MDMA-assisted therapy is associated with a reduction in chronic pain among people with post-traumatic stress disorder

Abstract

IntroductionIncreasing evidence demonstrates 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) may be a safe and effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There is growing interest in MDMA-AT to address a range of other health challenges. Chronic pain and PTSD are frequently comorbid, reciprocally interdependent conditions, though the possible role of MDMA-AT in treating chronic pain remains under-investigated. The present analysis examined the impact of manualized MDMA-AT on chronic pain severity among participants with PTSD who were enrolled in a Phase 2 clinical trial investigating MDMA-AT for PTSD (NCT03282123).Materials and methodsExploratory data from a subset of participants who completed chronic pain measures (n = 32) were drawn from a Phase 2 open-label study sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). Multivariable analysis of variance (ANOVA) was utilized to compare pre- vs. post-treatment Chronic Pain Grade Scale (CPGS) values, adjusting for demographics (age, sex, and ethnicity). K-means clustering was then used to group the sample into three clusters to denote high (n = 9), medium (n = 11), and low (n = 12) baseline pain severity, and the same analysis was repeated for each cluster.ResultsAmong the 32 participants included in this analysis, 59% (n = 19) were women, 72% (n = 23) were white, and median age was 38 years [interquartile range (IQR) = 31–47]. Overall, 84% (n = 27) reported having pain, and 75% (n = 24) reported disability associated with their pain. Significant reductions in CPGS subscales for pain intensity and disability score, and overall CPGS severity grade were observed among participants in the highest pain cluster (n = 9, p < 0.05), and for pain intensity in the medium pain cluster (n = 11, p < 0.05) post- vs. pre-treatment.DiscussionFindings demonstrate a high prevalence of chronic pain in this sample of people with severe PTSD and that chronic pain scores among medium and high pain subgroups were significantly lower following MDMA-AT. While these data are preliminary, when considered alongside the frequency of comorbid chronic pain and PTSD and promising efficacy of MDMA-AT for treating PTSD, these findings encourage further research exploring the role of MDMA-AT for chronic pain.

MDMA-gestützte Therapie

“…Im Rahmen der Auswertung der Phase-III-Studie zur Behandlung der PTBS zeigte sich eine signifikante Abnahme von Symptomen einer Essstörung in der Experimentalgruppe im Vergleich zur Kontrollgruppe 18 . Weiterhin wurden signifikant positive Ergebnisse im Hinblick auf Schlafqualität 19 , Alkoholkonsum 20 und chronische Schmerzen 21 als Begleitsymptome der PTBS beobachtet. Beim Drogenkonsum konnte kein signifikanter Gruppenunterschied beobachtet werden 20 .…”

The Psychedelic Future of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Treatment

“…However, these reductions were only significant for participants in the highest of 3 pain clusters; the medium cluster only demonstrated significant decreases in pain intensity, and there were no significant results for the low cluster. Researchers hypothesized that this discrepancy may be due to more opportunities for improvement for individuals with higher pain scores [ 782 ].…”

Synthesis of R- and S-MDMA via nucleophilic ring-opening of homochiral N-tosylaziridines

“…[10,11] On the back of these trials, and in a world first, MDMA was rescheduled from S9 (drugs and poisons that may only be used for research) to S8 (medicines with strict legislative controls) by the Therapeutic Goods Administration of Australia specifically for use in PTSD. [12] MDMA also has potential application in the treatment of eating disorders, [13,14] alcohol [15][16][17][18][19][20] and other substance abuse, [21,22] anxiety, [23][24][25][26][27] chronic pain, [28] depression and other mood disorders, [23][24][25][26][27] and clinical trials for some of these indications are being planned. [11] Like all amphetamines, MDMA is chiral (Fig.…”