Ketamine and Other Glutamate Receptor Modulating Agents for Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Ahmad Shamabadi, Ali Ahmadzade, Ali Aqamolaei, Seyyed Hosein Mortazavi, Alireza Hasanzadeh, Shahin Akhondzadeh
Iranian Journal of Psychiatry July 1, 2022 DOI: 10.18502/ijps.v17i3.9733 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Patients with resistant depression |
| Topics | Depression Esketamine Ketamine |
| Keywords | Behavioral symptoms Glutamate receptor Glutamates Resistant depression Systematic review Treatment |
| Key findings | Ketamine, nitrous oxide, amantadine, and rislenemdaz showed compelling evidence for efficacy in treatment-resistant depression, while other glutamate receptor modulators had mixed or no benefit. |
Abstract
Objective: Available treatments of depression have limited efficacy and unsatisfactory remission rates. This study aims to review randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating effects of glutamate receptor modulators in treating patients with resistant depression. Method : The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021225516). Scopus, ISI Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, and three trial registries were searched up to September 2020 to find RCTs evaluating glutamate receptor modulators for resistant depression. The difference between intervention and control groups in changing depression scores from baseline to endpoint was considered the primary outcome. Version 2 of the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials was used to assess the quality of the RCTs. No funding was received.
Results: Thirty-eight RCTs were included. Based on the included studies, compelling evidence was found for ketamine (with or without electroconvulsive therapy, intravenous or other forms), nitrous oxide, amantadine, and rislenemdaz (MK-0657); the results for MK-0657, amantadine, and nitrous oxide were only based on one study for each. Lithium, lanicemine, D-cycloserine, and decoglurant showed mixed results for efficacy, and, riluzole, and 7-chlorokynurenic acid were mostly comparable to placebo. A limited number of studies were available that addressed drugs other than ketamine.
Conclusion: The study cannot determine the difference between statistical and clinical significance between the agents and placebo due to high heterogeneity among the RCTs. Nevertheless, ketamine could be used as an efficacious drug in TRD; still, additional studies are needed to delineate the optimum dosage, duration of efficacy, and intervals. Further studies are also recommended on the effectiveness of glutamatergic system modulators other than ketamine on treatment-resistant depression.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on ketamine for depression, most cited first.