Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27609242›Full record

Trial reportThe American journal of psychiatry2017

Patient Expectancy as a Mediator of Placebo Effects in Antidepressant Clinical Trials.

Bret R Rutherford, Melanie M Wall, Patrick J Brown, Tse-Hwei Choo, Tor D Wager, Bradley S Peterson, Sarah Chung, Irving Kirsch, Steven P Roose

Open access · bronzeAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in The American journal of psychiatry, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 75 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
75citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
11.0field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

75 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 159 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Side-effects of mdma-assisted psychotherapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2024
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  17. Slowed Processing Speed Disrupts Patient Expectancy in Late Life Depression.The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry · 2021
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15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Bret R RutherfordFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Melanie M WallFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Patrick J BrownFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Tse-Hwei ChooFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Tor D WagerFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Bradley S PetersonFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Sarah ChungFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Irving KirschFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Steven P RooseFrom Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York; the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.; the Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles; the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center · US

Funding

Placebo Effects in the Treatment of Depression: Cognitive and Neural MechanismsK23MH085236 · NIMH · NEW YORK STATE PSYCHIATRIC INSTITUTE DBA RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR MENTAL HYGIENE, INC · PI RUTHERFORD, BRET R · 2010 to 2014
$883k
NIMH NIH HHS K23 MH085236
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveCauses of placebo effects in antidepressant trials have been inferred from observational studies and meta-analyses, but their mechanisms have not been directly established. The goal of this study was to examine in a prospective, randomized controlled trial whether patient expectancy mediates placebo effects in antidepressant studies.

methodAdult outpatients with major depressive disorder were randomly assigned to open or placebo-controlled citalopram treatment. Following measurement of pre- and postrandomization expectancy, participants were treated with citalopram or placebo for 8 weeks. Independent samples t tests determined whether patient expectancy differed between the open and placebo-controlled groups, and mixed-effects models assessed group effects on Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) scores over time while controlling for treatment assignment. Finally, mediation analyses tested whether between-group differences in patient expectancy mediated the group effect on HAM-D scores.

resultsPostrandomization expectancy scores were significantly higher in the open group (mean=12.1 [SD=2.1]) compared with the placebo-controlled group (mean=11.0 [SD=2.0]). Mixed-effects modeling revealed a significant week-by-group interaction, indicating that HAM-D scores for citalopram-treated participants declined at a faster rate in the open group compared with the placebo-controlled group. Patient expectations postrandomization partially mediated group effects on week 8 HAM-D.

conclusionsPatient expectancy is a significant mediator of placebo effects in antidepressant trials. Expectancy-related interventions should be investigated as a means of controlling placebo responses in antidepressant clinical trials and improving patient outcome in clinical treatment.

Indexed as

Placebo EffectSet, PsychologyAdultAntidepressive AgentsCitalopramHumansMajor Depressive DisorderMiddle AgedProspective StudiesPsychiatric Status Rating ScalesPsychometricsTreatment OutcomeAntidepressive AgentsCitalopramAntidepressantsMood Disorders-Unipolar

Identifiers

PMID27609242
PMCPMC5288269
OpenAlexW2516096628

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.