Papers of the Week

This study examined the development and effect of an online hypnosis program for the treatment of migraines. Forty-three participants were randomly assigned to a wait-list control or a treatment group. The treatment group received hypnosis mp3s developed for the study. Pain catastrophizing (PCS), headache disability (HDI), migraine frequency, duration, severity, and medication usage were measured. There was a 48% reduction in mean HDI score in the treatment group and 2% reduction in the control group. There was a 60% reduction in mean PCS score in the treatment group. There were no significant between-group differences in the proportion of subjects experiencing decreased frequency or severity of migraines. There was a significant between-group difference in the change in migraine duration. This study demonstrated that a hypnosis intervention delivered online was effective in reducing headache symptoms in migraine sufferers.