There is no convincing evidence that moderate MDMA use is associated with structural or functional brain alterations in neuroimaging measures .
MDMA ( " ecstasy " ) is widely used as a recreational drug , although there has been some debate about its neurotoxic effects in humans .
However , most studies have investigated subjects with heavy use patterns , and the effects of transient MDMA use are unclear .
In this review , we therefore focus on subjects with moderate use patterns , in order to assess the evidence for harmful effects .
Gender differences in the subjective effects of MDMA
Abstract . Rationale : 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine ( MDMA ) mainly releases serotonin ( 5-HT ) and is contained in the recreational drug Ecstasy . 5-HT is known to play an important role in mood and anxiety disorders , for which there is a female preponderance . To date , there are no systematic data on gender differences in the subjective effects of MDMA . Objectives : The present work analyzed the pooled data from three controlled studies on the psychological and physiological effects of MDMA in healthy volunteers with no or minimal MDMA experience . A particular focus of the analyses were possible gender differences . Methods : A total of 74 subjects ( 54 male , 20 female ) participated in all three studies .  MDMA in oral doses ranging from 70–150 mg ( 1.35–1.8 mg/kg ) was administered under double-blind placebo-controlled conditions . Subjective peak changes were assessed by st and ardized psychometric rating scales . Physiological measures were blood pressure , heart rate , and peripheral body temperature . Adverse drug effects were assessed during the experimental session and after 24 h. Results : Psychoactive effects of MDMA were more intense in women than in men . Women especially had higher scores for  MDMA-induced perceptual changes , thought disturbances , and fear of loss of body control . The dose of MDMA positively correlated with the intensity of perceptual changes in women . Acute adverse effects and sequelae were also more frequent in female than in male subjects . In contrast , men showed higher increases in blood pressure than woman . Conclusions : The fact that equal doses of MDMA per kilogram body weight produce stronger responses in women compared to men is consistent with an increased susceptibility of women to the 5-HT-releasing effects of MDMA . Our results also indicate that increasing doses of MDMA produce more hallucinogen-like perceptual alterations , particularly in women
There is no convincing evidence that moderate MDMA use is associated with structural or functional brain alterations in neuroimaging measures .
MDMA ( " ecstasy " ) is widely used as a recreational drug , although there has been some debate about its neurotoxic effects in humans .
However , most studies have investigated subjects with heavy use patterns , and the effects of transient MDMA use are unclear .
In this review , we therefore focus on subjects with moderate use patterns , in order to assess the evidence for harmful effects .