Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Blinding01:11

Blinding

2.4K
Blinding is a commonly used method of not telling participants which treatment a subject is receiving. Blinding is a critical part of a randomized control trial or RCT. It reduces the bias that affects the results. In an RCT, blinding is used in the form of a placebo. A placebo effect occurs when untreated subjects falsely believe they have received the treatment and report improved symptoms. A placebo or a dummy treatment is administered to subjects to negate the bias caused by such an effect.
2.4K
Drug Therapy01:28

Drug Therapy

43
The advent of drug therapy has profoundly shaped modern mental health care, providing targeted treatments for a range of psychological disorders. Psychotherapeutic drugs, classified into antianxiety, antidepressant, and antipsychotic medications, address symptoms across anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia. While these medications have transformed patient outcomes, they require careful management due to their potential side effects and limitations.
Antianxiety Medications
43
Clinical Trials: Overview01:11

Clinical Trials: Overview

2.9K
Clinical development focuses on how the drug will interact with the human body and encompasses four key phases of clinical trials, each serving a specific purpose in assessing the safety and effectiveness of new drugs. These phases overlap and build upon one another. Phase I involves a small group of healthy volunteers (typically 20-80 individuals) or, in cases where significant toxicity is expected, patients with the targeted disease, such as cancer or AIDS. The volunteers are tested for...
2.9K
Blind Procedures02:07

Blind Procedures

10.6K
Ideally, the people who observe and record the children’s behavior are unaware of who was assigned to the experimental or control group, in order to control for experimenter bias. Experimenter bias refers to the possibility that a researcher’s expectations might skew the results of the study. Remember, conducting an experiment requires a lot of planning, and the people involved in the research project have a vested interest in supporting their hypotheses. If the observers knew which...
10.6K
Hazard Ratio01:12

Hazard Ratio

115
The hazard ratio (HR) is a widely used measure in clinical trials to compare the risk of events, such as death or disease recurrence, between two groups over time. It reflects the ratio of hazard rates—the instantaneous risk of the event occurring—between a treatment group and a control group. This measure provides valuable insights into the relative effectiveness of a treatment by assessing how the risk of an event differs between the two groups.
For example, in a clinical trial...
115
Clinical Trials01:16

Clinical Trials

6.7K
Clinical trials are prospective experimental studies conducted on humans to determine the safety and efficacy of treatments, drugs, diet methods, and medical devices. Using statistics in clinical trials enables researchers to derive reasonable and accurate conclusions from the collected data, allowing them to make wise decisions in uncertain situations. In medical research, statistical methods are crucial for preventing errors and bias.
There are four phases in a clinical trial. A phase one...
6.7K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Uncontrollability of experimental pain decreases pain intensity and relief pleasantness ratings in a between-group design.

Pain reports·2026
Same author

Acute placebo responsiveness predicts longitudinal expectation effects in antidepressant treatment.

Translational psychiatry·2026
Same author

Temporal predictions shape somatosensory perception.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

Factors Associated With Self-Medication to Mitigate Vaccine Reactions After COVID-19 Vaccination: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Pharmacoepidemiology and drug safety·2026
Same author

Auditory Hyperresponsivity in Chronic Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Pain Reprocessing Therapy.

Annals of neurology·2026
Same author

Neural dynamics during heat pain threshold assessment using the method of limits.

NeuroImage·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 27, 2025

A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition
00:04

A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition

Published on: September 20, 2019

10.7K

How side effects can improve treatment efficacy: a randomized trial.

Lieven A Schenk1, Tahmine Fadai1, Christian Büchel1

  • 1Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.

Brain : a Journal of Neurology
|May 3, 2024
PubMed
Summary

Mild side effects can signal effective treatment, improving pain relief and patient expectations. This study explored how side effects influence treatment outcomes and brain activity, offering insights for clinical practice and trial design.

Keywords:
active placebofMRInon-specific treatment factorplacebo analgesiaside effecttreatment expectation

More Related Videos

Author Spotlight: Evaluating the Adjuvant Efficacy and Safety of Angong Niuhuang Pill in Viral Encephalitis Treatment
08:36

Author Spotlight: Evaluating the Adjuvant Efficacy and Safety of Angong Niuhuang Pill in Viral Encephalitis Treatment

Published on: April 19, 2024

503
Author Spotlight: Methodologies and Advancements of Chronic Pain Management Research
08:33

Author Spotlight: Methodologies and Advancements of Chronic Pain Management Research

Published on: January 5, 2024

1.2K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 27, 2025

A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition
00:04

A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition

Published on: September 20, 2019

10.7K
Author Spotlight: Evaluating the Adjuvant Efficacy and Safety of Angong Niuhuang Pill in Viral Encephalitis Treatment
08:36

Author Spotlight: Evaluating the Adjuvant Efficacy and Safety of Angong Niuhuang Pill in Viral Encephalitis Treatment

Published on: April 19, 2024

503
Author Spotlight: Methodologies and Advancements of Chronic Pain Management Research
08:33

Author Spotlight: Methodologies and Advancements of Chronic Pain Management Research

Published on: January 5, 2024

1.2K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Psychology
  • Pain Management

Background:

  • Treatment side effects can negatively impact patients but may also indicate treatment efficacy.
  • Understanding the psychological and neurological mechanisms linking side effects to treatment outcomes is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if and how side effects can trigger positive treatment expectations and enhance treatment outcomes.
  • To explore the role of the descending pain modulatory system in mediating these effects.

Main Methods:

  • A pre-registered trial (DRKS00026648) with 77 healthy participants receiving thermal pain after a nasal spray.
  • Nasal sprays contained either capsaicin (to induce mild burning side effect) or saline (inert).
  • Functional MRI was used to assess brain activity, with participants randomized into groups based on continued or informed belief about fentanyl presence.

Main Results:

  • Nasal sprays with side effects resulted in lower pain perception compared to inert sprays.
  • The impact of side effects on pain was moderated by individual beliefs and treatment expectations.
  • Functional MRI revealed activation in the descending pain modulatory system, including the anterior cingulate cortex and periaqueductal gray.

Conclusions:

  • Mild side effects can act as a signal for effective treatment, positively influencing expectations and outcomes.
  • These effects are mediated by the descending pain modulatory system.
  • Findings have implications for optimizing clinical practice and highlight a potential confound in placebo-controlled trials.