Psychedelic drugs—a new era in psychiatry?
Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience – June 30, 2019
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Psychoactive drugs like Psilocybin and MDMA (Ecstasy) are experiencing a remarkable resurgence in Psychiatry. Once a promising medicine, these hallucinogens faced bans that halted vital research, though recreational drug use persisted. Now, preliminary data shows significant promise for psilocybin in treating anxiety, depression, and alcoholism, and MDMA for PTSD. Regulatory bodies have approved MDMA for a Phase 3 PTSD trial and psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression, signaling a new era for these psychedelics in medicine and psychology. This renaissance in Drug Studies could revolutionize mental health.
Abstract
This article covers the renaissance of classical psychedelic drugs such as psilocybin and LSD plus 3,4-methylene dioxymethamphetamine (MDMA-ecstasy) in psychiatric research. These drugs were used quite extensively before they became prohibited. This ban had little impact on recreational use, but effectively stopped research and clinical treatments, which up to that point had looked very promising in several areas of psychiatry. In the past decade a number of groups have been working to re-evaluate the utility of these substances in medicine. So far highly promising preliminary data have been produced with psilocybin in anxiety, depression, smoking, alcoholism, and with MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcoholism. These findings have led to the European Medicines Agency approving psilocybin for a phase 3 study in treatment-resistant depression and the Food and Drug Administration for PTSD with MDMA. Both trials should read out in 2020, and if the results are positive we are likely to see these medicines approved for clinical practice soon afterwards. .