Effectiveness of hypnosis in the treatment of pain and enhancing mental performance in Iran: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background and aims: Nowadays, hypnosis has opened its position in the medical community. Based on controlled trials, hypnosis has been superior compared to other interventional procedures to reduce acute pain. This investigation aims to determine the effectiveness of hypnosis in the treatment of pain and enhancing mental performance in Iran, using the meta-analysis method. Methods: The search has been conducted in international database such as: ISI, Scopus, Pubmed, Google Scholar, and Iranian databases such as: Medlib, SID, Magiran, and Iran Medex. The data have been analyzed using meta-analysis method (random effects model). Heterogeneity between articles was assessing using I2 index and “Dersimonia and Lardi” statistics. In all studies, hypnotic effect size was expressed as a dichotomous (yes or no) variable. Relative Risk (RR) was used to show effect size. Results: Among the 45 articles, 6 of them had eligibility to inter to meta-analysis. Sample size of 6 articles was 546. The effectiveness of hypnosis in the case group has been 20% more than the control group RR=1.20 (Confidence interval 95%: 0.97 to 1.46), But, there was no significant difference between test and control groups. Conclusion: There was not statistical significance evidence in effectiveness of hypnosis in pain and reduction of psychological tensions, but 20% of effectiveness can be important from medical view of point. So, this method can be used as a routine procedure in the treatment of pain and enhancing mental performance.