Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun;239(6):1977-1987.
doi: 10.1007/s00213-021-05964-y. Epub 2021 Aug 18.

The adverse events of ibogaine in humans: an updated systematic review of the literature (2015-2020)

Genís Ona  1   2   3 , Juliana Mendes Rocha  4 , José Carlos Bouso  1   3 , Jaime E C Hallak  4   5 , Tre Borràs  6 , Maria Teresa Colomina  2   7 , Rafael G Dos Santos  8   9   10
Affiliations

The adverse events of ibogaine in humans: an updated systematic review of the literature (2015-2020)

Genís Ona et al. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2022 Jun.

Abstract

Context: Ibogaine is the main alkaloid of the African shrub Tabernanthe iboga. It produces hallucinogenic and psychostimulant effects, but it is currently known for the anti-addictive properties. Despite the potential therapeutic effects, several cases of fatalities and serious adverse events related to ibogaine/noribogaine use can be found in the literature. Most studies consist in case reports or were conducted under non-controlled settings, so causation cannot be clearly established.

Objectives: To update (2015-2020) the literature on the adverse events and fatalities associated with ibogaine/noribogaine administration.

Methods: Systematic review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).

Results: Eighteen studies were included in the final selection. Highly heterogeneous results were found in terms of kind of product used or the known dosages. The adverse events were classified in acute effects (< 24 h), mainly cardiac (the most common was QTc prolongation), gastrointestinal, neurological, and clinical alterations, and long-lasting effects (> 24 h), mainly persistent cardiac alterations, psychiatric, and neurological signs.

Conclusions: There is a high need of phase I clinical trials that can describe the safety of different dosages of ibogaine with standardized products. Further research should perform clinical profiling of vulnerable populations, and design effective screening methods and clinical procedures.

Keywords: Adverse events; Drug interactions; Ibogaine; Noribogaine; Safety.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Aceto M, Bowman E, Harris L (1990) Dependence studies of new compounds in the rhesus monkey, rat, and mouse. Natl Instit Drug Addict Res Monogr 95:578–631
    1. Alper KR (2001) Ibogaine: a review. Alkaloids Chem Biol 56:1–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0099-9598(01)56005-8 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Alper KR, Lotsof HS. (2007) Psychedelic medicine: new evidence for hallucinogenic substances as treatments. Westport (CT): Praeger Perspectives. The use of ibogaine in the treatment of addictions; p. 43–66.
    1. Alper KR, Lotsof HS, Kaplan CD (2008) The ibogaine medical subculture. J Ethnopharmacol 115:9–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2007.08.034 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Alper KR, Stajić M, Gill JR (2012) Fatalities temporally associated with the ingestion of ibogaine. J Forensic Sci 57(2):398–412. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2011.02008.x - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources