When I use a word . . . Nocebo

The term “placebo” can be dated back to at least the 1770s, the earliest recorded instances having occurred in the published lectures of two Edinburgh physicians, Andrew Duncan and William Cullen. In contrast, the term “nocebo” dates only from 1961. A nocebo effect or nocebo response can be seen to have occurred when, adapting the <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i> (<i>OED</i>) definition, one or more adverse effects are reported after administration of a placebo. Compared with placebos and the placebo effect, nocebos and the nocebo effect have been little studied, and many of the published papers that feature discussion of nocebos are non-systematic reviews. To quote the old academic phrase, which, although trite, on this occasion is nevertheless apposite, “more research is needed.”