The efficacy of hypnosis on pain, wound healing, anxiety and stress in children with acute burn injuries: a randomized controlled trial

No randomized controlled trial (RCT) has investigated the efficacy of hypnosis for reducing pain and improving healing in children with burns. This RCT aimed to investigate whether hypnosis decreases pain, anxiety and stress and accelerates wound-healing in children undergoing burn wound procedures. Children (4 to 16 years) with acute burns presenting for their first dressing change were randomly assigned to a Hypnosis Group who received hypnosis plus standard care or a Standard Care Group who received standard pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention. Repeated measures of pain intensity, anxiety, stress, and wound-healing were taken at every dressing change until ≥95% wound re-epithelialization. Data for 62 children were analyzed on an intent-to-treat basis using Generalized Estimating Equations (n = 35 Standard Care Group; n = 27 Hypnosis Group). An effect on the primary outcomes of pain and wound healing was not supported (self-reported pain intensity largest Mean Difference (MD) = -0.85 (95%CI:-1.91, 0.22), p = 0.12; MD for re-epithelialization = -0.46 (95%CI:-4.27, 3.35), p = 0.81). Some support was found for an effect on the secondary outcomes of pre-procedural anxiety (MD = -0.80 (95%CI: -1.50, -0.10), p = 0.03 before the second dressing change) and heart rate as a measure of stress (MD = -15.20 (-27.20, -3.20), p = 0.01) and MD = -15.39 (-28.25, -2.53), p = 0.02 before and after the third dressing change). Hypnosis may be effective for decreasing pre-procedural anxiety and heart rate in children undergoing repeated pediatric wound-care procedures but not for reducing pain intensity or accelerating wound healing