Effects of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Use on MDMA–Assisted Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

In small-scale studies, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder has shown some promise, but exploratory analyses have suggested that recent use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can dampen the efficacy of this novel therapy. In this podcast, Dr. Collin M. Price, a psychiatric resident at UCLA, and Dr. Allison Feduccia, a neuropharmacologist and CEO of a company that curates CME courses on psychedelics, discuss their new article in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology that provides a selective review of the literature in the basic and clinical neurosciences relevant to the interaction of SSRIs and MDMA. They suggest that there is an urgent need for future work dedicated to addressing this important clinical topic. Their article is published in the September-October 2022 issue of the journal.