Background: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects approximately 5-7% of the population, with conventional treatments often proving inadequate for some patients. Recent studies suggest that methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) combined with psychotherapy may offer a novel therapeutic approach. This systematic review evaluates the efficacy and safety of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for the...
MDMA, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (“ecstasy,” “molly”), is a distinctive entactogen that reverses the serotonin (5-HT) transporter to increase synaptic 5-HT, while also engaging catecholaminergic and oxytocinergic pathways. In clinical trials, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy has yielded substantial improvements in treatment-resistant posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although regulatory...
MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) shows promise, but attitudes and beliefs about this treatment, especially in symptomatic veterans, remain poorly understood. We sought to explore relevant attitudes in veterans receiving healthcare from Veterans Affairs as a step toward designing relevant surveys or psychoeducation materials for future work. We employed a...
Abstract Objective This study sought to evaluate the efficacy of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) on symptoms of posttraumatic stress, depression, anxiety, and perceived stress and quality of life in unstably-housed women undergoing substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. Despite the potential for MBSR to be a helpful adjunct to ongoing care, prior research on the benefit of MBSR in...
CureusOctober 1, 2025Xinmin Jiang, Minghui Zhang, Jiaqi Wang et al.
This meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) on the treatment and improvement of traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Up until February 6, 2025, PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase databases were searched for randomized controlled trials of MBSR-based treatment for PTSD patients. RevMan 5.4 software (The Cochrane Collaboration, London, UK)...
Given the close link between cardiovascular disease and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), it is appropriate to focus on the symptoms of PTSD throughout the cardiology care pathway. The aim of the study presented here, which involved 67 patients, was to integrate an intervention based on mindfulness meditation into a cardiovascular rehabilitation programme and then to assess its impact on...
After years of restrictions due to concerns about their potentially harmful effects, research on psychedelics has entered a new era. Increasing attention has been directed toward their immense therapeutic potential, particularly for psychiatric disorders. Pre-clinical and clinical studies have consistently demonstrated that psychedelic treatments produce therapeutic effects within hours of...
We provide preliminary support for the efficacy and tolerability of i.m. ketamine in a community sample of individuals with PTSD. Further work is required to establish the optimal dosing regimen and longer-term role of ketamine in treatment of PTSD, but our findings are encouraging given the well-known of treatments in this area.
Advanced ScienceSeptember 25, 2025Ye Wang, Lei Liu, Jinghao Wang et al.2 citations
Current pharmacotherapies for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are limited by delayed onset and side effects. Despite ketamine exhibiting rapid relief of the core symptoms of PTSD, its clinical efficacy varies considerably depending on the timing of drug delivery. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, the therapeutic effects of early (day 1) and late (day 7)...
Brief mindfulness training can help veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) learn essential skills to manage distressing emotions and thoughts. This study sought to (a) refine the content of Primary Care Brief Mindfulness Training (PCBMT) to address PTSD symptoms and recovery, (b) improve the feasibility of training Veterans Health Administration staff to facilitate mindfulness...
September 7, 2025Mathew Herbert, Brian H. Blanco, Dimitri Perivoliotis et al.
preprint
There is promise for 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assistedpsychotherapy as a highly effective and durable treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder(PTSD). However, the Food and Drug Administration rejected MDMA-assisted psychotherapy inits current form, expressing concerns about the lack of standardization and empirical basis ofpsychotherapy methods. This highlights the need to...
Professor Gregor Hasler stands at the forefront of revolutionary psychedelic research and neuroplasticity studies, transforming our understanding of mental health treatment through groundbreaking scientific discoveries. As Chair of Psychiatry at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, where he directs the Molecular Psychiatry Lab, Hasler has pioneered research on how psychedelics like LSD,...
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) presents severe symptomology and often co-occurs with depression, warranting novel treatment approaches to address both conditions simultaneously. Ketamine has emerged as a rapid antidepressant and potential treatment for PTSD, with some real-world evidence for effectiveness regardless of comorbidities. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to explore...
Background: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition for which there are few efficacious treatments. Psilocybin is being studied for use in treatment-resistant depression but has not yet been investigated in PTSD. Aims: The trial’s primary outcome was to investigate the safety and tolerability of single-dose psilocybin in participants with PTSD. Methods: This was a...
ABSTRACT The war in Ukraine has led to widespread trauma, with 6.4 million people suffering from severe, chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study evaluates the cost‐effectiveness and societal impact of implementing modified group MDMA‐assisted therapy (MAT), with supplemental individual therapy for PTSD treatment in Ukraine. Using a decision analysis model, we estimated clinical...
OBJECTIVE The study evaluated the effectiveness of Ketamine Intravenous Therapy (KIT) in reducing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression symptoms, using electronic health record data from outpatient psychiatric patients with PTSD. METHOD We analyzed data from 8,136 patients diagnosed with PTSD, 87 % (N = 7,070) of whom also had comorbid depression. Symptom severity was measured...
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become one of the most common psychiatric diagnosis in the United States specifically within the veteran population. The current treatment options for this debilitating diagnosis include trauma-focused psychotherapies along with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI). 1 MDMA has recently...
Traditional trauma-focused psychotherapies (TFPs) were developed based on an anxiety disorder model of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, PTSD is a more complex disorder with heterogeneous onset, presentation, trajectory, and treatment responsivity. As half of treated patients do not respond to first-line treatments, innovative therapies are emerging to improve outcomes. This...
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe, often difficult-to-treat condition, highlighting the need for innovative therapies. Interventional treatments, including neuromodulation, rapid-acting pharmacotherapies such as intravenous ketamine (IV-KET) and esketamine (ESK), and emerging psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies, offer promising solutions. This systematic review evaluates the...
This commentary examines a recent Lykos Therapeutics-funded cost-effectiveness analysis of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD following FDA's 2024 decision to decline approval. While methodologically rigorous in its use of empirical trial data, the study has two critical limitations that undermine its relevance to healthcare decision-makers: an inappropriate comparison to placebo-based therapy...