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Nocebo
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{{Short description|Harmful effect from negative belief}} {{For multi|the album|Nocebo (album){{!}}''Nocebo'' (album)|the film|Nocebo (film){{!}}''Nocebo'' (film)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}A '''nocebo effect''' is said to occur when a patient's expectations for a treatment cause the treatment to have a worse effect than it otherwise would have.{{sfn|Häuser|Hansen|Enck|2012}}{{sfn|Enck|Häuser|2012}} For example, when a patient anticipates a [[side effect]] of a medication, they can experience that effect even if the "medication" is actually an inert substance.{{sfn|Häuser|Hansen|Enck|2012}} The complementary concept, the ''[[placebo]]'' effect, is said to occur when expectations improve an outcome. More generally, the nocebo effect is falling ill simply by consciously or subconsciously anticipating a harmful event. This definition includes anticipated events ''other'' than medical treatment. It has been applied to [[Havana syndrome]], where purported victims were anticipating attacks by foreign adversaries.<ref name="pj1">"Nocebo: the placebo effect’s evil twin" ''The Pharmaceutical Journal'', PJ, March 2018, Vol 300, No 7911;300(7911):DOI:10.1211/PJ.2018.20204524 https://pharmaceutical-journal.com/article/feature/nocebo-the-placebo-effects-evil-twin</ref><ref>"Sonic Scares: Havana Syndrome" May 3, 2024 book preview in ''Mayo Clinic Press'' https://mcpress.mayoclinic.org/research-innovation/sonic-scares-havana-syndrome/ </ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Havana Syndrome: Mass Psychogenic Illness and the Real Story Behind the Embassy Mystery and Hysteria |isbn=978-3030407452 |last1=Baloh |first1=Robert W. |last2=Bartholomew |first2=Robert E. |year=2020 |publisher=Springer }}</ref> This definition also applies to cases of [[electromagnetic hypersensitivity]]. Both placebo and nocebo effects are presumably [[wikt:psychogenic|psychogenic]] but can induce measurable changes in the body.{{sfn|Häuser|Hansen|Enck|2012}} One article that reviewed 31 studies on nocebo effects reported a wide range of symptoms that could manifest as nocebo effects, including nausea, stomach pains, itching, bloating, depression, sleep problems, loss of appetite, [[sexual dysfunction]], and severe [[hypotension]].{{sfn|Häuser|Hansen|Enck|2012}}
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