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Published on: October 16, 2013
Hypnosis as sole anaesthesia for skin tumour removal in a patient with multiple chemical sensitivity
E Facco1, S Pasquali, G Zanette
1Department of Neurosciences University of Padua, and the Italian Center for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Turin, Italy.
Abstract:
A female patient with multiple chemical sensitivity and previous anaphylactoid reactions to local anaesthetics was admitted for removal of a thigh skin tumour under hypnosis as sole anaesthesia. The hypnotic protocol included hypnotic focused analgesia and a pre-operative pain threshold test. After inducing hypnosis, a wide excision was performed, preserving the deep fascia, and the tumour was removed; the patient's heart rate and blood pressure did not increase during the procedure. When the patient was de-hypnotised, she reported no pain and was discharged immediately. Our case confirms the efficacy of hypnosis and demonstrates that it may be valuable as a sole anaesthetic method in selected cases. Hypnosis can prevent pain perception and surgical stress as a whole, comparing well with anaesthetic drugs.
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