Hypnotherapy as a treatment for pain in patients with burns: research and clinical considerations

Hypnotherapy has increasingly been included in the management of burn patients, particularly in the area of acute pain. To better understand such issues as (1) overall efficacy of hypnotherapy to alleviate acute burn pain, (2) instances in which hypnotherapy is contraindicated, (3) interaction of hypnotherapy with medication, (4) standard induction techniques to use with various age groups, (5) role of nursing and other staff in facilitating hypnotic effects, and (6) future methodological directions, we examined the clinical and methodological merits of recent studies of hypnoanalgesia. Through a computer search of the medical literature and cross-referencing recent bibliographies, we were able to find 17 studies in which hypnotherapy was applied to the management of burns. The literature generally supports the efficacy of this approach to reduce burn pain; however, little else can be concluded from these studies. Several recent studies have applied hypnotherapy to aspects of burn care other than pain using excellent experimental designs. It is suggested that future studies of acute pain management follow suit.