Mind-body medicine encompasses different treatment modalities, all focusing on interactions between the mind and the body, with the intent to using the mind to affect physical functioning and promote health. Our objective was to summarise the current evidence on four mind-body therapies that have been evaluated extensively for their efficacy in paediatrics:hypnotherapy/guided imagery, meditation, music therapy and yoga. A Medline search was undertaken of all reports and reviews published between 1990 and 2011 on the above-mentioned mind-body modalities. Hypnotherapy and guided imagery are shown to be effective in reducing acute pain during medical procedures as well as chronic pain in functional gastro-intestinal disorders. Benefits of meditation have been reported for mental-health problems, high blood pressure, behavioural problems and learning disabilities. Music therapy appears to be a promising adjunct to the treatment of children undergoing painful or potentially fear-inducing procedures. Positive effects of yoga have been shown in persons with mental-health problems, eating disorders and irritable bowel syndrome. There is considerable evidence that mind-body interventions have mild to moderate effects on physical symptoms, psychological functioning and QoL, and may be particularly helpful for children coping with acute pain (e.g. due to clinical procedures), chronic abdominal pain due to irritable bowel syndrome, and mental-health problems.
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