Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39628414›Full record

ReviewDeutsches Arzteblatt international2024

Psilocybin as a Disease-Modifying Drug—A Salutogenic Approach in Psychiatry.

Moritz Spangemacher, Lea J Mertens, Luca V Färber, Andrea Jungaberle, Henrik Jungaberle, Gerhard Gründer

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
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

6 authors.

Moritz SpangemacherDepartment for Molecular Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim Medical Faculty, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim Medical Faculty, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany; German Institute for Mental Health (DZPG), partner sites Mannheim-Heidelberg-Ulm; MIND Foundation, Berlin; OVID Clinic, Berlin.
Lea J Mertens
Luca V Färber
Andrea Jungaberle
Henrik Jungaberle
Gerhard Gründer

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTreatment with so-called psychedelic drugs, including psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and others, is among the most promising recent developments in psychiatry. This review focuses on psilocybin, a substance found in all mushrooms of the genus Psilocybe, because the largest amount of available evidence relates to this drug.

methodsThis review is based on pertinent publications (since 1969) that were retrieved by a selective search carried out in August 2024 in the PubMed and ScienceDirect databases employing the keywords "psilocybin" AND "long-term effects" AND "mental disorders", with an emphasis on randomized, controlled clinical trials (RCTs).

resultsThe available RCTs document the efficacy of psilocybin mainly against depression, including otherwise medically refratory depression. Most of the trials revealed a strong effect, with Cohen's d ranging from 0.67 to 2.6; they used a variety of depression scales and follow-up intervals. Evidence was also found for the efficacy of psilocybin against substance use disorders (alcohol in particular) and symptoms of anxiety accompanying life-threatening somatic illnesses, such as cancer. Initial uncontrolled studies have also shown significant improvement after the administration of psilocybin for other indications.

conclusionTreatment with psilocybin differs fundamentally from classic psychopharmacotherapy. Its potentially transdiagnostic, rapid, and sustainable efficacy and its positive effect on further dimensions of mental health beyond the patient's symptoms and psychopathology imply that it may have diseasemodifying and salutogenic mechanisms of action. Psychotherapy accompanied by the administration of psychedelic drugs may turn out to be the first disease-modifying treatment in the history of psychiatry.

Indexed as

HallucinogensMental DisordersPsilocybinHumansRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicTreatment OutcomeHallucinogensPsilocybin

Identifiers

PMID39628414
PMCPMC12104993

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.