Harris W S, Gowda M, Kolb J W, Strychacz C P, Vacek J L, Jones P G, Forker A, O'Keefe J H, McCallister B D
Mid America Heart Institute, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
Arch Intern Med. 1999 Oct 25;159(19):2273-8. doi: 10.1001/archinte.159.19.2273.
Intercessory prayer (praying for others) has been a common response to sickness for millennia, but it has received little scientific attention. The positive findings of a previous controlled trial of intercessory prayer have yet to be replicated.
To determine whether remote, intercessory prayer for hospitalized, cardiac patients will reduce overall adverse events and length of stay.
Randomized, controlled, double-blind, prospective, parallel-group trial.
Private, university-associated hospital.
Nine hundred ninety consecutive patients who were newly admitted to the coronary care unit (CCU).
At the time of admission, patients were randomized to receive remote, intercessory prayer (prayer group) or not (usual care group). The first names of patients in the prayer group were given to a team of outside intercessors who prayed for them daily for 4 weeks. Patients were unaware that they were being prayed for, and the intercessors did not know and never met the patients.
The medical course from CCU admission to hospital discharge was summarized in a CCU course score derived from blinded, retrospective chart review.
Compared with the usual care group (n = 524), the prayer group (n = 466) had lower mean +/- SEM weighted (6.35 +/- 0.26 vs 7.13 +/- 0.27; P=.04) and unweighted (2.7 +/- 0.1 vs 3.0 +/- 0.1; P=.04) CCU course scores. Lengths of CCU and hospital stays were not different.
Remote, intercessory prayer was associated with lower CCU course scores. This result suggests that prayer may be an effective adjunct to standard medical care.
代祷（为他人祈祷）数千年来一直是人们对疾病的常见反应，但很少受到科学关注。先前一项代祷对照试验的阳性结果尚未得到重复验证。
确定对住院心脏病患者进行远程代祷是否会减少总体不良事件和住院时间。
随机、对照、双盲、前瞻性平行组试验。
一所与大学相关的私立医院。
990例连续新入住冠心病监护病房（CCU）的患者。
入院时，患者被随机分为接受远程代祷组（祈祷组）或不接受远程代祷组（常规护理组）。祈祷组患者的名字被提供给一组外部代祷者，他们每天为这些患者祈祷4周。患者不知道自己正在被祈祷，代祷者也不认识且从未见过这些患者。
通过对盲态回顾性病历审查得出的CCU病程评分来总结从CCU入院到出院的医疗过程。
与常规护理组（n = 524）相比，祈祷组（n = 466）的平均±标准误加权CCU病程评分较低（6.35±0.26对7.13±0.27；P = 0.04），未加权CCU病程评分也较低（2.7±0.1对3.0±0.1；P = 0.04）。CCU住院时间和总住院时间没有差异。
远程代祷与较低的CCU病程评分相关。这一结果表明祈祷可能是标准医疗护理的有效辅助手段。
