The importance of differentiating behavioural and psychological treatment effects from placebo in respiratory interventions

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We read with interest the piece by Pattinson and Wanigasekera [1], discussing the clinical implications of the recent trial reported by Currow et al. [2], which demonstrated parity between sertraline and placebo for improving breathlessness intensity. In particular, Pattinson and Wanigasekera [1] noted that differential response expectations can potentially confound outcomes between otherwise balanced intervention versus placebo-controlled groups. Such expectations have clinical implications: the management of response expectations should be examined and potentially harnessed to improve treatment outcomes for patients with chronic breathlessness, as suggested by Similowski and Serresse [3].