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Classic psychedelics and MDMA have a colorful history of recreational use, and both have recently been re-evaluated as tools for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Several studies have been carried out to assess potential long-term effects of a regular use on cognition, delivering distinct results for psychedelics and MDMA. However, to date knowledge is scarce on cognitive performance during acute effects of those substances. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we investigate how cognitive functioning is affected by psychedelics and MDMA during the acute drug effects and the sub-acute ("afterglow") window. Our quantitative analyses suggest that acute cognitive performance is differentially affected by psychedelics when compared to MDMA: psychedelics impair attention and executive function, whereas MDMA primarily affects memory, leaving executive functions and attention unaffected. Our qualitative analyses reveal that executive functioning and creativity may be increased during a window of at least 24 h after the acute effects of psychedelics have subsided, whereas no such results have been observed for MDMA. Our findings may contribute to inform recommendations on harm reduction for recreational settings and to help fostering differential approaches for the use of psychedelics and MDMA within a therapeutic framework.

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BACKGROUND: The acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs) donepezil, galantamine, and rivastigmine are commonly used in the management of various forms of dementia. OBJECTIVES: While these drugs are known to induce classic cholinergic adverse events such as diarrhea, their potential to cause psychiatric adverse events has yet to be thoroughly examined. METHODS: We sought to determine the risk of psychiatric adverse events associated with the use of AChEIs through a systematic review and meta-analysis of double-blind randomized controlled trials involving patients with Alzheimer's dementia and Parkinson's dementia. RESULTS: A total of 48 trials encompassing 22,845 patients were included in our analysis. Anorexia was the most commonly reported psychiatric adverse event, followed by agitation, insomnia, and depression. Individuals exposed to AChEIs had a greater risk of experiencing appetite disorders, insomnia, or depression compared with those who received placebo (anorexia: odds ratio [OR] 2.93, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.29-3.75; p < 0.00001; decreased appetite: OR 1.93, 95% CI 1.33-2.82; p = 0.0006; insomnia: OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.25-1.93; p < 0.0001; and depression: OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.23-2.06, p = 0.0004). Appetite disorders were also more frequent with high-dose versus low-dose therapy. A subgroup analysis revealed that the risk of insomnia was higher for donepezil than for galantamine. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that AChEI therapy may negatively impact psychological health, and careful monitoring of new psychiatric symptoms is warranted. Lowering the dose may resolve some psychiatric adverse events, as may switching to galantamine in the case of insomnia. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was pre-registered on PROSPERO (CRD42021258376).

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Objective: Aiming at revising the therapeutic reference range for olanzapine, the present study highlights the association between blood olanzapine levels, clinical effects, and dopamine D2-receptor occupancy for oral and long-acting injectable (LAI) formulations.Data Sources: Databases were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and uncontrolled trials concerning blood olanzapine levels in relation to clinical outcomes or D2-receptor occupancy using MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Library (March 2021, updated in December 2021). We excluded articles not written in English or German and non-human data. Search terms included olanzapine, blood level, drug monitoring, PET, and SPECT.Study Selection: The process of study selection followed a previously published protocol and PRISMA guidelines. A total of 2,824 articles were identified through database search and 1 article via reference list check. Thirty-four studies were suitable for qualitative synthesis, and 13 studies were included in the quantitative analysis.Data Extraction: Reviewers performed data extraction and quality assessment of the included studies independently following the review protocol.Results: Evidence for a relationship between blood olanzapine level and efficacy/side effects (constipation) is considered low (Level C). In total, 3 studies of moderate quality consistently showed therapeutic thresholds of around 20 ng/mL for olanzapine 12 hours post-dose. This threshold is in line with findings from positron emission tomography (PET) studies that suggest optimal drug efficacy (65%-80% D2-receptor occupancy) between 17 and 44 ng/mL.Conclusions: We suggest a therapeutic reference range of 20-40 ng/mL for olanzapine oral and LAI formulations. In this range, optimal treatment response is expected in patients with schizophrenia and schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Side effects, especially weight gain, may already occur at therapeutic levels. However, higher plasma concentrations are in general well tolerated and should not necessarily require a dose reduction in case of good response and tolerance.

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OBJECTIVE: Standard evaluation of the Trail Making Test (TMT) only incorporates completion times. However, the analysis of different error types may provide more insight into underlying cognitive processes and could also increase diagnostic accuracy. This cross-sectional observational study compared three different TMT error types and assessed their diagnostic utility in patients with subjective cognitive decline (SCD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and Alzheimer's dementia (AD) with or without depression. METHOD: We evaluated 618 outpatients of a memory clinic with SCD (N = 190), MCI (N = 210), or AD (N = 218). Of these, 157 had comorbid depression. TMT completion times, total error rates, and the three error types "sequencing error," "perseverative error," and "proximity error" were examined. RESULTS: Results indicated that patients with MCI or AD committed more errors on TMT B, and specifically more perseverative errors than patients with SCD (p < 0.001). Depression was not associated with any TMT error type. Including TMT errors in models predicting diagnosis group by TMT completion times did not increase predictive accuracy, measured by areas under the curve. CONCLUSIONS: The findings do not indicate any impact of comorbid depression on TMT errors. Moreover, TMT error analysis does not seem to provide additional diagnostic utility for SCD, MCI, and AD diagnoses.

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Introduction: A titration within a certain therapeutic reference range presupposes a relationship between the blood concentration and the therapeutic effect of a drug. However, this has not been systematically investigated for escitalopram. Furthermore, the recommended reference range disagrees with mean steady state concentrations (11-21 ng/ml) that are expected under the approved dose range (10-20 mg/day). This work systematically investigated the relationships between escitalopram dose, blood levels, clinical effects, and serotonin transporter occupancy. Methods: Following our previously published methodology, relevant articles were systematically searched and reviewed for escitalopram. Results: Of 1,032 articles screened, a total of 30 studies met the eligibility criteria. The included studies investigated escitalopram blood levels in relationship to clinical effects (9 studies) or moderating factors on escitalopram metabolism (12 studies) or serotonin transporter occupancy (9 studies). Overall, the evidence for an escitalopram concentration/effect relationship is low (level C). Conclusion: Based on our findings, we propose a target range of 20-40 ng/ml for antidepressant efficacy of escitalopram. In maintenance treatment, therapeutic response is expected, when titrating patients above the lower limit. The lower concentration threshold is strongly supported by findings from neuroimaging studies. The upper limit for escitalopram's reference range rather reflects a therapeutic maximum than a tolerability threshold, since the incidence of side effects in general is low. Concentrations above 40 ng/ml should not necessarily result in dose reductions in case of good clinical efficacy and tolerability. Dose-related escitalopram concentrations in different trials were more than twice the expected concentrations from guideline reports. Systematic review registration: [https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/display_record.php?RecordID=215873], identifier [CRD42020215873].

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RATIONALE: While one of the basic axioms of pharmacology postulates that there is a relationship between the concentration and effects of a drug, the value of measuring blood levels is questioned by many clinicians. This is due to the often-missing validation of therapeutic reference ranges. OBJECTIVES: Here, we present a prototypical meta-analysis of the relationships between blood levels of aripiprazole, its target engagement in the human brain, and clinical effects and side effects in patients with schizophrenia and related disorders. METHODS: The relevant literature was systematically searched and reviewed for aripiprazole oral and injectable formulations. Population-based concentration ranges were computed (N = 3,373) and pharmacokinetic influences investigated. RESULTS: Fifty-three study cohorts met the eligibility criteria. Twenty-nine studies report blood level after oral, 15 after injectable formulations, and nine were positron emission tomography studies. Conflicting evidence for a relationship between concentration, efficacy, and side effects exists (assigned level of evidence low, C; and absent, D). Population-based reference ranges are well in-line with findings from neuroimaging data and individual efficacy studies. We suggest a therapeutic reference range of 120-270 ng/ml and 180-380 ng/ml, respectively, for aripiprazole and its active moiety for the treatment of schizophrenia and related disorders. CONCLUSIONS: High interindividual variability and the influence of CYP2D6 genotypes gives a special indication for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring of oral and long-acting aripiprazole. A starting dose of 10 mg will in most patients result in effective concentrations in blood and brain. 5 mg will be sufficient for known poor metabolizers.

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Inter-individual differences in antidepressant drug concentrations attained in blood may limit the efficacy of pharmacological treatment of depressive disorders. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) enables to determine drug concentrations in blood and adjust antidepressant dosage accordingly. However, research on the underlying assumption of TDM, association between concentration and clinical effect, has yielded ambiguous results for antidepressants. It has been proposed that this ambiguity may be caused by methodological shortcomings in studies investigating the concentration-effect relationship. Guidelines recommend the use of TDM in antidepressant treatment as expert opinion. This reflects the lack of research, particularly systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials, on the relationship between concentration and effect as well as on the benefits of the use of TDM in clinical practice. In this study, a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials has been performed to investigate the relationship between antidepressant concentration, efficacy, and side effects. It is the first meta-analytical approach to this subject and additionally considers methodological properties of primary studies as moderators of effect in quantitative analysis. Our results identified methodological shortcomings, namely the use of a flexible dose design and the exclusion of concentrations in lower- or subtherapeutic ranges, which significantly moderate the relationship between antidepressant concentration and efficacy. Such shortcomings obscure the evidence base of using TDM in clinical practice to guide antidepressant drug therapy. Further research should consider these findings to determine the relationship between concentration and efficacy and safety of antidepressant treatments, especially for newer antidepressants. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=246149, identifier: CRD42021246149.

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Background: Serotonergic psychedelics (SPs) like LSD, psilocybin, DMT, and mescaline are a heterogeneous group of substances that share agonism at 5-HT2a receptors. Besides the ability of these substances to facilitate profoundly altered states of consciousness, persisting psychological effects have been reported after single administrations, which outlast the acute psychedelic effects. In this review and meta-analysis, we investigated if repeated SP use associates with a characteristic neuropsychological profile indicating persisting effects on neuropsychological function. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of studies investigating the neuropsychological performance in SP users, searching studies in Medline, Web of Science, embase, ClinicalTrials.gov, and EudraCT. Studies were included if they reported at least one neuropsychological measurement in users of SPs. Studies comparing SP users and non-users that reported mean scores and standard deviations were included in an exploratory meta-analysis. Results: 13 studies (N = 539) published between 1969 and 2020 were included in this systematic review. Overall, we found that only three SPs were specifically investigated: ayahuasca (6 studies, n = 343), LSD (5 studies, n = 135), and peyote (1 study, n = 61). However, heterogeneity of the methodological quality was high across studies, with matching problems representing the most important limitation. Across all SPs, no uniform pattern of neuropsychological impairment was identified. Rather, the individual SPs seemed to be associated with distinct neuropsychological profiles. For instance, one study (n = 42) found LSD users to perform worse in trials A and B of the Trail-Making task, whereas meta-analytic assessment (5 studies, n = 352) of eleven individual neuropsychological measures indicated a better performance of ayahuasca users in the Stroop incongruent task (p = 0.03) and no differences in the others (all p > 0.05). Conclusion: The majority of the included studies were not completely successful in controlling for confounders such as differences in non-psychedelic substance use between SP-users and non-users. Our analysis suggests that LSD, ayahuasca and peyote may have different neuropsychological consequences associated with their use. While LSD users showed reduced executive functioning and peyote users showed no differences across domains, there is some evidence that ayahuasca use is associated with increased executive functioning.

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[Figure: see text].

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BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the development of opioid tolerance in patients receiving long-term methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). METHODS: A region-wide cross-sectional study was performed focusing on dosage and duration of treatment. Differences between racemic methadone and levomethadone were examined. All 20 psychiatric hospitals and all 110 outpatient clinics in Berlin licensed to offer MMT were approached in order to reach patients under MMT fulfilling the DSM IV criteria of opiate dependence. In the study, 720 patients treated with racemic methadone or levomethadone gave information on the dosage of treatment. Out of these, 679 patients indicated the duration of MMT. RESULTS: Treatment with racemic methadone was reported for 370 patients (54.5%), with levomethadone for 309 patients (45.5%). Mean duration of MMT was 7.5 years. We found a significant correlation between dosage and duration of treatment, both in a conjoint analysis for the two substances racemic methadone and levomethadone and for each substance separately. These effects remained significant when only patients receiving MMT for 1 year or longer were considered, indicating proceeding tolerance development in long-term treatment. When correlations were compared between racemic methadone and levomethadone, no significant difference was found. CONCLUSIONS: Our data show a tolerance development under long-term treatment with both racemic methadone and levomethadone. Tolerance development did not differ significantly between the two substances.

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OBJECTIVES: Recent work suggests that a genetic variation associated with increased dopamine metabolism in the prefrontal cortex (catechol-O-methyltransferase Val158Met; COMT) amplifies age-related changes in working memory performance. Research on younger adults indicates that the influence of dopamine-related genetic polymorphisms on working memory performance increases when testing the cognitive limits through training. To date, this has not been studied in older adults. METHOD: Here we investigate the effect of COMT genotype on plasticity in working memory in a sample of 14 younger (aged 24-30 years) and 25 older (aged 60-75 years) healthy adults. Participants underwent adaptive training in the n-back working memory task over 12 sessions under increasing difficulty conditions. RESULTS: Both younger and older adults exhibited sizeable behavioral plasticity through training (P < .001), which was larger in younger as compared to older adults (P < .001). Age-related differences were qualified by an interaction with COMT genotype (P < .001), and this interaction was due to decreased behavioral plasticity in older adults carrying the Val/Val genotype, while there was no effect of genotype in younger adults. DISCUSSION: Our findings indicate that age-related changes in plasticity in working memory are critically affected by genetic variation in prefrontal dopamine metabolism.

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Previous studies on working memory training have indicated that transfer to non-trained tasks of other cognitive domains may be possible. The aim of this study is to compare working memory training and transfer effects between younger and older adults (n = 60). A novel approach to adaptive n-back training (12 sessions) was implemented by varying the working memory load and the presentation speed. All participants completed a neuropsychological battery of tests before and after the training. On average, younger training participants achieved difficulty level 12 after training, while older training participants only reached difficulty level 5. In younger participants, transfer to Verbal Fluency and Digit Symbol Substitution test was found. In older participants, we observed a transfer to Digit Span Forward, CERAD Delayed Recall, and Digit Symbol Substitution test. Results suggest that working memory training may be a beneficial intervention for maintaining and improving cognitive functioning in old age.

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