The following is a summary of “Role of Psychedelics in the Management of Chronic Pain,” published in the March 2024 issue of Pain by Robinson, et al.
Researchers started a retrospective study using artificial intelligence (AI) to evaluate the potential of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and other psychedelics in managing chronic pain conditions like cluster headaches, phantom limb pain, and fibromyalgia.
They adhered to the PRISMA guidelines, utilizing an advanced search strategy with ChatGPT4.0 Bing chat to search Medline, Embase, Cochrane, and Google Scholar for chronic pain articles. The study targeted psychedelics for long-term, non-cancer pain, such as migraine disorders (June 1, 2023). The criteria for inclusion covered articles in English, peer-reviewed, focusing on chronic pain conditions in human participants over 18 years old, and using substances like LSD, 2.5-dimethoxy-4-bromophenethylamine (2C-B), N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), psilocybin, or mescaline. Not allowed in the study were cannabis or ketamine studies, reviews, editorials, or opinions.
The results showed 186 database entries and nine studies, comprising four case reports/series, an open-label study, a cohort study, two online surveys, and a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Three studies addressed phantom limb pain, four targeted cluster headaches, and two focused on fibromyalgia, spinal cord injury, complex regional pain syndrome, and lumbar radiculopathy.
Investigators concluded that AI analysis identified potential for psychedelics in chronic pain, requiring confirmation through controlled trials.
