title: Inability of an "energy transfer diagnostician" to distinguish between fertile and infertile women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Various forms of "energy healing" have become popular in the United States.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To test the assertion that an energy healer can, without physical contact, distinguish the presence or absence of internal organ pathology in individuals who lack overt physical findings.
  
  
  METHODS
  Observational randomized study, in which we tested the assertion by a well-recognized alternative healer that he had particular skill in using energy transfer to detect the presence or absence of fertility disorders in women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Convenience sample of 37 women, 28 of whom had documented pathology resulting in infertility, and 9 of whom were fertile.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The healer was provided with no medical history and performed diagnostic evaluations without physical contact with the blindfolded, clothed, and silent subjects. We compared to random chance the ability of the healer to establish a diagnosis of fertility or fertility disorder.
  
  
  METHODS
  Teaching hospital.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The healer was unable to distinguish the presence or absence of fertility disorders in the study subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study points to further need for fair yet rigorous assessment of claims that energy transfer can lead to accurate clinical diagnoses.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Medicine and Primary Care, Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Eisenberg
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Waletzky
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yager
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Landsberg
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aronson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seibel
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Delbanco
mesh_terms: D004735:Energy Transfer; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000175:diagnosis*; D026443:Spiritual Therapies