A Clinical Study of LSD Treatment in Alcoholism
ARNOLD LUDWIG M.D.1,
JEROME LEVINE M.D.2,
LOUIS STARK 3, , and
ROBERT LAZAR 4
1 Director of education and research, Mendota State Hospital, 301 Troy Dr., Madison, Wis. 53704
2 Chief, Psychopharmacology Research Branch, National Institute of Mental Health
3 Research associate, Mendota State Hospital
4 Research scientist, Biometrics Laboratory, George Washington University
One hundred seventy-six male alcoholic patients participated in a controlled investigation of the differential efficacy of three LSD treatment procedures and a "no therapy," or milieu treatment, condition. Half of each group was also assigned to disulfiram after discharge from the hospital to determine whether any of these techniques could be enhanced by its use. Although significant improvement was shown within all treatment groups as measured by a number of clinical assessments in the post-treatment and follow-up periods, no one treatment condition proved to be superior. The authors conclude that the dramatic claims for the efficacy of LSD treatment in alcoholism are unjustified.
