Archives of family medicine
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The placebo effect on pain is a complex phenomenon. The unconsented use of placebo pain medication, however, raises concerns given the risks both to patient trust and to the medical profession's reputation in condoning deception, the inherent distastefulness of deception, the misuse of placebos that occurs, and the fact that the information obtained is often of negligible value. ⋯ We argue that placebo pain medication should be prescribed to patients only with their informed consent in scientifically rigorous single-patient studies. The results of such trials would constitute a particularly useful way of resolving uncertainty in the treatment of patients whose pain is poorly controlled.