Effects of psilocybin-assisted therapy on treatment-resistant depression
European Psychiatry April 1, 2021 A. Fraga, Daniel Esteves-Sousa, João Facucho-Oliveira et al. 1 citation
Major depressive disorder affects over 300 million people worldwide, and about one-third of patients do not achieve remission with standard antidepressants, a condition known as treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Psilocybin, a classic hallucinogen from Psilocybe mushrooms, acts on serotonergic and glutamatergic systems. A narrative literature review of two clinical trials involving 32 patients with TRD found that two doses of psilocybin combined with psychological support significantly reduced depressive symptoms. All patients showed some symptom reduction one week after the second dose, with immediate and substantial improvements that could last up to six months. Due to small sample sizes, further research is needed to confirm these findings and understand psilocybin's mechanisms.