation in North Carolina - the alleged victim, a girl under 16 years old, lied about her age on a social networking website. ...

Common test could help predict early death in diabetes, study shows

2011-05-23

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Monday, May 23, 2011 – New findings out of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center reveal that a common test may be useful in predicting early death in individuals with diabetes. The study appears in the May issue of Diabetes Care. "People with diabetes are already at high risk of developing heart disease and experiencing an early death," said Donald W. Bowden, Ph.D., the director of the Center for Diabetes Research at Wake Forest Baptist and lead investigator. "With this study, we've discovered that we can identify a subset of individuals within ...

Break up of New Orleans households after Katrina

2011-05-23

How well a family recovers from a natural catastrophe may be tied to the household's pre-disaster make up and socio-economic status. In a recent study, Dr. Michael Rendall of the RAND Corporation compared the number of households in New Orleans, LA that broke up following Hurricane Katrina to the national rate of household break-ups over an equivalent period. An estimated 1.3 million people fled the Gulf Coast during that emergency in 2005 – the largest urban evacuation America has ever seen. The results are published today in the Journal of Marriage and Family. Relying ...

Pre-meal dietary supplement developed at Hebrew University can overcome fat and sugar problems

2011-05-23

Jerusalem, May 23, 2011 – A little bitter with a little sweet, in the form of a nano-complex dietary supplement taken before meals, can result in a substantial reduction of fat and sugar absorption in the body, Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Harvard University researchers have found. The researchers previously showed that naringenin, the molecule responsible for the bitter taste in grapefruits, could potentially be used in the treatment of diabetes, arteriosclerosis and hyper-metabolism. However, the absorption of naringenin in its natural form is very low. To ...

Technology and Innovation Leader Tim Bucher & TV Personality and Head Thirsty Girl, Leslie Sbrocco to Lead Keynotes for the Seventh Annual Wine Industry Technology Symposium, July 12-13, 2011

2011-05-23

The Wine Industry Technology Symposium (WITS), the premier event showcasing innovation and strategic use of information technology and services for the wine industry, announced headline speakers for its seventh annual conference July 12-13, 2011 at the Marriot Napa Valley. The symposium will open with a technology showcase and hands on experiential workshops on the afternoon of Tuesday, July 12, but the main event takes place on Wednesday, July 13 with the general session and keynote speakers. Tim Bucher's Keynote Address is titled "Technology and Innovation" What ...

New research provides insight into how OCD develops

2011-05-23

New scientific evidence challenges a popular conception that behaviours such as repetitive hand-washing, characteristic of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), are carried out in response to disturbing obsessive fears. The study, conducted at the University of Cambridge in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam, found that in the case of OCD the behaviours themselves (the compulsions) might be the precursors to the disorder, and that obsessions may simply be the brain's way of justifying these behaviours. The research provides important insight into how the ...

What doesn't kill the brain makes it stronger

2011-05-23

Johns Hopkins scientists say that a newly discovered "survival protein" protects the brain against the effects of stroke in rodent brain tissue by interfering with a particular kind of cell death that's also implicated in complications from diabetes and heart attack. Reporting in the May 22 advance online edition of Nature Medicine, the Johns Hopkins team says it exploited the fact that when brain tissue is subjected to a stressful but not lethal insult a defense response occurs that protects cells from subsequent insult. The scientists dissected this preconditioning ...

More Americans praying about health, study says

2011-05-23

WASHINGTON – Praying about health issues dramatically increased among American adults over the past three decades, rising 36 percent between 1999 and 2007, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association. Researchers analyzed data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 1999, 2002 and 2007 National Health Interview Surveys for an article in the May issue of the APA journal Psychology of Religion and Spirituality. The study primarily focused on comparisons of results between the 2002 and 2007 surveys, which included, respectively, ...

HIV-infected donors present novel source of organs for HIV-infected transplant candidates

2011-05-23

A new study published in the American Journal of Transplantation reveals that HIV-infected deceased donors represent a potentially novel source of organs for HIV-infected transplant candidates that could decrease waitlist deaths and even shorten the national waitlist. For patients with HIV, there is an increased chance of dying while awaiting transplantation, as the HIV itself causes the risk of dying on the waiting list to be higher. The option of deceased donors who were also infected with HIV could shorten this wait time. However, this is now illegal due to a 1988 ...

Chemical engineers at Stevens invent portable hydrogen reactor for fuel cells

2011-05-23

Chemical Engineering students at Stevens Institute of Technology are transforming the way that American soldiers power their battery-operated devices by making a small change: a really small change. Capitalizing on the unique properties of microscale systems, the students have invented a microreactor that converts everyday fossil fuels like propane and butane into pure hydrogen for fuel cell batteries. These batteries are not only highly efficient, but also can be replenished with hydrogen again and again for years of resilient performance in the field. With batteries ...

Substantial recovery rate with placebo effect in headache treatment

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: