Controlled trial of hypnotherapy in the treatment of severe refractory irritable-bowel syndrome.
30 patients with severe refractory irritable-bowel syndrome were randomly allocated to treatment with either hypnotherapy or psychotherapy and placebo. The psychotherapy patients showed a small but significant improvement in abdominal pain, abdominal distension, and general well-being but not in bowel habit. The hypnotherapy patients showed a dramatic improvement in all features, the difference between the two groups being highly significant. In the hypnotherapy group no relapses were recorded during the 3-month follow-up period, and no substitution symptoms were observed.
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003109:Colonic Diseases, Functional / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005769:Gastrointestinal Motility; D006801:Humans; D006990:Hypnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011613:Psychotherapy; D011897:Random Allocation; D013997:Time Factors