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Pilot Study of a Self-Administered Hypnosis Intervention for Functional Dyspepsia

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Abstract

Background

Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a chronic disorder of the upper gastrointestinal tract that currently lacks substantially effective therapy options.

Aims

To evaluate the feasibility and potential impact on FD symptoms and well-being of a fully automated gut-directed hypnosis intervention delivered via audio recordings.

Methods

FD patients were enrolled at a single medical center and given access to a password-protected website where they completed 7 bi-weekly audio-recorded hypnosis sessions over a 3-month period. Study questionnaires including the Patient assessment of upper gastrointestinal symptom severity index, Short-Form Nepean Dyspepsia Index, the Visceral Sensitivity Index, and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-18) were completed online pre-treatment, mid-treatment, post-treatment and at 3-month follow-up.

Results

Of 23 enrolled patients (18 females; mean age = 38 years), 96% completed the entire treatment program and 3-month follow-up. Intention-to-treat analyses showed significant improvement at both end of treatment and 3-month follow-up in dyspepsia severity and quality of life, as well as in gut-specific anxiety and psychological distress. 68% of treatment completers reported that their FD symptoms were improved. Improvement in FD severity was significantly positively correlated with baseline PAGI-SYM total scores and BSI Global Severity Index scores.

Conclusions

The fully automated hypnosis audio treatment program, which requires no therapist or clinician involvement, demonstrated excellent feasibility and resulted in significant improvement in FD symptoms, quality of life and emotional well-being. The results indicate that the intervention has high potential as adjunctive therapy for FD and warrants further investigation in a randomized controlled trial.

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Funding

This work was funded by an intramural grant from Loyola University’s Research Funding Committee (LU# 211673).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S. 1st Ave, Maywood, IL, 60153, USA

    Sarah W. Kinsinger & Mukund Venu

  2. Loyola University of Chicago, 2160 S. 1st Ave, Maywood, IL, 60153, USA

    Cara Joyce

  3. University of North Carolina, 130 Mason Farm Rd. CB# 7080, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

    Olafur S. Palsson

Authors
  1. Sarah W. Kinsinger
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  2. Cara Joyce
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  3. Mukund Venu
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  4. Olafur S. Palsson
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Correspondence to Sarah W. Kinsinger.

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The authors report no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Co-senior author: Olafur S. Palsson.

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Kinsinger, S.W., Joyce, C., Venu, M. et al. Pilot Study of a Self-Administered Hypnosis Intervention for Functional Dyspepsia. Dig Dis Sci 67, 3017–3025 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-021-07183-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-021-07183-z

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