Efficacy of Ketamine in Depression: A Rapid-Acting Antidepressant
May 14, 2019 DOI: 10.64239/pi-vl1404
Summary
Ketamine shows a significant difference in response rates between clinical trials and real-world settings for treatment-resistant depression. While early studies indicated a response rate of 64% to 71% with a single dose, later reports in clinical samples showed a reduced effectiveness rate of about 50%. This highlights the common issue of discrepancies between efficacy observed in trials and effectiveness in broader clinical practice.
Study at a glance
| Population | individuals with treatment-resistant depression |
|---|---|
| Key finding | The response rate to a single dose of ketamine is approximately 64% to 71% in early efficacy studies but drops to about 50% in later clinical reports. |
Abstract
Ketamine has emerged as the prototypical rapid-acting antidepressant. Early efficacy studies showed a high rate of response (64% to 71%) to a single dose of ketamine among individuals with treatment-resistant depression. Later clinical reports of the effectiveness of ketamine in clinical samples demonstrated a response rate of approximately 50%. This discrepancy between efficacy and effectiveness is frequently seen as new treatments are taken from clinical trials to real-world settings.