Opioid Use Disorder (OUD)
Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is a prevalent and serious public health issue that is increasingly being targeted for treatment with psychedelics, particularly ibogaine. Recent studies suggest that these compounds may alleviate withdrawal symptoms and reduce cravings, presenting a potential shift in therapeutic approaches to OUD.
Key Insights
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Over 75,000 opioid-related deaths occurred in the U.S. in the 12 months ending in April 2021.
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Research supports a significant association between psychedelic use, specifically psilocybin, and reduced opioid use disorder rates, with a longitudinal study showing a 55% reduction in daily opioid use among psychedelic users.
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Ibogaine has demonstrated efficacy in reducing withdrawal symptoms and cravings associated with OUD, with studies reporting 78% of treated patients not exhibiting withdrawal signs 48 hours post-treatment.
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Despite the potential of psychedelics as a treatment for OUD, rigorous clinical research is still necessary to validate safety and efficacy.
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Harm reduction strategies remain crucial in addressing the ongoing opioid crisis, focusing on reducing overdose incidences and providing supportive environments for users.
What is Opioid Use Disorder (OUD)?
Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is characterised by a compulsive pattern of opioid use leading to significant distress or impairment. It stems from physiological changes due to repeated opioid use, resulting in both physical dependence and severe withdrawal symptoms upon cessation.
Symptoms of OUD include continued use despite harmful consequences, the development of tolerance, and withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, muscle pain, and psychological distress. Risk factors include personal or family history of substance misuse, trauma, and comorbid mental health disorders.
The condition has escalated in recent decades, particularly in the U.S., due to increased prescribing practices and aggressive marketing of opioids, culminating in an opioid overdose crisis that disproportionately affects young adults.
Current treatment approaches for OUD often incorporate medication-assisted therapy, typically using methadone or buprenorphine, yet these methods frequently lead to relapse due to limited efficacy.
Current Treatments
Standard-of-care treatments for OUD primarily include medication-assisted therapy, which often employs methadone or buprenorphine for detoxification, accompanied by behavioural therapy to encourage sustained recovery. Naloxone is also critical for harm reduction during overdose incidents.
Psychedelic Effect Matrix
Compound efficacy and evidence levels for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD).
| Compound | Magnitude | Evidence | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ibogaine Multiple studies have consistently shown ibogaine's effectiveness in alleviating withdrawal symptoms and reducing cravings. | Large | Moderate | Consistent |
| Psilocybin A significant observational study indicates psilocybin usage correlates with lower odds of OUD. | Medium | Moderate | Consistent |
| MDMA Research on MDMA for OUD is emerging but lacks extensive clinical validation. | Medium | Low | Inconsistent |
| Ketamine Initial findings support potential benefits for opioid addiction, but evidence remains limited. | Medium | Low | Inconsistent |
Ibogaine and Opioid Use Disorder (OUD)
Ibogaine is a psychoactive compound derived from the iboga plant, with research suggesting it possesses unique properties that facilitate the reduction of opioid withdrawal symptoms and cravings. Studies indicate that a single treatment with ibogaine can lead to substantial improvements in withdrawal experiences for individuals with OUD, suggesting significant therapeutic potential.
Clinical Outlook
The future of psychedelic treatments for Opioid Use Disorder appears promising, with ongoing research and clinical trials examining compounds like ibogaine and 18-MC. As the evidence base expands, these treatments may offer innovative solutions for a condition historically resistant to conventional therapies.
Industrial Landscape
Key players in the psychedelic OUD treatment landscape include companies like MindMed, which is developing 18-MC, and atai Life Sciences through its DemeRx subsidiary working on ibogaine. Academic collaborations, such as those by Gilgamesh Pharmaceuticals and Columbia University, are also integral to advancing research in this field.
Quick Indicators
Related Topics
Organisations
Search →National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
U.S. federal institute setting addiction-research priorities and portfolios, including psychedelic-related investigations.
Radboud University
Radboud University Medical Center (Radboudumc) is one of the Netherlands' leading academic medical centers, located in Nijmegen. It combines patient care, education, and scientific research under one roof, with a particular strength in neuroscience through its Donders Centre for Medical Neuroscience. Radboudumc is known for its translational research approach. The medical centre bridges fundamental science and clinical practice across areas including oncology, rare diseases, and psychiatry. In the field of psychedelic medicine, Radboudumc has been involved in ibogaine research, conducting studies through its Department of Pharmacology–Toxicology and Department of Psychiatry, examining ibogaine as a potential treatment for opioid use disorder. This work included a clinical study evaluating the cardiac, cerebellar, and psychomimetic safety of ibogaine in opioid-dependent patients, contributing important safety data to the broader scientific understanding of this compound.
MAPS
Nonprofit organizer and host of the Psychedelic Science conference series, alongside broader educational and policy programming.
University of Amsterdam
The University of Amsterdam (UvA) is one of the Netherlands' leading research universities, with its Amsterdam UMC Department of Psychiatry conducting clinical trials on psilocybin and psychedelic-assisted therapies for treatment-resistant mental health conditions.
