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The following is a summary of “A randomized clinical trial of emotional freedom techniques for chronic pain: Live versus self-paced delivery with 6-month follow-up,” published in the October 2024 issue of Pain by Stapleton et al. 

Chronic pain was a major global healthcare issue, while existing treatments had limited effectiveness and safety, leading to interest in Emotional freedom techniques (EFTs) as a psychological solution.  

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to analyze the effects of a randomized clinical trial of EFT on chronic pain.  

They examined a group of 147 adults with chronic pain (89.9% female; mean age 54.63 years) who participated in a 6-week EFT program, either self-paced online or in-person.  

The results showed pain severity and interference scores were quite low in the EFT group compared to the waitlist, both at the end of treatment and follow-up. There were no differences between in-person and self-paced programs for pain severity and interference at follow-up. Somatic symptoms were lower after EFT but not at follow-up. QoL scores were increased after EFT, sustained at follow-up, with no differences between programme styles. Anxiety, depression, happiness, and satisfaction with life showed no effects across the 6-week programmes for either style of delivery or at follow-up and discussed in terms of clinical score meanings. The intent-to-treat analysis was constant with the per-protocol analyses. 

Investigators concluded EFT as an effective pain management strategy and supported the online interventions without compromising the treatment outcomes. 

Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejp.4740