Prescriptions of Essentially Placebo Treatments Among General Practitioners in 21 Countries
In this survey study of GPs across 21 countries, essentially placebo prescriptions featured in a small minority of consultations, but they nevertheless occurred regularly for most GPs. Rates varied only slightly by GP background characteristics. This suggests that essentially placebo prescriptions were common at a population level, which poses risks for the patient-GP relationship and creates medical risks for patients. Future research should further investigate the decision-making process behind these prescriptions and their effects on patients.
Authors
- Rosalinde K. E. Poortvliet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6521-8770)
- Lieve Peremans (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6849-0040)
- Péter Torzsa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8148-4961)
- Kaya J. Peerdeman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7622-1166)
- Sven Streit (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3813-4616)
- В. І. Ткаченко (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0789-5340)
- Rosy Tsopra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9406-5547)
- Jacobijn Gussekloo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7186-8278)
- Hans Thulesius (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3785-5630)
- Vanja Lazić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9336-3534)
- Petra Bomberová Kánská
- Heidrun Lingner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2074-0367)
- Sanda Kreitmayer Peštić
- Donata Kurpas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6996-8920)
- Christian Mallen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2677-1028)
- Fabian Wolters (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9698-9527)
- Gindrovel Gheorghe Dumitra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8982-9645)
- Liina Pilv-Toom (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1573-4376)
- Jeremy Howick (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0280-7206)
- Αριστέα Μίσσιου (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9754-2169)
- Ferdinando Petrazzuoli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1058-492X)
- Andrea W.M. Evers (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0090-5091)
- Rita Viegas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6647-4415)
- Radost Аsenova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2158-5792)
- Limor Adler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9335-6596)
- Claire Collins
Institutions
- Semmelweis University (HU)
- University of Bern (CH)
- Leiden University (NL)
- University Hospital Centre Zagreb (HR)
- University of Tuzla (BA)
- University of Leicester (GB)
- Inserm (FR)
- Tel Aviv University (IL)
- Lund University (SE)
- University of Ioannina (GR)
- Université Paris Cité (FR)
- Linnaeus University (SE)
- Leiden University Medical Center (NL)
- Medical University Plovdiv (BG)
- University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova (RO)
- Ghent University (BE)
- Medizinische Hochschule Hannover (DE)
- Wroclaw Medical University (PL)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Centre de Recherche des Cordeliers (FR)
- Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (FR)
- Hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou (FR)
- Hôpital Européen (FR)
- Nova Medical (United States) (US)
- Gouverneur Kinsbergencentrum (BE)
- University Hospital Hradec Králové (CZ)
- University Clinical Center Tuzla (BA)
- Keele University (GB)
- University of Tartu (EE)
- University of Hradec Králové (CZ)
- Universidade Nova de Lisboa (PT)
- Bogomolets National Medical University (UA)
- Delft University of Technology (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- JAMA Network Open
- Published
- 2025-09-18
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.32672
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Pain Management and Placebo Effect
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 4.29