Research library / Systematic review
Psilocybin and chronic neuropathic pain: a systematic review
Jevotovsky DS, Chopra H, Pak DJ, et al. Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine 2025;50(11):845-857
This systematic review searched five medical databases up to January 2024 for research on psilocybin for chronic pain, looking at doses, conditions treated and outcomes. It found 28 relevant studies. About three quarters were judged to be of low or very low quality, and several of the better ones used a dose of 0.14 mg per kilogram of body weight. The authors see possible benefit for chronic pain but stress that methodological problems and the lack of high-quality trials leave the question open, and they call for studies with standardised protocols. The review is a useful summary of what has been tried so far. It is not evidence that psilocybin relieves neuropathic pain, because the studies it brings together are mostly weak.
What it found
- Searches of five databases up to January 2024 identified 28 relevant studies.
- 76.2% of included studies were rated low or very low quality.
- Several moderate-to-low quality studies used a 0.14 mg/kg dosing protocol.
- The authors judged the overall quality of evidence to be generally low.