From taboo to treatment: The emergence of psychedelics in the management of pain and opioid use disorder.
British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology December 1, 2024 Jeremy Weleff, Julio C Nunes, Gabriel P. A. Costa et al. 8 citations
Chronic pain and opioid use disorder (OUD) are two interconnected public health crises that lack effective treatments. This review examines whether psychedelics could serve as novel therapeutics by acting on shared brain mechanisms underlying both conditions. Preclinical and human evidence suggests psychedelics may reverse pain- and opioid-induced neuroadaptations like central sensitization. The authors map how psychedelics could modulate overlapping dimensions of pain (sensory, affective, cognitive) and opioid-related phenomena (craving, withdrawal). They note a scarcity of controlled studies but propose mechanistic insights and methodological guidelines for future clinical trials. The goal is to accelerate development of alternatives to opioids amid the escalating crisis.