Ayahuasca Preparations and Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors: A Potential Combination for Severe Adverse Interactions

The Amazonian psychoactive plant beverage ayahuasca has attracted increasing interest in recent years. Little attention has been given, however, to potentially dangerous interactions with other drugs. In particular, the interaction between the potent monoamine oxidase-inhibiting harmala alkaloids in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of psychoactive drugs Vol. 30; no. 4; pp. 367 - 369
Main Authors Callaway, James C., Grob, Charles S.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Taylor & Francis Group 01.10.1998
Haight Ashbury Publications
Subjects
Adult
ayahuasca
Brazil
Drug Interactions
Fluoxetine - adverse effects
harmala alkeloids
Herb-Drug Interactions
Humans
Male
Plants, Medicinal - adverse effects
Plants, Medicinal - chemistry
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)
serotonin syndrome
Serotonin Syndrome - chemically induced
Serotonin Syndrome - psychology
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors - adverse effects
Brazil
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Summary:The Amazonian psychoactive plant beverage ayahuasca has attracted increasing interest in recent years. Little attention has been given, however, to potentially dangerous interactions with other drugs. In particular, the interaction between the potent monoamine oxidase-inhibiting harmala alkaloids in ayahuasca and the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class of antidepressants may induce a serotonin syndrome with potentially grave outcome. Caution is advised when combining ayahuasca with certain pharmaceutical drugs.
ISSN:0279-1072
2159-9777
DOI:10.1080/02791072.1998.10399712