Use of Psychedelics for Pain: A Scoping Review.
Anesthesiology October 1, 2023 Akash Goel, Yeshith Rai, Shayan Sivadas et al. 29 citations
Chronic pain affects about 1.5 billion people worldwide. Current treatments like opioids and non-opioid drugs can cause side effects, addiction, or fail to relieve pain. Psychedelics such as LSD and psilocybin may alter pain perception through serotonin receptor activation, anti-inflammatory effects, and synaptic remodeling. This scoping review identified 21 human studies on psychedelics for pain. Few clinical trials exist, and sample sizes are small, limiting clinical use. Overall, psychedelics show promise for analgesia in certain headache disorders and cancer pain. Future research should examine combining psychotherapy with psychedelics for chronic pain.