2023-10-08 07:45:31
Although many challenges remain to define their clinical benefits and overcome complex regulatory barriers to their use. Lead author Dr. Amir Garakani, MD, of Greenwich Hospital, Conn., and Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, (New Haven, Conn.) comments on the utility of this work for clinical practice : “At a time of growing enthusiasm for the use of certain psychedelic agents to improve the outcomes of mental disorders resistant to standard treatments, psychiatrists need this review of the available evidence.”
The confirmed benefits of psilocybin for treating depression
Effects on the brain: researchers explain how the psychedelic experience affects the brain. Present in certain so-called “magic” mushrooms, psilocybin is a natural psychedelic substance.
Many recent clinical trials have reported its positive effects in the management of psychiatric disorders such as major and treatment-resistant depression. Evidence suggests that therapeutic responses to psilocybin “arises from, or at least goes hand in hand with, an intense emotional or mystical experience.”
Other studies report that psilocybin leads to increased “openness to experience” and psychological flexibility: which encourages patients to “reconsider their perspectives and go beyond their usual thinking patterns”. Finally, most studies support combining psychotherapy with psilocybin treatment: “participants should be encouraged to share their experiences, generate new ideas and change their behaviors”.
Research into the biological effects of psilocybin suggests increased activity between brain networks, changes associated, still 6 months later, with a lasting reduction in depression symptoms.
Regulatory hurdles remain, despite the accumulation of evidence of the substance’s effectiveness. Studies are underway to define appropriate dosages. These studies follow highly controlled protocols and are conducted on carefully selected population groups, with particular attention paid to patient safety. Several indications are being tested, including depression but also cancer-related anxiety and post-traumatic stress syndrome. These numerous ongoing trials on psilocybin demonstrate in themselves all the interest aroused by the substance, comment the researchers.
First authorizations: Earlier this year, Australia’s regulatory agency announced the approval of psilocybin for resistant depression. In the United States, psilocybin has been designated a “breakthrough therapy” for major or resistant depression. But although 2 states have legalized psilocybin, it remains a controlled substance.
A mixed position of learned societies: The American Psychiatric Association states that there is “currently insufficient scientific evidence” to support the use of psychedelics in the treatment of psychiatric disorders…
According to these authors, and their review of the literature, psilocybin confirms its promise as a new therapeutic and offers new perspectives to patients, however it remains to be seen whether clinical, legal and scientific constraints will pave the way for these promises.
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