High dose of psilocybin effective for treatment‐resistant depression
The Brown University Psychopharmacology Update – December 27, 2022
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
A single 25-mg dose of the hallucinogen psilocybin significantly improved symptoms for adults with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder within three weeks. Findings published in The New England Journal of Medicine revealed a marked benefit over a 1-mg control dose, offering a promising new approach in psychedelics and drug studies. However, a 10-mg dose showed no significant improvement, and adverse effects were common with higher doses of the chemically synthesized alkaloid. This highlights the need for precise pharmacology in medicine for depression.
Abstract
Adults with treatment‐resistant depression who received a single 25‐mg dose of psilocybin saw significant improvement in depressive symptoms relative to a control dose at 3 weeks, a Phase 2b trial has found. A smaller 10‐mg dose of psilocybin did not result in significant improvement over the control dose of 1 mg, and adverse events were common in both of the higher‐dose groups. Study results were published in the Nov. 3, 2022 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine .