A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Investigating the Efficacy of Various Psychedelic Drugs for the Treatment of Substance Use Disorder.
Eve E. Keighley, Eid Abo Hamza, Dalia A Bedewy, Shahed Nalla, Ahmed A. Moustafa
Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) October 23, 2025 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare13212668 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Human beings with a substance use disorder |
| Interventions | LSD psilocybin ketamine ibogaine |
| Topics | Addiction Ibogaine Psilocybin |
| Keywords | Psychedelic treatment Substance misuse Ibogaine therapy Psilocybin research |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key findings | Psychedelic drugs are effective for treating substance use disorder, with ibogaine showing the most prominent effect, and no significant difference between treatment with or without psychotherapy. |
Abstract
Objectives: This study investigates psychedelic drugs to treat substance use disorder (SUD). Researchers have recently begun conducting clinical trials of psychedelic treatment for SUD. The current meta-analysis investigates the extent of efficacy in alleviating SM behaviours (P) using psychedelic therapy (I), concurrent with determining which psychedelic enables the greatest effect (C) as a treatment tool for reducing SUD (O).
Methods: The inclusion criteria in this study include evaluating the efficacy of LSD, psilocybin, ketamine, or ibogaine in human beings with an SUD. The exclusion criteria include studies on rodents, patients with schizophrenia, case studies, incomplete or ongoing trials, and studies with insufficient quantitative data. The search criteria obtained 1278 articles, acquired through PubMed and PsycINFO. After excluding literature, 30 papers were kept in the final meta-analysis. A random-effects model analysis was applied to investigate individual psychedelic interventions, with a corresponding combined psychedelic intervention analysis.
Results: The results favoured psychedelics as an SM treatment, with ibogaine evidencing the most prominent. We also found a non-significant difference between the effectiveness of psychedelic treatment paired with psychotherapy and psychedelic treatment alone. This study aims to contribute knowledge to future clinical research on the psychedelic treatment of SUD.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on ibogaine for addiction, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A systematic literature review of clinical trials and therapeutic applications of ibogaine. Individuals receiving ibogaine or noribogaine for substance use disorders | 2022 | Systematic review | n = 705 |
| Ibogaine and addiction in the animal model, a systematic review and meta-analysis. Animals in studies of substance use disorders | 2016 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | n = 27 |
| The antiaddictive effects of ibogaine: A systematic literature review of human studies Human studies assessing antiaddictive effects of ibogaine | 2017 | Systematic review | n = 8 |
| Ibogaine/Noribogaine in the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders: ASystematic Review of the Current Literature | 2022 | Systematic review | |
| The therapeutic effects of psychedelics for opioid use disorder: A systematic review of clinical studies. | 2025 | Systematic review |