mesmerism /mez″məriz′əm/ [Franz A. Mesmer, Austrian physician, 1734–1815] , a practice of hypnotism introduced by Mesmer, who believed human health was affected by “celestial magnetic forces.” Some patients were reported cured or experienced diminished symptoms by undergoing a “grand crisis,” or seizure, while under hypnosis. Mesmer was regarded as a fraud by the medical profession, but his work led to serious studies of the health effects of the power of suggestion.
