A Clinical Study of LSD Treatment in Alcoholism
American Journal of Psychiatry – July 01, 1969
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
In a study involving 176 male alcoholic patients, various LSD treatment procedures were compared against a control group receiving no therapy. Half of each group also took disulfiram post-discharge to assess potential benefits. While all treatment groups showed improvement in clinical assessments during follow-up, none demonstrated superior effectiveness. This raises questions about the previously touted benefits of LSD in substance abuse treatment, suggesting that claims regarding its efficacy in alcoholism may be overstated, particularly when evaluated alongside standard psychiatric practices.
Abstract
One hundred seventy-six male alcoholic patients participated in a controlled investigation of the differential efficacy of three LSD treatment procedures and a "no therapy," or milieu treatment, condition. Half of each group was also assigned to disulfiram after discharge from the hospital to determine whether any of these techniques could be enhanced by its use. Although significant improvement was shown within all treatment groups as measured by a number of clinical assessments in the post-treatment and follow-up periods, no one treatment condition proved to be superior. The authors conclude that the dramatic claims for the efficacy of LSD treatment in alcoholism are unjustified.