WASHINGTON, D.C., Jan. 1, 2025—As the body of research grows around the potential promise of psychedelic medications in psychiatry, many questions and challenges remain. The January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry features a series of articles, including new research, reviews and commentaries, on the use of these treatments.
The issue addresses many of the ongoing challenges and looming questions in the field of psychiatric psychedelic research and treatment. These include issues relevant to basic pharmacology and effects on neural circuits, evidence of clinical efficacy, methodological challenges/ limitations of existing research (such as possibly large expectancy effects and functional unblinding), and contextual factors pertaining to public health and policy considerations. Other issues include drug interactions; whether patients can experience therapeutic benefits without experiencing the altered state (“psychedelic experience”) associated with psychedelic treatments; and the role of the drug (regulated by the FDA), the role of the psychological support/therapy component (likely not to be FDA-regulated) and the interaction of the two in treatment.
“Sufficiently addressing and answering these scientific and clinical questions will be critical for the future clinical success of these agents,” AJP’s Editor-in-Chief Ned Kalin, M.D., writes in the introduction to the issue co-authored with Guest Editors Gregory A. Fonzo, Ph.D., and Charles B. Nemeroff, M.D., Ph.D. “The potential for therapeutic strategies utilizing psychedelic drugs is exciting and yet there is a long path ahead toward clinical success.”
A few of the articles from the issue are highlighted below.
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American Psychiatric Association
The American Psychiatric Association, founded in 1844, is the oldest medical association in the country. The APA is also the largest psychiatric association in the world with more than 38,900 physician members specializing in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses. APA’s vision is to ensure access to quality psychiatric diagnosis and treatment. For more information, please visit www.psychiatry.org .
American Journal of Psychiatry