International Handbook of Clinical Hypnosis - E-Lib FK UWKS

248 INTERNATIONAL HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL HYPNOSIS
pain than either technique alone N ˆ 24). Elton, Burrows & Stanley 1980) found
that hypnosis was more effective than behavioral therapy and pill placebo with 30
chronic pain patients. James, Large & Beale 1989) effectively individualized selfhypnotic
strategies in ®ve chronic pain patients, using a multiple baseline study.
Crasilneck 1979) found 69% of 29 consecutive low back pain referrals reported
80% subjective pain relief during outpatient treatment with individualized hypnosis
lasting up to 9 months. McCauley, Thelen, Frank, Willard & Callen 1983) found
positive results for both hypnosis and relaxation with back pain patients.
Two studies have shown the effectiveness of hypnosis with painful irritable bowel
syndrome. Whorwell, Prior & Faragher 1984) found hypnosis reduced subjective
pain and abdominal distension in 30 patients compared to supportive psychotherapy.
This group Prior, Colgan & Whorwell, 1990) later found that hypnosis
reduced rectal sensitivity in 15 diarrhea-prone patients.
Compared to physical therapy, hypnosis was more effective in improving pain
and sleep, but not tender points, in 40 patients with ®bromyalgia Haanen,
Hoenderdos, vanRomunde et al., 1991). Medication reduction was observed in
80% of the patients treated with hypnosis. Several anecdotal reports Margolis,
personal communication; Finer, personal communication; Gainer, 1992; Evans,
2001) suggest that hypnosis might be effective in the early phases of re¯ex
sympathetic dystrophy, but formal studies have not yet been completed.
In one of the few studies that measured hypnotic ability, Stam, McGrath &
Brooke 1984) found that the more highly hypnotizable of 61 patients with
temporomandibular joint pain gained relief with both hypnosis and relaxation
compared to a control group. There was little pain reduction with any of the
treatments for low hypnotizable patients.
Syrjala, Cummings & Donaldson 1992) found that hypnosis was more effective
than cognitive-behavioral therapy in reducing pain, but not nausea, emesis, or
opioid use, in 67 bone marrow transplant patients. This result is a little surprising
in view of the widely held anecdotal reports that hypnosis is an excellent tool for
treating nausea and vomiting in several clinical populations, including hyperemesis
in early pregnancy, bulimia and treatment-induced emesis in cancer patients
Evans, 1991).
Several studies have shown the value of hypnosis in treating chronic headache.
Olness, MacDonald & Uden 1987) found hypnosis was superior to propranolol or
placebo in treating 28 children with migraine headaches. Cedercreutz 1976)
treated 100 patients with severe migraine headaches using hypnosis. Of the 55% of
patients whose migraines decreased over 3 months, most were highly hypnotizable.
It is not clear what measure of hypnotic ability was used, nor were there any control
groups. Basker, Anderson & Dalton 1976) compared 47 patients with migraine
headaches randomly assigned to hypnosis or drug prochlorperazine). Complete
remission over three months occurred in signi®cantly more of the hypnotized
patients 43%) compared to the drug group 12%). At least three studies
N ˆ 55, 56, 79) from Holland van Dyck, Zitman, Linssen & Spinhoven, 1991;