Dialogues in clinical neuroscienceOct 23, 2019

Psychedelic drugs and their potential role in modern psychiatry

Psychedelic Science Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗OA ↗

Updated Apr 1, 2026

Abstract

Preliminary data suggest that psilocybin and may be effective in treating several psychiatric conditions.

drugs like psilocybin and MDMA have been reconsidered in psychiatric research after a long period of prohibition.
Research indicates promising results for psilocybin in treating anxiety, depression, and alcoholism.
MDMA shows potential in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcoholism.
The European Medicines Agency has approved psilocybin for a phase 3 study in treatment-resistant depression.
The Food and Drug Administration has approved MDMA for a phase 3 study in PTSD.
Positive outcomes from these trials could lead to clinical approval of these substances.

Simplified

This article covers the renaissance of classical drugs such as psilocybin and LSD plus 3,4-methylene dioxymethamphetamine (-ecstasy) in psychiatric research. These drugs were used quite extensively before they became prohibited. This ban had little impact on recreational use, but effectively stopped research and clinical treatments, which up to that point had looked very promising in several areas of psychiatry. In the past decade a number of groups have been working to re-evaluate the utility of these substances in medicine. So far highly promising preliminary data have been produced with psilocybin in anxiety, depression, smoking, alcoholism, and with MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcoholism. These findings have led to the European Medicines Agency approving psilocybin for a phase 3 study in treatment-resistant depression and the Food and Drug Administration for PTSD with MDMA. Both trials should read out in 2020, and if the results are positive we are likely to see these medicines approved for clinical practice soon afterwards. .

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Psychedelic drugs and their potential role in modern psychiatry

Abstract

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