Depression, impulsiveness, sleep, and memory in past and present polydrug users of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy).
Lynn Taurah, Chris Chandler, Geoff Sanders
Psychopharmacology February 2014 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-013-3288-1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 997 |
| Population | Recreational drug users and controls, including present and past ecstasy users and non-drug, alcohol/nicotine, cannabis/alcohol/nicotine, and non-ecstasy polydrug control groups |
| Duration | Abstinence of 4 or more years (mean 4.98, range 4-9 years) for past users |
| Measures | Drug history questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised |
| Topics | Depression MDMA |
| Key findings | Present and past ecstasy users showed greater deficits than all control groups on 10 of 13 psychometric measures, including memory, depression, impulsiveness, and sleep. Past users, despite a mean 4.98 years of abstinence, showed little recovery: no change on 10 measures, increased impairment on two, and improvement on one. |
Abstract
Ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, MDMA) is a worldwide recreational drug of abuse. Unfortunately, the results from human research investigating its psychological effects have been inconsistent. The present study aimed to be the largest to date in sample size and 5HT-related behaviors; the first to compare present ecstasy users with past users after an abstinence of 4 or more years, and the first to include robust controls for other recreational substances. A sample of 997 participants (52 % male) was recruited to four control groups (non-drug (ND), alcohol/nicotine (AN), cannabis/alcohol/nicotine (CAN), non-ecstasy polydrug (PD)), and two ecstasy polydrug groups (present (MDMA) and past users (EX-MDMA). Participants completed a drug history questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised which, in total, provided 13 psychometric measures. While the CAN and PD groups tended to record greater deficits than the non-drug controls, the MDMA and EX-MDMA groups recorded greater deficits than all the control groups on ten of the 13 psychometric measures. Strikingly, despite prolonged abstinence (mean, 4.98; range, 4-9 years), past ecstasy users showed few signs of recovery. Compared with present ecstasy users, the past users showed no change for ten measures, increased impairment for two measures, and improvement on just one measure. Given this record of impaired memory and clinically significant levels of depression, impulsiveness, and sleep disturbance, the prognosis for the current generation of ecstasy users is a major cause for concern.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on MDMA for depression, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major depression: the relative contribution of gender, MDMA, and cannabis use MDMA users (65% male) with an average of 35.8 lifetime uses | 2007 | Cross-sectional study | n = 226 |
| Attitudes toward psychedelics and psychedelic-assisted therapy among potential mental health service users and the general population in Australia. Australians, including individuals with and without self-identified mental illness | 2024 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 502 |
| Anxiety and depression symptoms in Brazilian sexual minority ecstasy and LSD users Young Brazilian adults who used ecstasy and/or LSD in the past 90 days and were not in... | 2017 | Cross-sectional study | n = 240 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 15
- Separating the agony from ecstasy: R(−)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine has prosocial and therapeutic-like effects without signs of neurotoxicity in mice Neuropharmacology October 6, 2017
- MDMA, cortisol, and heightened stress in recreational ecstasy users Behavioural Pharmacology July 11, 2014
- Oxytocin, cortisol and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine: neurohormonal aspects of recreational ‘ecstasy’ Behavioural Pharmacology December 1, 2016
- Mood Fluctuation and Psychobiological Instability: The Same Core Functions Are Disrupted by Novel Psychoactive Substances and Established Recreational Drugs Brain Sciences March 13, 2018
- Acute effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and R(-) MDMA on actigraphy-based daytime activity and sleep parameters in rhesus monkeys. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology June 25, 2018
and 10 more in the library
Cites 22
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- Altered Serotonin Innervation Patterns in the Forebrain of Monkeys Treated with (±)3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Seven Years Previously: Factors Influencing Abnormal Recovery Journal of Neuroscience June 15, 1999
- (±)3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (‘Ecstasy’)-Induced Serotonin Neurotoxicity: Studies in Animals Neuropsychobiology 2000
- Mood and cognitive effects of ± 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ‘ecstasy’): week‐end ‘high’ followed by mid‐week low Addiction July 1, 1997
- Reorganization of ascending 5-HT axon projections in animals previously exposed to the recreational drug (+/-)3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "ecstasy") Journal of Neuroscience August 1, 1995
and 17 more in the library