Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37603260›Full record

ReviewCNS drugs2023

Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) for the Treatment of Anxiety Disorders: Preclinical and Clinical Evidence.

Antonio Inserra, Alexandre Piot, Danilo De Gregorio, Gabriella Gobbi

Abstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in CNS drugs, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
5.0field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. The Selective Serotonin 5‑HTACS pharmacology & translational science · 2025
    Article
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Review
  8. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.

Antonio InserraNeurobiological Psychiatry Unit, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Avenue des Pins Ouest, Montreal, QC, H3A 1A1, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7261-5659
Alexandre PiotUCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4019-5127
Danilo De GregorioDivision of Neuroscience, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8623-0661
Gabriella GobbiNeurobiological Psychiatry Unit, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Avenue des Pins Ouest, Montreal, QC, H3A 1A1, Canada. gabriella.gobbi@mcgill.ca.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4124-9825
McGill University · CAMcGill University Health Centre · CANational Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery · GBVita-Salute San Raffaele University · IT

Funding

CIHR
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Anxiety disorders (ADs) represent the sixth leading cause of disability worldwide, resulting in a significant global economic burden. Over 50% of individuals with ADs do not respond to standard therapies, making the identification of more effective anxiolytic drugs an ongoing research priority. In this work, we review the preclinical literature concerning the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on anxiety-like behaviors in preclinical models, and the clinical literature on anxiolytic effects of LSD in healthy volunteers and patients with ADs. Preclinical and clinical findings show that even if LSD may exacerbate anxiety acutely (both in "microdoses" and "full doses"), it induces long-lasting anxiolytic effects. Only two randomized controlled trials combining LSD and psychotherapy have been performed in patients with ADs with and without life-threatening conditions, showing a good safety profile and persisting decreases in anxiety outcomes. The effect of LSD on anxiety may be mediated by serotonin receptors (5-HT1A/1B, 5-HT2A/2C, and 5-HT7) and/or transporter in brain networks and circuits (default mode network, cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuit, and prefrontal cortex-amygdala circuit), involved in the modulation of anxiety. It remains unclear whether LSD can be an efficacious treatment alone or only when combined with psychotherapy, and if "microdosing" may elicit the same sustained anxiolytic effects as the "full doses". Further randomized controlled trials with larger sample size cohorts of patients with ADs are required to clearly define the effective regimens, safety profile, efficacy, and feasibility of LSD for the treatment of ADs.

Indexed as

Anti-Anxiety AgentsLysergic Acid DiethylamideAnxietyAnxiety DisordersHumansPsychotherapyAnti-Anxiety AgentsLysergic Acid Diethylamide

Identifiers

PMID37603260
OpenAlexW4386019723

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.