SynthesisEuropean journal of pain (London, England)2021
Placebo effects in low back pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature.
Synthesis in European journal of pain (London, England), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07731256 (A Randomized-Controlled Trial of Semaglutide for Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain and Obesity), which is not on this map. Cited by 18 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
A Randomized-Controlled Trial of Semaglutide for Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain and Obesity
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Comparison of tanezumab and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in efficacy and safety for chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Pooled it
- The impact of contextual effects in exercise therapy for low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Pain, mindfulness, and placebo: a systematic review.Frontiers in integrative neuroscience · 2024Pooled it
- The importance of selecting the correct site to apply spinal manipulation when treating spinal pain: Myth or reality? A systematic review.Scientific reports · 2021Pooled it
- Placebo effects in low back pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature.European journal of pain (London, England) · 2021 · on this mapPooled it
- Effect of Myofascial Release on Pain and Uterine Artery Hemodynamic Indices in Women with Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Trial
- Multi-wave locked system laser therapy in chronic non-specific neck pain: a double-blind placebo randomized-controlled trial.European journal of physical and rehabilitation medicine · 2025Trial
- Article
- Safety and Efficacy of Approved and Unapproved Peptide Therapies for Musculoskeletal Injuries and Athletic Performance.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Review
- Advancing the Prediction and Understanding of Placebo Responses in Chronic Back Pain Using Large Language Models.European journal of pain (London, England) · 2026Article
- Talking placebo: a qualitative study of patients' attitudes toward open-label placebo implementation into clinical practice.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Determinants of outcomes for patients with chronic low back pain and fear-avoidance beliefs following treatment with specific stabilisation exercises.Journal of back and musculoskeletal rehabilitation · 2024Article
- A prospective, randomized, controlled, double-blind, multi-center study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a blue light device for the treatment of chronic back pain.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Stratification of spine patients based on self-reported clinical symptom classes: Evaluation of long-term outcomes and subsequent interventions.North American Spine Society journal · 2023Article
- A novel computational approach to pain perception modelling within a Bayesian framework using quantitative sensory testing.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- A multi-center, double-blind, randomized parallel-group Phase IV study comparing the efficacy and safety of thiocolchicoside ointment versus placebo in patients with chronic mechanical low back pain and an acute muscle spasm.Turkish journal of physical medicine and rehabilitation · 2022Article
- Knowledge Mapping of International Research on Acupuncture for Chronic Pain: A Bibliometric Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2022Review
- Clinical Effectiveness and Efficacy of Chiropractic Spinal Manipulation for Spine Pain.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
objectiveThe current treatments of primary musculoskeletal low back pain (LBP) have a low to moderate efficacy, which might be improved by looking at the contribution of placebo effects. However, the size of true placebo effects in LBP is unknown. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were executed of randomized controlled trials investigating placebo effects in LBP. DATABASES AND DATA TREATMENT: The study protocol was registered in the international prospective register of systematic reviews Prospero (CRD42019148745). A literature search (in PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane Library, CINAHL and PsycINFO) up to 2021 February 16th yielded 2,423 studies. Two independent reviewers assessed eligibility and risk of bias.
resultsEighteen studies were eligible for the systematic review and 5 for the meta-analysis. Fourteen of the 18 studies were clinical treatment studies, and 4 were experimental studies specifically assessing placebo effects. The clinical treatment studies provided varying evidence for placebo effects in chronic LBP but insufficient evidence for acute and subacute LBP. Most experimental studies investigating chronic LBP revealed significant placebo effects. The meta-analysis of 5 treatment studies investigating chronic LBP depicted a significant moderate effect size of placebo for pain intensity (SMD = 0.57) and disability (SMD = 0.52).
conclusionsThis review shows a significant contribution of placebo effects to chronic LBP symptom relief in clinical and experimental conditions. The meta-analysis revealed that placebo effects can influence chronic LBP intensity and disability. However, additional studies are required for more supporting evidence and evidence for placebo effects in acute or subacute LBP. SIGNIFICANCE: This systematic review and meta-analysis provides evidence of true placebo effects in low back pain (LBP). It shows a significant contribution of placebo effects to chronic LBP symptom relief. The results highlight the importance of patient- and context-related factors in fostering treatment effects in this patient group. New studies could provide insight into the potential value of actively making use of placebo effects in clinical practice.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.