I’ve been reading about this research for a decade or two, and I’m glad to see it’s coming to fruition, as PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) must be a horrific condition. The title, from NewScientist (23 September 2023, paywall), says it all: MDMA therapy for PTSD expected to get US approval after latest trial.
The latest study involved 104 people in the US and Israel diagnosed with moderate to severe PTSD, of whom 27 per cent identified as Hispanic or Latino and 7 per cent identified as another ethnicity or race other than white. This group is more representative of people with PTSD in the US, so the results can give more confidence that the treatment will work in a wider population, says Mitchell.
In the study, the participants all received three therapy sessions spaced a month apart. Half the group received a dose of MDMA with their therapy sessions, while the other half received a placebo pill.
Following these three therapy sessions, the researchers found that 71.2 per cent of the MDMA group no longer met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, compared with 47.6 per cent of the placebo group.
Illegal drugs are drugs for which we just haven’t found a use, yet.
