Indoleamine Hallucinogens in Cluster Headache: Results of the Clusterbusters Medication Use Survey
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs – October 20, 2015
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Psilocybin and Lysergic acid diethylamide, potent hallucinogens, are rated highly effective for cluster headache, a debilitating pain syndrome. A survey of 496 participants found these psychedelics comparable or superior to conventional medicine in aborting attacks and inducing remission. Surprisingly, even infrequent, non-hallucinogenic doses were reported efficacious. This offers promising insights for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies, particularly within Migraine and Headache Studies, impacting psychiatry and psychology through novel drug studies.
Abstract
Cluster headache is one of the most debilitating pain syndromes. A significant number of patients are refractory to conventional therapies. The Clusterbusters.org medication use survey sought to characterize the effects of both conventional and alternative medications used in cluster headache. Participants were recruited from cluster headache websites and headache clinics. The final analysis included responses from 496 participants. The survey was modeled after previously published surveys and was available online. Most responses were chosen from a list, though others were free-texted. Conventional abortive and preventative medications were identified and their efficacies agreed with those previously published. The indoleamine hallucinogens, psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide, and lysergic acid amide, were comparable to or more efficacious than most conventional medications. These agents were also perceived to shorten/abort a cluster period and bring chronic cluster headache into remission more so than conventional medications. Furthermore, infrequent and non-hallucinogenic doses were reported to be efficacious. Findings provide additional evidence that several indoleamine hallucinogens are rated as effective in treating cluster headache. These data reinforce the need for further investigation of the effects of these and related compounds in cluster headache under experimentally controlled settings.