placebo effect

[pluh-see-boh]

noun

1. a reaction to a placebo manifested by a lessening of symptoms or the production of anticipated side effects.

placebo effect

noun

1. med a positive therapeutic effect claimed by a patient after receiving a placebo believed by him to be an active drug See control group

Word History and Origins

Origin of placebo effect¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Only 15% of people with major depression experienced a substantial benefit from taking antidepressants beyond the placebo effect of pills that look like real medication, a 2022 study found.

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“The placebo effect can also be very powerful, especially for treatments that require significant effort and cost.”

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As early as 1999, Irving Kirsch, a lecturer at Harvard, began to explore the role of the placebo effect in antidepressant studies, asserting that the placebo response to medication was greater than any pharmacological effect.

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He warned a pineal cyst should only be removed in extremely rare circumstances, and believes the operations' successful results could be explained by the "placebo effect".

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But he wonders how often the treatment might cause a placebo effect.

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