Psychosomatic Medicine Faster Service from Outside North America
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Laidlaw, T. M.
Right arrow Articles by Large, R. G.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Laidlaw, T. M.
Right arrow Articles by Large, R. G.

Psychosomatic Medicine, Vol 58, Issue 3 242-248, Copyright © 1996 by American Psychosomatic Society

ORIGINAL ARTICLES

Reduction in skin reactions to histamine after a hypnotic procedure

TM Laidlaw, RJ Booth and RG Large
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, School of Medicine, University of Auckland, New Zealand.

This study sought to test whether a cognitive-hypnotic intervention could be used to decrease skin reactivity to histamine and whether hypnotizability, physiological variables, attitudes, and mood would influence the size of the skin weals. Thirty eight subjects undertook three individual laboratory sessions; a pretest session to determine sensitivity to histamine, a control session, and an intervention session during which the subject experienced a cognitive-hypnotic procedure involving imagination and visualization. Compared with the control session, most subjects (32 of 38) decreased the size of their weals measured during the intervention session, and the differences between the weal sizes produced in the two sessions were highly significant (N = 38; t = 4.90; p < .0001). Mood and physiological variables but not hypnotizability scores proved to be effective in explaining the skin test variance and in predicting weal size change. Feelings of irritability and tension and higher blood pressure readings were associated with less change in weal size (i.e., a continuation of reactivity similar to that found in the control session without the cognitive-hypnotic intervention), and peacefulness and a lower blood pressure were associated with less skin reactivity during the intervention. This study has shown highly significant results in reducing skin sensitivity to histamine using a cognitive-hypnotic technique, which indicates some promise for extending this work into the clinical area.


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Psychosom. Med.Home page
A. L. Marsland, P. J. Gianaros, A. A. Prather, J. R. Jennings, S. A. Neumann, and S. B. Manuck
Stimulated Production of Proinflammatory Cytokines Covaries Inversely With Heart Rate Variability
Psychosom Med, October 1, 2007; 69(8): 709 - 716.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Psychosom. Med.Home page
J. K. Kiecolt-Glaser, L. McGuire, T. F. Robles, and R. Glaser
Psychoneuroimmunology and Psychosomatic Medicine: Back to the Future
Psychosom Med, January 1, 2002; 64(1): 15 - 28.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Psychosom. Med.Home page
S. Lutgendorf, H. Logan, H. L. Kirchner, N. Rothrock, S. Svengalis, K. Iverson, and D. Lubaroff
Effects of Relaxation and Stress on the Capsaicin-Induced Local Inflammatory Response
Psychosom Med, July 1, 2000; 62(4): 524 - 534.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1996 by the American Psychosomatic Society