Efficacy and safety of psychedelics for the treatment of mental disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Su-Xia Li, Dan Guo, Xiu-Jun Zhang, Thomas R Kosten, Yan-Ping Bao, Yuan Yao, Lin Lu, Ying Han, Jie Shi, Tang-Sheng Lu, Fang-Lin Liu, Shi-Hao Huang, Meng-Qi Diao

Journal: Psychiatry research 2024;335():115886

PMID: 38574699

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

We aim to systematically review and meta-analyze the effectiveness and safety of psychedelics [psilocybin, ayahuasca (active component DMT), LSD and MDMA] in treating symptoms of various mental disorders. Web of Science, Embase, EBSCO, and PubMed were searched up to February 2024 and 126 articles were finally included. Results showed that psilocybin has the largest number of articles on treating mood disorders (N = 28), followed by ayahuasca (N = 7) and LSD (N = 6). Overall, psychedelics have therapeutic effects on mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. Specifically, psilocybin (Hedges' g = -1.49, 95% CI [-1.67, -1.30]) showed the strongest therapeutic effect among four psychedelics, followed by ayahuasca (Hedges' g = -1.34, 95% CI [-1.86, -0.82]), MDMA (Hedges' g = -0.83, 95% CI [-1.33, -0.32]), and LSD (Hedges' g = -0.65, 95% CI [-1.03, -0.27]). A small amount of evidence also supports psychedelics improving tobacco addiction, eating disorders, sleep disorders, borderline personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and body dysmorphic disorder. The most common adverse event with psychedelics was headache. Nearly a third of the articles reported that no participants reported lasting adverse effects. Our analyses suggest that psychedelics reduce negative mood, and have potential efficacy in other mental disorders, such as substance-use disorders and PTSD.

Address: National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China; School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, 100191, China.; School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, 100191, China.; National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China.; School of Psychology, College of Public Health, North China University of Science and Technology, Tangshan 063210, Hebei Province, China.; Department of Psychiatry, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.; National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. Electronic address: [email protected].; National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China; Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing 100191, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences and PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Research Unit of Diagnosis and Treatment of Mood Cognitive Disorder, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (No.2018RU006). Electronic address: [email protected].; National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. Electronic address: [email protected].

DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2024.115886

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MeSH Terms: Humans, Hallucinogens, Mental Disorders, Psilocybin, Banisteriopsis, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine