Ecstasy research moves into the real world

Studies into the effects of ecstasy tend to be carried out in the laboratory and don't always reflect what goes on in real life. A team of researchers led by Dr Rod Irvine from the University of Adelaide tried to get round this by sending researchers to parties where they thought people might be taking the drug. The researchers managed to persuade 56 people to invite them to house parties where they collected samples of pills and measured the users' levels of MDMA - the active ingredient of ecstasy. The researchers found that only half of the pills consisted entirely of MDMA; some pills contained no MDMA at all while others contained methamphetamine or chemicals related to MDMA such as MDEA or MDA. The pills that did contain MDMA ranged in quantity from 25mg to ten times that amount. Most users took more than one pill while some took as many as five. In 14 people the amount of MDMA in the blood reached levels that had never been studied in humans in the laboratory although noone suffered any immediate health problems.

Ecstasy and cognition

A new study led by John Halpern of Maclean Hospital in Belmont, Massachussetts has found no evidence that ecstasy affects people's cognitive abilities. The study of 111 people compared 52 ecstasy users with 59 non-users. The non-users were also members of the "rave" scene and had also taken part in all-night raves where they suffered from fluid and sleep deprivation. The participants were screened for drug and alcohol use to make sure they were unaffected on the day of testing and the ecstasy users did not habitually use other drugs that might impair their cognition. The study found no signs that ecstasy impaired people's cognitive ability but the study's authors point out that there are still a number of other risks to taking ecstasy including other side effects and the risk of overdosing and contamination.

PTSD: the agony and the ecstasy

Post-traumatic stress disorder can occur after people have experienced trauma such as war, torture, disasters or sexual assault and symptoms can include anxiety, nightmares, intrusive memories, sleep and concentration difficulties, evasion of situations that remind people of the original trauma and feelings of shame. Treatment typically involves psychotherapy and drugs, usually ones for anxiety and depression. A recent study of 21 people - all of whom had tried a conventional mixture of drugs and psychotherapy - divided them into two groups. A control group took a placebo while the other group took a pharmacological version of MDMA (ecstasy). The participants carried on with their psychotherapy. Two months into the treatment 92% of the MDMA group showed a clinically significant improvement in their condition. They were more open to therapy and were able to 'process' their trauma. They felt less shame and were less dispirited, evasive and afraid. In contrast only 25% of the participants in the placebo group showed progress. Eventually everyone in this group was also offered treatment with MDMA and the results have been good with no serious or lasting side effects. None of the MDMA patients continued to take the drug after treatment. MDMA increases the levels of oxytocin in the brain, a hormone which stimulates emotions such as connection, proximity and trust, meaning that the participants were better able to open up and have confidence in their therapist. It also increases the activity in a part of the brain called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain that processes fear, lowers stress and enables us to see events in perspective.

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