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The Healing Power of Placebos Expand / Collapse
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NikkiLynn
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 3:53 AM


 

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Interesting article from the FDA Consumer magazine that deals with the placebo effect and illness. The article points out that for a given medical condition, it's not unusual for one-third of patients to feel better in response to treatment with placebo. "Expectation is a powerful thing," says Robert DeLap, M.D., head of one of the Food and Drug Administration's Offices of Drug Evaluation. "The more you believe you're going to benefit from a treatment, the more likely it is that you will experience a benefit."




http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2000/100_heal.html


Lynn
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Susanita
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 9:25 AM


 

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I always thought interesting the placebo effect. How is possible that just by believe that we are going to get better, we can get better. Now with my renew interes in psychoneuroimmunology it makes total sense for me. What I do not understand is that doctors have not decided to use that power before. Thanks for the article Lynn!!
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Annaart
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 11:18 AM


 

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This is the part I found interesting. Its what makes the auto immune diseases to hard to fix.

"It's this powerful placebo effect, coupled with the fact that many medical conditions involve a natural course of better and worse periods (arthritis and multiple sclerosis are examples of diseases with flair-ups and lulls), that can make it difficult to know if a health upswing should be credited to a drug effect. One way to account for such variables in a drug study: give one group of patients placebo and another the experimental drug, and see if the drug group's health improvements sufficiently surpass those from placebo. In Straus' study, the chronic fatigue syndrome drug failed to adequately demonstrate its superiority over dummy pills."

Anna
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Suzanne321
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 11:53 AM


 

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Well, finally an advantage to monitoring a 4 yr. old's condition. She has no idea what any of these meds are supposed to be doing!
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NikkiLynn
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 4:33 PM


 

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"The more you believe you're going to benefit from a treatment, the more likely it is that you will experience a benefit."
So, does it work the other way....If you are afraid of the treatment, don't agree with it or have reservations does that effect how well it will work for you?????


Anna,


I agree with you. It is very hard to know with some of illnesses(autoimmune ones like RA) if the proposed treatment is actually working or if you are just experiencing a period of feeling better as RA is famous for waxing and waning in people.


Lynn
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Suzanne321
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 5:18 PM


 

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I worry so much about people feeling good on three DMARDS and a biologic, plus pred, pain meds, and anti-depressants, when it could just be the waxing and waning of the disease. It is so scary to think that all those meds could be for nothing, isn't it?
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Annaart
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 5:36 PM


 

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Suzanne, no need for you to worry about us. Some people have no waxing and waning just full on severe RA. I still work, garden, can tomatoes. When the biological fails (its a DMARD by the way), I know it pretty quick. You can tell the day before it due. Even the MTX starts to stop working the day I take the next dose.

Also the minute most of us feel good, we start tapering off prednesone.

Of course, since you don't have RA, you probably don't understand like we do. I hope this helps you.

I want to be a functioning human making a contribution to society. I know I would not be able to wipe or walk very far without these meds.

Anna
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NikkiLynn
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 5:36 PM


 

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Kind of like how I worry about people taking antibiotics for Ra and possibly increasing their risk of breast cancer, drug-resistant bacteria and suffering more infections with long-term antibiotic use. That whole waxing and waning thing can be a pain.........It is sad that people could be using those meds for nothing.


Lynn
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Suzanne321
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 6:52 PM


 

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Sorry, I'm a mom and I get to worry - it's in the contract!

You do not have to have RA to know that everybody is different. Anybody on any med is doing so for quality of life (hopefully). I'm sorry if you don't understand why the risk of multiple drugs for something that waxes and wanes would be of concern to me. I read the 'How Many Pills Do You Take" thread. It is only what I see here that gives me reason for concern, and to then see it could be for nothing.

As long as the antibiotics used for RA are still rx'd long term for acne, I'll favor them for a 4 yr. old over the alternatives. That seems like basic common sense. NSAIDS already burned a hole in her stomach and never helped her JRA. She got pneumonia and staph on mtx (15 mg subq) and it never helped her JRA. Anna, of course since you don't have a child, you probably don't understand. I hope this helps.

We never shut the door on any treatment option. You can't, for a disease with so much unknown.

Nikki - thank you for your concern! Just keep in mind she is on a drug that has been approved by the FDA for use in children - a luxury in the JRA world. Take care.
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NikkiLynn
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 7:03 PM


 

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You're welcome Suzanne....

Lynn
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pat59
Posted Sunday, September 09, 2007 7:15 PM


 

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Hi everybody....
Today i feel like climbing some steps up the Sears Tower....2 more days on a prednisone burst, when actually i haven't had any in 7 years!!..
I'm only on 10mg..mtx now, no pain meds, no xanax, no lexapro
Nsaids i hve cut the dose by 1/3..

must have been the veggie soup i made!!!!, right?

so we all got good days and bad..but i got lucky with Humira!, before it came out, stinky prednisone for years!
Suzanne..sure we all share your concern for your little girl, i bet she is a doll, post her picture sometime?



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Methotrexate 15 yrs, Enbrel 3 yrs, Humira 5 yrs, Rituxan 1 yr, now diagnosed with PSA and RA, back to Enbrel 50mg.x2 a week
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