Nocebo hyperalgesia and other expectancy-related factors in daily fibromyalgia pain: Combining experimental and electronic diary methods

Objective: Expectancies are known to shape pain experiences, but it remains unclear how different types of expectancies contribute to daily pain fluctuations in fibromyalgia. This combined experimental and diary study aims to provide insights into how experimentally-derived nocebo hyperalgesia and other, diary-derived, expectancy-related...

Learned Nocebo Effects on Cutaneous Sensations of Pain and Itch: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Experimental Behavioral Studies on Healthy Humans

Objective In past decades, the field of nocebo research has focused on studying how sensory perception can be shaped by learning. Nocebo effects refer to aggravated sensory experiences or increased sensitivity to sensations such as pain and itch resulting from treatment-related negative experiences. Behavioral conditioning and verbal...

Susceptibility to Nocebo Hyperalgesia, Dispositional Optimism, and Trait Anxiety as Predictors of Nocebo Hyperalgesia Reduction

OBJECTIVES: The current paper explores the psychological predictors of nocebo hyperalgesia and whether the reduction of nocebo hyperalgesia can be predicted by susceptibility to nocebo hyperalgesia and psychological characteristics. METHODS: Nocebo effects on pressure pain were first experimentally induced in 83 healthy female participants...

Nocebo Hyperalgesia in Patients With Fibromyalgia and Healthy Controls: An Experimental Investigation of Conditioning and Extinction Processes at Baseline and 1-Month Follow-up

Nocebo effects are adverse treatment outcomes that are not ascribed to active treatment components. Potentially, their magnitude might be higher in patients with chronic pain compared to healthy controls since patients likely experience treatment failure more frequently. The current study investigated group differences in the induction and...

How Negative Experience Influences the Brain: A Comprehensive Review of the Neurobiological Underpinnings of Nocebo Hyperalgesia

This comprehensive review summarizes and interprets the neurobiological correlates of nocebo hyperalgesia in healthy humans. Nocebo hyperalgesia refers to increased pain sensitivity resulting from negative experiences and is thought to be an important variable influencing the experience of pain in healthy and patient populations. The young...