Psilocybin and MDMA for the treatment of trauma-related psychopathology
Open Access
- 3 April 2021
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in International Review of Psychiatry
- Vol. 33 (3), 229-249
- https://doi.org/10.1080/09540261.2021.1919062
Abstract
This review examines the role of trauma in psychiatric morbidity and analogous psychoneurobiological changes. Trauma is a necessary criterion for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), however, trauma history is highly correlated with a variety of psychiatric conditions. Some evidence suggests that Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is the most common psychiatric condition that arises following trauma. Approximately 50% of PTSD cases present with co-morbid MDD. Overlapping symptomatology and neurobiology between these conditions underlie the debate over whether these phenomena result from problematic nosology or whether comorbid MDD + PTSD is a distinct phenotype of trauma-related psychopathology. Regardless, similar treatment approaches have been employed historically, with varying success. The drug-assisted psychotherapy treatment model, which combines pharmacological and psychotherapeutic approaches, is currently being trialled as a novel treatment approach in psychiatry. Both psilocybin- and 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy have received Food and Drug Administration ‘breakthrough therapy’ designation for the treatment of resistant MDD and PTSD, respectively. This paper reviews the therapeutic rationale of both psilocybin and MDMA for treating both trauma-related MDD and PTSD.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Institute for Health Research (CS-2017-17-007)
This publication has 155 references indexed in Scilit:
- Prevalence of interpersonal trauma exposure and trauma-related disorders in severe mental illnessEuropean Journal of Psychotraumatology, 2013
- Symptom overlap in posttraumatic stress disorder and major depressionPsychiatry Research, 2012
- Childhood trauma history differentiates amygdala response to sad faces within MDDJournal of Psychiatric Research, 2011
- Is Ecstasy an “Empathogen”? Effects of ±3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine on Prosocial Feelings and Identification of Emotional States in OthersBiological Psychiatry, 2010
- Race/ethnic differences in exposure to traumatic events, development of post-traumatic stress disorder, and treatment-seeking for post-traumatic stress disorder in the United StatesPsychological Medicine, 2010
- Role of psychological trauma in the cause and treatment of anxiety and depressive disordersCurrent Opinion in Psychiatry, 2010
- Childhood adversity, adult stressful life events, and risk of past-year psychiatric disorder: a test of the stress sensitization hypothesis in a population-based sample of adultsPsychological Medicine, 2009
- Effects of MDMA on sociability and neural response to social threat and social rewardPsychopharmacology, 2009
- Persisting posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and their relationship to functioning in Vietnam veterans: A 14‐year follow‐upJournal of Traumatic Stress, 2008
- Social Bonds and Posttraumatic Stress DisorderAnnual Review of Psychology, 2008