Effects of open-label placebos on test performance and psychological well-being in healthy medical students: a randomized controlled trial.
Journal
Scientific reports
ISSN: 2045-2322
Titre abrégé: Sci Rep
Pays: England
ID NLM: 101563288
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
22 01 2021
22 01 2021
Historique:
received:
20
10
2020
accepted:
07
01
2021
entrez:
23
1
2021
pubmed:
24
1
2021
medline:
21
9
2021
Statut:
epublish
Résumé
Psychological distress is prevalent in students and can predispose to psychiatric disorders. Recent findings indicate that distress might be linked to impaired cognitive performance in students. Experimental findings in healthy participants suggest that placebo interventions can improve cognition. However, whether non-deceptive (i.e., open-label, OLP) placebos can enhance cognitive function and emotional well-being is unclear. Using a randomized-controlled design we demonstrate a positive impact of OLP on subjective well-being (i.e., stress, fatigue, and confusion) after a 21-day OLP application in healthy students during midterm exams. OLP did not improve test performance, but, within the OLP group, test performance was positively correlated with measures of general belief in the benefit of medication. These results show that OLP can counteract negative effects of acute stress on psychological well-being and might improve cognitive performance if supported by positive treatment expectations. Additionally, our findings in healthy volunteers warrant further investigation in exploring the potential of OLP in reducing stress-related psychological effects in patients. The trial was preregistered at the German Clinical Trials Register on December 20, 2017 (DRKS00013557).
Identifiants
pubmed: 33483552
doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-81502-2
pii: 10.1038/s41598-021-81502-2
pmc: PMC7822842
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Randomized Controlled Trial
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
2130Subventions
Organisme : Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
ID : FU356/12-1
Organisme : Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
ID : Project-ID 422744262 - TRR 289
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