Ketamine's Influence on Magnetoencephalography Patterns During a Working Memory Task in Treatment-Resistant Depression: An Exploratory Study.
Bipolar disorders April 2, 2025 Adam Fijtman, Mani Yavi, Abigail Vogeley et al. 2 citations
Ketamine rapidly reduces depressive symptoms in treatment-resistant depression but does not improve working memory, attention, or concentration. In a crossover trial, 21 individuals with treatment-resistant depression (14 with bipolar disorder, 7 with major depressive disorder) received ketamine or placebo infusions. Brain activity measured by magnetoencephalography during a working memory task showed increased gamma power in the parieto-occipital junction and decreased gamma power in the posterior superior temporal sulcus and inferior frontal gyrus after ketamine compared to placebo. These distinct gamma power changes in brain regions linked to attention and working memory suggest that ketamine alters neural activity without improving cognitive performance, highlighting the need for further research into its neurobiological mechanisms.