BMJ 2002;324:1037 ( 27 April )

Letters

Effect of retroactive intercessory prayer

    Cautious approach is needed
    Paper proves power of statistics, not prayer
    "You cannae break the laws of physics, Captain"
    Hope should never be squashed by being told that things cannot happen
    All randomised controlled trials require informed consent
    Competing interests on religious conviction or spirituality may be important
    Correspondents showed misapprehension of principle
    Outcome of this experiment offers little comfort
    Author's reply

Cautious approach is needed

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR---Leibovici used rigorous scientific method in his study to explore the role of intercessory prayer in health care.1 Using a randomised controlled trial design with a large group of patients and selecting a range of appropriate outcome measures, he showed a significant difference in length of stay and duration of fever and concluded that prayer may be a useful treatment.

These results, however, need to be interpreted with caution. There was no significant difference between the two groups with regard to the most clinically important outcome (mortality), and the median values varied little between prayer and non-prayer on both length of stay (seven and eight days) and duration of fever (two days each). The religious affiliation of the person saying the prayer is not given. Many religious groups do not accept the power of prayer given by those with different beliefs. If real, the effect of prayer shown . . . [Full text of this article]
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Relevant Article

Effects of remote, retroactive intercessory prayer on outcomes in patients with bloodstream infection: randomised controlled trial
Leonard Leibovici
BMJ 2001 323: 1450-1451. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Turner, D D (2006). Just another drug? A philosophical assessment of randomised controlled studies on intercessory prayer.. J. Med. Ethics 32: 487-490 [Abstract] [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Correction: 25-30%, not 50-100%
Riccardo Baschetti
bmj.com, 29 Apr 2002 [Full text]
God smiles about study
Danja Klaes, Dr. med., et al.
bmj.com, 15 May 2002 [Full text]
żIs Science Sacred?
Jose L Gonzalez de Rivera
bmj.com, 23 Jun 2002 [Full text]
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