Table 1.
Gender comparison of nocebo rates in pharmacological trials of depression and anxiety disorders. n, total sample size in the placebo group; ktotal, total number of placebo groups reporting the symptom; 95% CI, confidence interval of odds ratio; modified from Nestoriuc & Rief [56].
| symptom | diagnosis: depression |
diagnosis: anxiety disorder |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (ktotal) | odds ratioa | 95% CI | n (ktotal) | odds ratioa | 95% CI | |
| loss of appetite | 505 (9) | 13.2 | (6.6; 47.9) | 264 (5) | 0.3 | (0.02; 1.3) |
| sexual problems | 803 (5) | 4.0 | (1.6; 9.8) | 451 (8) | 0.2 | (0.09; 0.6) |
| sweating | 549 (5) | 12.5 | (6.0; 26.1) | 309 (5) | 0.2 | (0.06; 0.5) |
| dry mouth | 310 (12) | 0.6 | (0.1; 2.6) | 527 (13) | 0.7 | (0.42; 1.2) |
| nausea | 1291 (18) | 2.3 | (1.18; 4.7) | 791 (14) | 0.5 | (0.3; 0.8) |
| dizziness | 773 (11) | 10.5 | (6.2; 18.0) | 269 (7) | 0.3 | (0.2; 0.6) |
| drowsiness | 1062 (10) | 6.7 | (4.1; 11.1) | 551 (8) | 0.5 | (0.3; 0.9) |
| insomnia | 1009 (13) | 1.9 | (0.6; 5.6) | 701 (11) | 0.4 | (0.2; 0.5) |
| nervousness | 197 (6) | 3.4 | (1.1; 10.1) | 299 (7) | 0.3 | (0.2; 0.7) |
| diarrhoea | 944 (7) | 4.1 | (2.6; 6.5) | 406 (6) | 0.8 | (0.5; 1.5) |
| headache | 830 (12) | 3.1 | (1.3; 7.6) | 586 (11) | 0.6 | (0.4; 0.9) |
aNocebo rates from studies with high rates of female patients (greater than 66.6%) in relation to studies with high rates of male patients (greater than 66.6%); odds ratios higher than one denote higher nocebo rates in men, odds ratios smaller than one denote higher nocebo rates in women; significant effects are denoted in bold.