A combination of the plant-derived compound ibogaine with magnesium, given alongside complementary treatments, led to large improvements in functioning, PTSD, depression, and anxiety in 30 male Special Operations Forces veterans with mild traumatic brain injury. Functioning improved significantly both immediately after treatment and one month later, with very large effects on PTSD, depression, and anxiety at one month. No serious adverse events occurred. The authors call for controlled trials to confirm these initial open-label findings.
A 37-year-old woman with a 19-year history of severe opioid use disorder, who had never achieved more than two months of continuous abstinence while on methadone, maintained an ongoing 18-month period of abstinence after a four-day ibogaine treatment. No safety issues were observed. The authors suggest that ibogaine may produce transformative experiences that lead to long-term remission in some treatment-refractory patients, but rigorous trials are needed to establish safety and efficacy.
Ibogaine, a naturally occurring psychedelic medicine, may help treat opioid use disorder by reducing withdrawal symptoms and supporting abstinence. A case series of two individuals who accessed ibogaine through unregulated clinics in Vancouver found that one client achieved total abstinence from all opioids within 5–6 days of starting treatment, experienced no withdrawal symptoms, and remained abstinent for 3 years. The second patient stopped non-medical opioids after the first treatment and used ibogaine to reduce opioid agonist therapy, maintaining abstinence for 2 years. The psychoactive experience may also help realign values and reduce depression, though further studies are needed to establish safety and efficacy.
A 53-year-old man with two decades of severe, intractable neuropathic pain from brachial plexus nerve root avulsion due to vehicular trauma was successfully treated with both high-dose inpatient and low-dose outpatient ibogaine. Ibogaine, an indole alkaloid, acts on multiple neurotransmitter systems (NMDA, κ- and µ-opioid, σ2 receptors) and stimulates neurotrophic factors GDNF and BDNF. While promising, the adverse effects of high-dose ibogaine may limit its tolerability to the most refractory cases.