Alexander of Tralles and the first portrayal of a placebo by illusion in the 6th century AD

The application of the placebo effect remains controversial but continually deliberated in modern healthcare practice. It is defined as a ‘‘therapeutical intervention aimed at pleasing the patient rather than exerting a specific effect.’’ It received prominence as a well-characterized medical effect in the 20th century,
although to date it has generally been considered to derive from a practice that began in the late 18th century following the work of the French surgeon Ambroise Pare ́ (1510–1590).