Massachusetts General Brigham (MGB) investigators, in a 403 patient clinical trial, discovered that 55% of those who received ketamine treatment experienced a sustained improvement in depressive symptoms without major side effects, The Harvard Gazette reported.
The MGB-led study compared subanesthetic intravenous ketamine to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for the treatment of non-psychotic, treatment-resistant depression, with the results being published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
“This is the largest study comparing ketamine and ECT treatments for depression that has ever been done, and the only one that also measured impacts to memory,” MGB director of Psychiatry Translational Clinical Trials Amit Anand said.
Anand noted that ECT has been the “gold standard” for treating severe depression for over 80 years, but is also controversial because it can cause memory loss, requires anesthesia, and is associated with social stigma.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide and is estimated to affect 21 million adults in the US, according to The Harvard Gazette.
The publication wrote that previous ketamine studies have suggested that low doses of the drug, which is approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a sedative/analgesic and general anesthetic, may have rapid antidepressant effects for people with MDD.
ECT, meanwhile, involves inducing a seizure through electrical stimulation of the brain.
The authors noted that their findings are based on self-reported outcomes and that the trial’s open-label design could have influenced response rates, but acknowledged its patient-centeredness and real-world design may also be a strength.
“With this real-world trial, the results are immediately transferable to the clinical setting,” Anand added.
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