Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
Complementary Alternative Cardiovascular Medicine
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Chapter 9 /Prayer and CVD 147<br />
who rotated the patients in this study were Jewish, Christian, Buddhist,<br />
Native American, and of shamanic traditions and also included “graduates<br />
of secular schools of bioenergetic and meditative healing.” The<br />
patients and their physicians did not know whether they received the<br />
interventions. The group receiving distant healing experienced fewer<br />
hospitalizations with fewer days spent in the hospital, fewer outpatient<br />
doctor visits, fewer new AIDS-defining diseases, and a lower illness<br />
severity level. This group also had significantly improved mood compared<br />
with the control group. There was no difference found in CD4<br />
counts.<br />
Perhaps one of the most intriguing trials of intercessory prayer occurred<br />
in a clinic for women undergoing in vitro fertilization (18). In this study<br />
conducted in Korea, 219 women in a fertility clinic receiving in vitro<br />
fertilization-embryo transfer were randomly assigned to receive either<br />
distant intercessory prayer or no outside prayer in addition to standard<br />
care. In this trial, neither the patients nor their providers were aware that<br />
a trial was being conducted; therfore, informed consent was not obtained.<br />
As with the Harris study noted above, the hospital’s IRB agreed to the<br />
protocol, given the apparent lack of potential harm. To conduct the study,<br />
patient photographs were e-mailed to a central location in the United<br />
States, where the randomization was performed. This study used a twotiered<br />
system of prayer—the first group of intercessors prayed for a<br />
successful pregnancy for the patients to whom they were assigned,<br />
whereas a second group prayed for the success of the first group’s prayers,<br />
as “prayer amplifiers.”<br />
The results of this study were striking—the group receiving the prayer<br />
intervention had a significantly higher pregnancy rate compared to the<br />
controls (50% vs 26%, p = 0.0013). The implantation rate of embryos<br />
was also significantly higher in the patients receiving prayer (16.3% vs<br />
8%, p = 0.0005). The authors had no other explanations to account for<br />
their findings and suggested a repeat study to validate their results.<br />
FUTURE DIRECTIONS IN HEALING PRAYER STUDIES<br />
Although the application of prayer for healing purposes is an ancient<br />
cultural practice in traditions throughout the world, the scientific literature<br />
addressing this area can only be regarded as immature. There is no<br />
definitive weight of evidence that could support changes in practice<br />
standards or guidelines in cardiology or any other medical discipline.<br />
With any newly evolving area of medical research, one of the first points<br />
of concentration in planning future clinical trials is the development of<br />
well-defined, common nomenclature for key descriptors, methodologic<br />
variables, and end-point measures.