Psychiatria polska
August 31, 2022
Sandra Szafoni, Gniewko Więckiewicz, Robert Pudło et al.
9 citations
MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD shows promise in clinical trials, with the FDA granting breakthrough therapy designation based on earlier results. The treatment combines MDMA's pharmacological effects—enhancing fear extinction, increasing oxytocin and trust, and reducing amygdala reactivity—with specific psychotherapeutic methods. If ongoing phase 3 trials meet efficacy criteria, FDA approval could come as early as 2022. The article reviews mechanisms of action, therapeutic rationale, and potential dangers of this approach, which revisits a previously banned psychoactive substance to address the limited effectiveness of current PTSD treatments.
Psychiatria polska
June 30, 2024
Piotr Gałecki, Katarzyna Maria Bliźniewska-Kowalska, Wiesław Jerzy Cubała et al.
5 citations
A Polish expert panel developed national treatment standards for intravenous racemic ketamine in depressive disorders, addressing the one-third of depressed patients who do not respond to standard antidepressants. The guidelines summarize research on ketamine's efficacy and safety for unipolar and bipolar depression, leveraging its action as an NMDA receptor antagonist to modulate the overactive glutamatergic system implicated in depression. The recommendations cover indications, contraindications, precautions, and treatment protocols, aiming to expand therapeutic options for practicing psychiatrists.
Psychiatria polska
October 31, 2022
Gniewko Więckiewicz, Dariusz Danel, Magdalena Piegza et al.
2 citations
MDMA is commonly used worldwide, but little is known about recreational users' demographics and health. A survey of 304 Polish adults who use MDMA found the drug is widespread among young adults across genders and places of residence. Users take MDMA in pill or crystal form, rarely test drugs from dealers, and most feel MDMA has positively affected their lives. MDMA is seldom used alone; users rate their health higher than those using other psychoactive substances.
Psychiatria polska
June 30, 2024
Janusz Rybakowski, Filip Rybakowski
Consciousness is often defined as subjective experience of mental processes. This article first reviews evolutionary concepts of consciousness from scientists including Joseph LeDoux, Daniel Dennett, António Damásio, and Arthur Reber, who each offer slightly different views on how consciousness evolved alongside the nervous system and mental life. The second part discusses recent research on cognitive and neurobiological components of consciousness, focusing on work by Chris Frith and Anil Seth, covering neuroanatomical and perceptual aspects of both the level and context of consciousness. The article also aims to introduce prominent neuroscience researchers.
Psychiatria polska
June 30, 2023
Askaniusz Jachimowski, Krzysztof Kucia
Psychedelic substances have been used in traditional healing for centuries and sparked a first wave of Western research after LSD was synthesized, showing promising therapeutic effects when added to psychotherapy. Legal and political pressures halted all studies in the 1970s. Over the last two decades, clinical research has revived, indicating potential benefits for anxiety, affective disorders, and addictions, with no serious side effects reported so far. However, creating a psychiatric drug with psychedelic properties faces medical and legal barriers, and larger, well-designed studies are needed to determine whether psychedelics can become a practical treatment or breakthrough for mental disorders.