Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41135508›Full record

Trial reportScandinavian journal of pain2025

Is it personality or genes? - A secondary analysis on a randomized controlled trial investigating responsiveness to placebo analgesia.

Johan P A van Lennep, Henriët van Middendorp, Oyin V Leong, Susan L Kloet, Rolf H A M Vossen, Tom Heyman, Andrea W M Evers

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Scandinavian journal of pain, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Johan P A van LennepHealth, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333 AK, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Henriët van MiddendorpHealth, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333 AK, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Oyin V LeongHealth, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333 AK, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Susan L KloetLeiden Genome Technology Center, Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Rolf H A M VossenLeiden Genome Technology Center, Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Tom HeymanDepartment of Methodology and Statistics, Faculty of Social Sciences, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Andrea W M EversHealth, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333 AK, Leiden, The Netherlands.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo understand how different individuals respond to placebo effects, it is relevant to disentangle the influence of someone's personality and genetic variations. The aim of this exploratory study was to investigate the role of different personality characteristics and different single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the responsiveness to placebo analgesia.

methodsSecondary data analyses were conducted on an experimental behavioural study in healthy controls primarily aimed at the influence of three learning mechanisms (i.e., verbal suggestions, classical conditioning, or observational learning) or combinations thereof, on placebo analgesia in heat pain. Moderation by five different personality characteristics (optimism, neuroticism, worrying, empathy, and somatosensory amplification) was studied. Also, the predictive role of three different SNPs on the OPRM-1 gene, the COMT gene, and the FAAH gene on placebo analgesia was assessed. The personality characteristics were studied with validated questionnaires. The genetic variants were obtained by sequencing DNA from saliva cells.

resultsThe moderation analysis from 206 participants concerning the personality characteristics did not show significant effects. Of the 108 (52%) genotyped participants, the results showed no significant relationship between any of the SNPs and placebo analgesia.

conclusionsResults did not support a role of a person's personality characteristics or genetic variations in predicting their responsiveness to placebo analgesia through learning mechanisms. The clinical relevance of predicting someone's responsiveness to placebo effects, therefore, requires careful reconsideration.

Indexed as

AnalgesiaPainPersonalityPlacebo EffectAdultCatechol O-MethyltransferaseFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPolymorphism, Single NucleotideReceptors, Opioid, muYoung AdultCatechol O-MethyltransferaseCOMT protein, humanOPRM1 protein, humanReceptors, Opioid, mugenespersonality characteristicsplacebo analgesiaresponsiveness

Identifiers

PMID41135508

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.