Ketamine for the Treatment of Depression
Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services 2013 DOI: 10.3928/02793695-20121219-01 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Open-label Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Patients with unipolar or bipolar depression, including those considered treatment-resistant to standard medications or electroconvulsive therapy |
| Intervention | Ketamine |
| Topics | Depression Esketamine Ketamine |
| Key findings | Five short-term controlled studies and other open-label studies indicate that intravenous ketamine is safe and has a rapid, profound short-term effect on depressive symptoms, including suicidal thoughts, even in treatment-resistant patients. The authors argue that long-term safety and effectiveness, and alternative routes of administration, still need evaluation before clinical use. |
Abstract
Ketamine (Ketalar®) is an anesthetic agent derived from the hallucinogenic drug phencyclidine (PCP). It is a high-affinity antagonist at N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors and also binds to opioid mu and sigma receptors. Ketamine is being intensively investigated as an antidepressant therapy. To date, five short-term controlled studies and other open-label studies in patients with unipolar or bipolar depression have demonstrated that intravenous ketamine is safe and has a rapid and profound short-term effect on depressive symptoms, including suicidal thoughts, even among patients considered treatment-resistant to standard medications or electroconvulsive therapy. Before ketamine can be incorporated into clinical practice, however, its long-term safety and effectiveness need to be evaluated. Although the effectiveness of alternative routes of ketamine administration (i.e., oral, intranasal, or intramuscular) needs to be determined, intravenous ketamine could be conceptualized as a clinic-based procedural therapy for treatment-resistant forms of depression.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on ketamine for depression, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synthesizing the Evidence for Ketamine and Esketamine in Treatment-Resistant Depression: An International Expert Opinion on the Available Evidence and Implementation Adults with treatment-resistant depression | 2021 | Review | |
| Ketamine: a paradigm shift for depression research and treatment | 2019 | Review | |
| Rapid‐acting antidepressant ketamine, its metabolites and other candidates: A historical overview and future perspective | 2019 | Review | |
| Ketamine: A tale of two enantiomers | 2020 | Review | |
| Molecular mechanisms underlying the antidepressant actions of arketamine: beyond the NMDA receptor | 2021 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- The Role of Ketamine in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review Current Neuropharmacology November 12, 2014
- A Comparative Study on the Effectiveness of Electroconvulsive Therapy and Ketamine in Persons Suffering from Treatment-resistant Depressive Disorder Indian Journal of Psychiatric Nursing July 1, 2024
Cites 9
- A Randomized Trial of an N-methyl-D-aspartate Antagonist in Treatment-Resistant Major Depression Archives of General Psychiatry August 1, 2006
- A Randomized Add-on Trial of an N-methyl-D-aspartate Antagonist in Treatment-Resistant Bipolar Depression Archives of General Psychiatry August 1, 2010
- Attenuation of the Neuropsychiatric Effects of Ketamine With Lamotrigine Archives of General Psychiatry March 1, 2000
- Riluzole for relapse prevention following intravenous ketamine in treatment-resistant depression: a pilot randomized, placebo-controlled continuation trial The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology March 17, 2009
- Rapid decrease in depressive symptoms with an N-methyl-d-aspartate antagonist in ECT-resistant major depression. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry June 1, 2011
and 4 more in the library