The role of self-reported and physiological stress in nocebo hyperalgesia.

Negative expectations can increase pain sensitivity, leading to nocebo hyperalgesia. However, the physiological and psychological factors that predispose individuals to this phenomenon are still not well understood. The present study examined whether stress induced by a social stressor affects nocebo hyperalgesia, and whether this effect is mediated by self-reported and physiological stress responses.

A multi-stakeholder approach to eHealth development: Promoting sustained healthy living among cardiovascular patients.

Background: Healthy living is key in the prevention and rehabilitation of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Yet, supporting and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is exceptionally difficult and people differ in their needs regarding optimal support for healthy lifestyle interventions.

Objective: The goals of this study were threefold: to uncover stakeholders' needs and preferences, to translate these to core values, and develop eHealth technology based on these core values.

Conditioning cortisol in healthy young women - A randomized controlled trial.

Background: Learned placebo effects induced by pharmacological conditioning affect immune and endocrine outcomes and may offer new possibilities for clinical applications. Whether or not cortisol is subject to this type of associative learning processes, and whether conditioning may affect responses to stress, is currently unclear.

Method: A randomized placebo-controlled trial was conducted in 48 healthy young women.

Predicting health-related quality of life in dialysis patients: Factors related to negative outcome expectancies and social support.

Objectives: Dialysis patients report a low health-related quality of life (HRQOL) due to high disease burden and far-reaching consequences of dialysis treatment. This study examined several cognitive-behavioral and social factors, with a focus on negative outcome expectancies, that might be relevant for HRQOL in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients treated with dialysis.

Methods: Patients treated with hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis were recruited from Dutch hospitals and dialysis centers.

Human Pharmacological Conditioning of the Immune and Endocrine System: Challenges and Opportunities.

In this chapter, we review recent studies on conditioned pharmacological effects on immune and endocrine responses in humans, and discuss challenges and opportunities for bringing these effects into clinical practice. By altering physiological mechanisms in part independent of pharmacological agents, pharmacological conditioning has high clinical relevance, as illustrated in some patient studies. Methodological challenges for further investigation include broadening the spectrum of opportunities for conditioned pharmacological effects, by investigating conditioning of substances that have not or not often been used before (e.

Becoming an eCoach: Training therapists in online cognitive-behavioral therapy for chronic pain.

Objective: Online cognitive-behavioral therapy (iCBT) is effective in supporting patients' self-management. Since iCBT differs from face-to-face CBT on several levels, proper training of therapists is essential. This paper describes the development and evaluation of a therapist training based on theoretical domains that are known to influence implementation behavior, for an iCBT for chronic pain.

The role of psychological factors in inflammatory rheumatic diseases: From burden to tailored treatment.

Inflammatory rheumatic diseases have a long-lasting effect on patients' physical and psychological functioning, for instance, due to disabling symptoms and unpredictable disease course. Consequently, many patients show adjustment problems such as depressed mood, which in turn can negatively influence their disease outcome. Specific biopsychosocial factors have shown to affect this outcome.