In a new study, researchers found that a single, low-dose ketamine infusion was relatively free of side effects for patients with treatment-resistant depression.
The research was conducted by National Institutes of Health researchers.
Studies have shown that a single, subanesthetic-dose (a lower dose than would cause anesthesia) ketamine infusion can often rapidly relieve depressive symptoms within hours in people who have not responded to conventional antidepressants, which typically take weeks or months to work.
However, widespread off-label use of intravenous low-dose ketamine for treatment-resistant depression has raised concerns about side effects, especially given its history as a drug of abuse.
In the study, the team examined side effects on 163 patients with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder and 25 healthy people.
The team also examined other potential side effects – including headaches, dizziness, and sleepiness.
Out of 120 possible side effects evaluated, 34 were found to be associated with the ketamine treatment.
Eight occurred in at least half of the participants: feeling strange, weird, or bizarre; feeling spacey; feeling woozy/loopy; dissociation; floating; visual distortions; difficulty speaking; and numbness.
None persisted for more than four hours. No drug-related serious adverse events, cravings, propensity for recreational use, or significant cognitive or memory deficits were seen during a three-month follow-up.
The team says they did not see any serious, drug-related adverse events or increased ketamine cravings with a single-administration.
They say to overcome the limitations associated with side effects and intravenous delivery, future work need to develop a more practical rapid-acting antidepressant that works in the brain similarly to ketamine.
One author of the study is Elia Acevedo-Diaz, M.D.
The study is published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
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