The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) established the Integrative Health Coordinating Center (IHCC) with the Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation (OPCC&CT) to aid in development and implementation of complementary and integrative health (CIH) strategies across the VHA. This topic was nominated by Dr. Ben Kligler, National Director of the Coordinating Center for Integrative Health (IHCC) and Laura Krejci, Associate Director of the Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation (OPCC&CT). The purpose of this report is to provide a broad overview of the effectiveness of guided imagery, biofeedback, and hypnosis, and the health conditions for which these interventions have been examined in systematic reviews, in the form of evidence maps. The evidence maps will be used to guide and support decision-making about these treatment modalities in the VHA.

Contents

• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Executive Summary
  • Introduction
  • Methods
  • Results
  • Discussion
  • Abbreviations Table
• Introduction
• Methods
  • Topic Development
  • Search Strategy
  • Study Selection
  • Data Abstraction
  • Quality Assessment
  • Data Synthesis
  • Rating the Body of Evidence
  • Peer Review
• Results
  • Literature Flow
  • KEY QUESTION 1. In which populations has guided imagery been examined, and what is the evidence of effectiveness and harms in each of these populations?
  • KEY QUESTION 2. In which populations has biofeedback been examined, and what is the evidence of effectiveness and harms in each of these populations?
  • KEY QUESTION 3. In which populations has hypnosis been examined, and what is the evidence of effectiveness and harms in each of these populations?
• Summary and Discussion
  • Limitations
  • Research Gaps/Future Research
  • Conclusions
• References
• APPENDIX A. Search Strategies
• APPENDIX B. Study Selection
• APPENDIX C. Assessment of Confidence in the Evidence from Systematic Reviews of Guided Imagery, Biofeedback, and Hypnosis
• APPENDIX D. Findings of Included Systematic Reviews
• APPENDIX E. Peer Reviewer Comments and Author Responses

Suggested citation:

Freeman M, Ayers C, Kondo K, Noonan K, O’Neil M, Morasco B, and Kansagara D. Guided imagery, Biofeedback, and Hypnosis: A Map of the Evidence. VA ESP Project #05-225; 2019. Posted final reports are located on the ESP search page.

This report is based on research conducted by the Evidence Synthesis Program (ESP) Center located at the VA Portland Healthcare System, Portland, OR, funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Health Services Research and Development. The findings and conclusions in this document are those of the author(s) who are responsible for its contents; the findings and conclusions do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States government. Therefore, no statement in this article should be construed as an official position of the Department of Veterans Affairs. No investigators have any affiliations or financial involvement (eg, employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties) that conflict with material presented in the report.