Anesthetics as Treatments for Depression: Clinical Insights and Underlying Mechanisms.
Annual review of neuroscience February 19, 2025 Macauley Smith Breault, Sirma Orguc, Ohyoon Kwon et al. 13 citations
Several anesthetic agents beyond ketamine show antidepressant effects, including nitrous oxide, propofol, isoflurane, sevoflurane, dexmedetomidine, and xenon. This review examines clinical and basic science studies on these anesthetics for treating depression. The authors propose that anesthetics may alleviate depression by modulating brain dynamics that alter arousal states, linking anesthetic mechanisms to depression pathophysiology and findings from other treatments. The work suggests that repurposing anesthetics could offer new options for major depressive disorder and treatment-resistant depression.