Ketamine Research Institute
The Ketamine Research Institute is a US-based clinical research organization developing precision medicine approaches to ketamine infusion therapy, studying optimized dosing protocols to treat depression and offering clinician training in evidence-based ketamine practice.
Columbia University
Research with psychedelics has been taking place at Columbia University in New York since 2014. Researchers from various departments at the university including Medicine, Psychology and Psychiatry have conducted numerous trials investigating the effects ketamine has on substance use disorders. Some research exploring the anti-depressant effects of ketamine has also taken place. More recently, Columbia University served as a test site for COMPASS Pathway's COMP360 trial which explored the effects of psilocybin on treatment-resistant depression. Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Dr David Hellerstein served as the principal investigator at this study site.
University of California San Diego
The Psychedelics and Health Research Initiative (PHRI) focuses heavily on conducting pilot studies and clinical trials while collecting diverse biometric data—including fMRI, EEG, and cognitive metrics—from study participants. This data-driven approach aims to unravel the biological and neurological underpinnings of how psychedelics facilitate healing.
Johns Hopkins University
The Centre for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research focuses on how psychedelics affect behavior, cognition, brain function, and biological health markers. They have been at the forefront of demonstrating the safety and efficacy of psychedelics for mental disorders, expanding their focus into psilocybin research across multiple mental health conditions, including smoking cessation, major depressive disorder, and cancer-related anxiety.
Yale University
In 2016, the 'Yale Psychedelic Science Group' was established as a forum where clinicians and scholars from across Yale can learn about and discuss the rapidly re-emerging field of psychedelic science and therapeutics in an academically rigorous manner. Research with psychedelics is also underway at Yale School of Medicine. A recent study at the university found that a single dose of psilocybin can cause structural changes in the brain that counteract symptoms of depression.
University of Wisconsin-Madison
The University of Wisconsin-Madison Transdisciplinary Center for Research in Psychoactive Substances is dedicated to exploring the scientific, historical, and cultural aspects of psychoactive substances, focusing on psychedelics.
Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP)
The Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) is a public federal research university based in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, with multiple campuses and a strong reputation in health sciences and related programs.
atai Therapeutics, Inc.
atai Life Sciences (operating as atai Therapeutics, Inc. in the US) is a publicly traded clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company founded in 2018 with the largest and most diverse portfolio of psychedelic-derived drug candidates, including DMT, R-MDMA, psilocin, 5-MeO-DMT (BPL-003), and ibogaine for depression, anxiety, and addiction. Following its 2024 merger with Beckley Psytech to form AtaiBeckley, BPL-003 received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for treatment-resistant depression with Phase 3 trials anticipated in 2026.
People
Search →Eduardo Schenberg
Neuroscientist and founder/director of Instituto Phaneros
A leading Brazilian psychedelic researcher known for clinical and translational work on ayahuasca, ibogaine, MDMA, and ethics/policy in psychedelic medicine.
Elena Argento
Researcher and postdoctoral scholar at the University of British Columbia / BC Centre on Substance Use
Elena Argento is notable for community-based research on psychedelics, sexual health, and substance use, including studies on marginalized women, ayahuasca-assisted therapy, and potential psychedelic-related reductions in suicidality and opioid use.
Dalibor Sames
Professor of Chemistry at Columbia University
He is a leading medicinal/organic chemist whose group has helped define the pharmacology and synthetic development of ibogaine and iboga analogs in psychedelic and neurotherapeutic research.
Ido Hartogsohn
Senior Lecturer at Bar-Ilan University, Graduate Program in Science, Technology and Society
He is a leading scholar on set and setting, one of the central concepts in psychedelic science, and has shaped historical and sociological understanding of how context influences psychedelic effects.
David Olson
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Luiz Tófoli
Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medical Sciences, UNICAMP
Notable for empirical and methodological contributions to the study of ayahuasca, ibogaine and early-stage psychedelic-assisted therapies in Brazil, including survey research on adverse effects and pilot clinical work with MDMA-assisted psychotherapy.
Alan Davis
Associate Professor of Social Work & Director, Center for Psychedelic Drug Research
Noted for advancing epidemiological, naturalistic and mixed-method research on therapeutic and adverse outcomes of psychedelics and for translating those findings into clinical and harm-reduction contexts.
Ben Sessa
Consultant Psychiatrist and Clinical Researcher
An early and visible figure in the contemporary psychedelic renaissance, notable for initiating clinical MDMA-assisted psychotherapy trials for alcohol use disorder and for contributions linking psychedelic phenomenology to neuroimaging findings and clinical safety research.
Celia Morgan
Clinical Psychopharmacologist
Notable for experimental and clinical research on MDMA/ecstasy effects on social cognition and for translating ketamine and MDMA-assisted approaches into treatments for alcohol use disorder.
Berra Yazar-Klosinski
CEO of Yazar Lab, Former CSO at Lykos Therapeutics
Pivotal in leading Phase 3 clinical trials for MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD.
Albert Garcia-Romeu
Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Leading researcher on the use of psilocybin for addiction and the role of spirituality in mental health.
Roland Griffiths
Professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry
Seminal figure in the modern 'psychedelic renaissance' and founding director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research.
Connected Evidence
The latest clinical data and verified academic findings associated with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD).