Full Title: Clinical hypnosis versus cognitive behavioral training for pain management with pediatric cancer patients undergoing bone marrow aspirations

A randomized controlled trial was conducted to compare the efficacy of clinical hypnosis versus cognitive behavioral (CB) coping skills training in alleviating the pain and distress of 30 pediatric cancer patients (age 5 to 15 years) undergoing bone marrow aspirations. Patients were randomized to one of three groups: hypnosis, a package of CB coping skills, and no intervention. Patients who received either hypnosis or CB reported less pain and pain-related anxiety than did control patients and less pain and anxiety than at their own baseline. Hypnosis and CB were similarly effective in the relief of pain. Results also indicated that children reported more anxiety and exhibited more behavioral distress in the CB group than in the hypnosis group. It is concluded that hypnosis and CB coping skills are effective in preparing pediatric oncology patients for bone marrow aspiration.

Int J Clin Exp Hypn. 1999 Apr;47(2):104-16. Liossi C, Hatira P. University of Sunderland, United Kingdom.

Environmental enrichment (EE) was shown recently to accelerate brain development in rodents. Increased levels of maternal care, and particularly tactile stimulation through licking and grooming, may represent a key component in the early phases of EE. We hypothesized that enriching the environment in terms of body massage may thus accelerate brain development in infants. We explored the effects of body massage in preterm infants and found that massage accelerates the maturation of electroencephalographic activity and of visual function, in particular visual acuity. In massaged infants, we found higher levels of blood IGF-1. Massage accelerated the maturation of visual function also in rat pups and increased the level of IGF-1 in the cortex. Antagonizing IGF-1 action by means of systemic injections of the IGF-1 antagonist JB1 blocked the effects of massage in rat pups. These results demonstrate that massage has an influence on brain development and in particular on visual development and suggest that its effects are mediated by specific endogenous factors such as IGF-1.

J Neurosci. 2009 May 6;29(18):6042-51. Guzzetta A, Baldini S, Bancale A, Baroncelli L, Ciucci F, Ghirri P, Putignano E, Sale A, Viegi A, Berardi N, Boldrini A, Cioni G, Maffei L. Department of Developmental Neuroscience, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico Stella Maris, I-56128 Calambrone, Pisa, Italy.