NCT00967395

Effect of Healing on Rheumatoid Arthritis

Effect of Healing on Rheumatoid Arthritis: a Three-arm Double-blind, Randomized, Controlled Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 90 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Henning Bliddal · Academic / Other
• Sex: Female
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The hypothesis is that healing may influence the patient's general status by altering psychological as well as other body functions of importance for the rheumatoid arthritis. This is tested in a three group design with a control group and two groups receiving healing with or without a healer present. The study is randomized and double blind.

Detailed description

The central claim of healers is that this process facilitates self-healing in the patient. Spiritual healing includes several categories, including 'therapeutic touch' and 'intercessory prayer', and the healing may be attributed to God, spirits, universal forces or energies, biological healing energies residing in the healer, or self-healing powers or energies thought to reside latent in the healed organism. The highly controversial hypothesized effects of distant or spiritual healing contradict our traditional sense of reality and are in conflict with what is generally viewed as being in correspondence with modern science.

Conditions

• Rheumatoid Arthritis

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Healing	Healing in our study is given be a healer "no-touch", who just has to be present in the room.
OTHER	Sham healing	Sham Healing in our study is given be a student "no-touch", who just has to be present in the room.

Timeline

• Start date: 2008-01-01
• Primary completion: 2009-01-01
• Completion: 2009-09-01
• First posted: 2009-08-27
• Last updated: 2012-01-06