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Published online 13 November 2008 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2008.1229
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Illegal drug shows promise in treating trauma symptoms
MDMA may boost the benefits of psychotherapy, trial suggests.
The controversial drug MDMA - known to recreational users as 'ecstasy' - can help ease the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the first phase-II clinical trial into the potential therapeutic benefits of using the drug as an adjunct to psychotherapy.
Most patients in the trial who were given psychotherapy treatment along with doses of MDMA (3, 4-methylenedioxy-N-methyl amphetamine) experienced statistically significant reductions in the severity of their condition after two months, compared with a control group who received psychotherapy and a placebo.
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Abuse usability factor should always be put into consideration in this drug as it might post more physiological disorder cascades..
These results are so "brilliant" that one should take great care and be very cautious before believing all that sunshine and jump to (dangerous) conclusions. If these 23 patients were really "therapy resistant" it is remarkable that 1/4 of them got better after just placebo sessions. How was therapy resistance defined ? We have no details about the study (randomization and allocation scheme: was this a real RCT study ? Deviations from RCT blinding and randomization are well known to add substantially to the outcome weighting of the test-product. Although every therapy that could help patients with PTSD is worth considering here I would advise to be really very cautious and not shout victory or preemptively open the gates of our clinics to MBMA. The funding agency is not really what one could call "neutral". Dr. G. Otte neuropsychiatrist Belgium