No randomized controlled trial has investigated the efficacy of hypnosis for reducing pain and improving wound-healing in children with burns. This randomized controlled trial aimed to investigate whether hypnosis decreases pain, anxiety, and stress and accelerates wound-healing in children undergoing burn wound procedures. Children (4-16 years) with acute burns presenting for their first dressing change were randomly assigned to a Hypnosis Group who received hypnosis plus standard care or a Standard Care Group who received standard pharmacological and nonpharmacological intervention. Repeated measures of pain intensity, anxiety, stress, and wound-healing were taken at dressing changes until ≥95% wound re-epithelialization. Data for 62 children were analyzed on an intent-to-treat basis using Generalized Estimating Equations (n = 35 Standard Care Group; n = 27 Hypnosis Group). An effect on the primary outcomes of pain and wound healing was not supported {self-reported pain intensity largest Mean Difference [MD] = -0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI]: -1.91 to 0.22), P = 0.12; MD for re-epithelialization = -0.46 [95% CI: -4.27 to 3.35], P = 0.81}. Some support was found for an effect on the secondary outcomes of preprocedural anxiety (MD = -0.80 [95% CI: -1.50 to -0.10], P = 0.03 before the second dressing change) and heart rate as a measure of stress (MD = -15.20 [-27.20 to -3.20], P = 0.01 and MD = -15.39 [-28.25 to -2.53], P = 0.02 before and after the third dressing change). Hypnosis may be effective for decreasing preprocedural anxiety and heart rate in children undergoing repeated pediatric wound care procedures but not for reducing pain intensity or accelerating wound healing.

BACKGROUND:Burns and the associated wound care procedures can be extremely painful and anxiety-provoking for children. Burn injured children and adolescents are therefore at greater risk of experiencing a range of psychological reactions, in particular posttraumatic stress disorder, which can persist for months to years after the injury. Non-pharmacological intervention is critical for comprehensive pain and anxiety management and is used alongside pharmacological analgesia and anxiolysis. However, effective non-pharmacological pain and anxiety management during pediatric burn procedures is an area still needing improvement. Medical hypnosis has received support as a technique for effectively decreasing pain and anxiety levels in adults undergoing burn wound care and in children during a variety of painful medical procedures (e.g., bone marrow aspirations, lumbar punctures, voiding cystourethrograms, and post-surgical pain). Pain reduction during burn wound care procedures is linked with improved wound healing rates. To date, no randomized controlled trials have investigated the use of medical hypnosis in pediatric burn populations. Therefore this study aims to determine if medical hypnosis decreases pain, anxiety, and biological stress markers during wound care procedures; improves wound healing times; and decreases rates of traumatic stress reactions in pediatric burn patients.METHODS/DESIGN:This is a single-center, superiority, parallel-group, prospective randomized controlled trial. Children (4 to 16 years, inclusive) with acute burn injuries presenting for their first dressing application or change are randomly assigned to either the (1) intervention group (medical hypnosis) or (2) control group (standard care). A minimum of 33 participants are recruited for each treatment group. Repeated measures of pain, anxiety, stress, and wound healing are taken at every dressing change until ≥95 % wound re-epithelialization. Further data collection assesses impact on posttraumatic stress symptomatology, speed of wound healing, and parent perception of how easy the dressing change is for their child.DISCUSSION:Study results will elucidate whether the disease process can be changed by using medical hypnosis with children to decrease pain, anxiety, and stress in the context of acute burn wounds.TRIAL REGISTRATION:Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12615000419561.