Lauren M. Sippel

2 papers in the library · 13 citations · publishing 2024-2026

Papers

Novel Pharmacologic and Other Somatic Treatment Approaches for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Adults: State of the Evidence.

The American journal of psychiatry December 1, 2024 Lauren M. Sippel, Jessica L. Hamblen, Benjamin Kelmendi et al. 11 citations

PTSD is common and can become chronic without treatment. First-line treatments are individual trauma-focused psychotherapies, with antidepressants and non-trauma-focused psychotherapies also evidence-based. Many patients do not fully recover, prompting a search for novel treatments. This review critically evaluates emerging pharmacological and somatic interventions, including medication-assisted psychotherapy (e.g., MDMA), novel monotherapies (e.g., ketamine, cannabidiol), and neuromodulation (e.g., transcranial magnetic stimulation), as well as treatments of increasing interest (hyperbaric oxygen, stellate ganglion block, neurofeedback). Evidence for most novel treatments is preliminary and highly variable, though data for transcranial magnetic stimulation are encouraging.

DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.20230950 Full text Behavioral psychotherapy Cognitive psychotherapy Drug psychotherapy combination Evidence-based treatment +6

State of the Science: MDMA‐assisted psychotherapy for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder

Journal of Traumatic Stress March 12, 2026 Leslie A. Morland, B O Rothbaum, Lauren M. Sippel et al. 2 citations

MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD shows promising results in recent randomized controlled trials, with high response and remission rates, but the FDA declined to approve it in August 2024 due to insufficient evidence. This review examines the current scientific literature on MDMA-AT, covering proposed mechanisms, methodological strengths and limitations, evidence gaps, and clinical, ethical, and regulatory issues. Key limitations include challenges with blinding, lack of active comparator conditions, no head-to-head comparisons of different therapy models, inadequate safety monitoring, and limited sample generalizability. Emerging research integrates MDMA with established trauma-focused therapies like prolonged exposure and cognitive processing therapy to leverage MDMA's effects on cognitive behavioral mechanisms.

DOI: 10.1002/jts.70060 Posttraumatic stress Cognition Cognitive behavioral therapy Leverage statistics +11