Population scale data reveals the antidepressant effects of ketamine and other therapeutics approved for non-psychiatric indications
Isaac Cohen, Tigran Makunts, Rabia Samady Atayee, Ruben Abagyan
Scientific Reports April 27, 2017 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-01590-x (opens in new tab)
The journal has published a correction to this paper. Read the correction (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational analysis of adverse event reports (pharmacovigilance database study) Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Patients represented in eight million reports from the FDA Adverse Effect Reporting System |
| Interventions | Ketamine diclofenac minocycline |
| Topics | Esketamine Ketamine |
| Citations | 27 |
| Key findings | Patients who received ketamine had a significantly lower frequency of depression reports than patients who took other drug combinations for pain, and also had significantly fewer reports of pain and opioid-induced side effects. The authors argue this implies ketamine's potential as a beneficial adjunct in pain management pharmacotherapy, and that the inverse-frequency method also supports antidepressant action of diclofenac and minocycline. |
Abstract
Current therapeutic approaches to depression fail for millions of patients due to lag in clinical response and non-adherence. Here we provide new support for the antidepressant effect of an anesthetic drug, ketamine, by Inverse-Frequency Analysis of eight million reports from the FDA Adverse Effect Reporting System. The results of the examination of population scale data revealed that patients who received ketamine had significantly lower frequency of reports of depression than patients who took any other combination of drugs for pain. The analysis also revealed that patients who took ketamine had significantly lower frequency of reports of pain and opioid induced side effects, implying ketamine's potential to act as a beneficial adjunct agent in pain management pharmacotherapy. Further, the Inverse-Frequency Analysis methodology provides robust statistical support for the antidepressant action of other currently approved therapeutics including diclofenac and minocycline.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on ketamine, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taming the Ketamine Tiger Volunteers from a prison population | 2010 | Observational study | n = 20 |
| Increased spontaneous MEG signal diversity for psychoactive doses of ketamine, LSD and psilocybin Humans | 2017 | Observational study | |
| Disruption of Frontal–Parietal Communication by Ketamine, Propofol, and Sevoflurane Surgical patients undergoing induction of anesthesia with intravenous ketamine | 2013 | Observational cohort | n = 30 |
| Do the dissociative side effects of ketamine mediate its antidepressant effects? Treatment-resistant inpatients with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder | 2014 | Observational cohort | n = 108 |
| Concomitant BDNF and sleep slow wave changes indicate ketamine-induced plasticity in major depressive disorder Patients with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder | 2012 | Observational cohort | n = 30 |
Citations in the library
Cites 3
- Rapid Resolution of Suicidal Ideation After a Single Infusion of anN-Methyl-D-Aspartate Antagonist in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Major Depressive Disorder The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry July 13, 2010
- EFFECTS OF KETAMINE ON EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT SUICIDAL COGNITION: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL IN TREATMENT-RESISTANT DEPRESSION Depression and Anxiety March 25, 2014
- A preliminary naturalistic study of low-dose ketamine for depression and suicide ideation in the emergency department. The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology May 5, 2011