The potential of ketamine for posttraumatic stress disorder: a review of clinical evidence.

Abstract

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating condition, for which there are few pharmacological agents, often with a delayed onset of action and poor efficacy. Trauma-focused psychotherapies are further limited by few trained providers and low patient engagement. This frequently results in disease chronicity as well as psychiatric and medical comorbidity, with considerable negative impact on quality of life. As such, off-label interventions are commonly used for PTSD, particularly in chronic refractory cases. Ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NDMA) receptor antagonist, has recently been indicated for major depression, exhibiting rapid and robust antidepressant effects. It also shows transdiagnostic potential for an array of psychiatric disorders. Here, we synthesize clinical evidence on ketamine in PTSD, spanning case reports, chart reviews, open-label studies, and randomized trials. Overall, there is high heterogeneity in clinical presentation and pharmacological approach, yet encouraging signals of therapeutic safety, efficacy, and durability. Avenues for future research are discussed.

In the evidence

This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.

• State of the evidence: Ketamine for PTSD ↑Supports

  Synthesizing case reports through randomized trials, the authors report encouraging signals of ketamine safety, efficacy, and durability for PTSD amid high clinical heterogeneity.

  Synthesized October 22, 2026

Comparable studies

Other narrative reviews on ketamine for PTSD, most cited first.