PMID- 37987270
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20231123
IS  - 2079-9721 (Print)
IS  - 2079-9721 (Electronic)
IS  - 2079-9721 (Linking)
VI  - 11
IP  - 4
DP  - 2023 Nov 3
TI  - MDMA-Based Psychotherapy in Treatment-Resistant Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder 
      (PTSD): A Brief Narrative Overview of Current Evidence.
LID - 10.3390/diseases11040159 [doi]
LID - 159
AB  - Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating mental health disorder 
      that causes significant dysfunction in individuals. Currently, there are many 
      approved pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatment options for PTSD, but 
      unfortunately, half of the patients do not respond to traditional therapies. In 
      this article, we review clinical trials and research on 
      3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy in PTSD patients, 
      its pharmacokinetics, and current treatment guidelines for PTSD. Our findings are 
      based on the results of the efficacy of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy from six 
      phase II randomized controlled trials. MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD has 
      received the "breakthrough therapy" designation from the FDA. MDMA can reduce 
      PTSD symptoms even in treatment-resistant cases by increasing certain 
      neurohormones, i.e., dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and oxytocin. It also 
      modulates activities in the brain regions involved in fear and anxiety. Future 
      research is needed to show whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages and 
      whether its use can be integrated into available treatment options for PTSD.
FAU - Riaz, Kainat
AU  - Riaz K
AD  - Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi 75700, Pakistan.
FAU - Suneel, Sejal
AU  - Suneel S
AD  - Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi 75700, Pakistan.
FAU - Hamza Bin Abdul Malik, Mohammad
AU  - Hamza Bin Abdul Malik M
AD  - Services Institute of Medical Sciences, Lahore 54000, Pakistan.
FAU - Kashif, Tooba
AU  - Kashif T
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-6722-192X
AD  - Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Karachi 75510, Pakistan.
FAU - Ullah, Irfan
AU  - Ullah I
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-1100-101X
AD  - Kabir Medical College, Gandhara University, Peshawar 25120, Pakistan.
FAU - Waris, Abdul
AU  - Waris A
AD  - Kabir Medical College, Gandhara University, Peshawar 25120, Pakistan.
FAU - Di Nicola, Marco
AU  - Di Nicola M
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0001-7457-0426
AD  - Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Fondazione Policlinico 
      Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, 
      Italy.
FAU - Mazza, Marianna
AU  - Mazza M
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-3007-8162
AD  - Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Fondazione Policlinico 
      Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, 
      Italy.
FAU - Sani, Gabriele
AU  - Sani G
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-9767-8752
AD  - Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Fondazione Policlinico 
      Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, 
      Italy.
FAU - Martinotti, Giovanni
AU  - Martinotti G
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-7292-2341
AD  - Department of Neurosciences, Imaging, and Clinical Sciences, University G. 
      D'Annunzio, 66100 Chieti-Pescara, Italy.
FAU - De Berardis, Domenico
AU  - De Berardis D
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-4415-5058
AD  - Department of Psychiatry, Azienda Sanitaria Locale 4, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
AD  - School of Nursing, University of L'Aquila, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy.
AD  - International Centre for Education and Research in Neuropsychiatry, Samara State 
      Medical University, 443100 Samara, Russia.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Review
DEP - 20231103
PL  - Switzerland
TA  - Diseases
JT  - Diseases (Basel, Switzerland)
JID - 101636232
PMC - PMC10660711
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - MDMA
OT  - breakthrough therapy
OT  - post-traumatic stress disorder
OT  - psychotherapy
COIS- The authors declare no conflict of interest.
EDAT- 2023/11/21 12:42
MHDA- 2023/11/21 12:43
PMCR- 2023/11/03
CRDT- 2023/11/21 06:26
PHST- 2023/09/06 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2023/10/24 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2023/10/31 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2023/11/21 12:43 [medline]
PHST- 2023/11/21 12:42 [pubmed]
PHST- 2023/11/21 06:26 [entrez]
PHST- 2023/11/03 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - diseases11040159 [pii]
AID - diseases-11-00159 [pii]
AID - 10.3390/diseases11040159 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Diseases. 2023 Nov 3;11(4):159. doi: 10.3390/diseases11040159.