European neuropsychopharmacology : the journal of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology
September 1, 2024
Aleksander Kwaśny, Julia Kwaśna, Alina Wilkowska et al.
24 citations
Ketamine, a medication used for depression, may also reduce anhedonia (loss of interest or pleasure). A systematic review of 22 studies (4 randomized-controlled trials and 18 open-label trials) found that all reported alleviation of anhedonia symptoms after ketamine or esketamine administration, regardless of the number of infusions. Neuroimaging studies showed changes in functional connectivity linked to improvement. However, limitations include few placebo-controlled trials. The review suggests a potential anti-anhedonic effect of ketamine in depressed patients, likely through neuroplastic changes.
Medicine
July 23, 2021
A. Włodarczyk, W. Cubała, M. Gałuszko-węgielnik et al.
23 citations
Intravenous ketamine as an add-on to standard medication shows a good safety profile in inpatients with treatment-resistant depression. In 49 patients with major depressive or bipolar disorder, dissociative symptoms measured by the Clinician-Administered Dissociative States Scale (CADSS) varied significantly across eight infusions, while psychomimetic symptoms measured by the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) did not. Both scores returned to absent levels within one hour after each infusion. Neither dissociative nor psychomimetic scores were linked to treatment outcome. The study provides no support for a connection between dissociation and antidepressant response.
Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
October 1, 2020
Joanna Szarmach, Wiesław Jerzy Cubała, Adam Włodarczyk et al.
15 citations
In patients with treatment-resistant depression, intravenous ketamine is generally safe and well-tolerated when added to existing psychiatric medications. Blood pressure and heart rate returned to baseline within 90 minutes after each infusion, with no lasting complications. However, larger temporary increases in blood pressure occurred in patients also taking SSRIs, and heart rate decreases were greater in those not taking mood stabilizers. Risks were more pronounced in patients with coexisting high blood pressure or diabetes. The study included 35 people with major depressive disorder and 14 with bipolar disorder.
Medicina
March 16, 2021
Joanna Szarmach, Wiesław Jerzy Cubała, Adam Włodarczyk et al.
14 citations
Ketamine treatment for treatment-resistant depression has a good safety and tolerability profile, but patients with metabolic and cardiovascular comorbidities require risk mitigation. In a naturalistic observational study of 49 inpatients with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder, those with hypertension showed a greater increase in systolic blood pressure after the second infusion compared to those without hypertension. Patients with diabetes mellitus had significant differences in heart rate after infusions 2, 7, and 8, and a higher increase in diastolic blood pressure. Hyperlipidemic patients experienced a greater decrease in heart rate after infusion 5 and systolic blood pressure after infusion 4. Stroke survivors had higher increases in diastolic blood pressure after infusions 4 and 6. Epilepsy patients had a greater decrease in systolic blood pressure after the 8th infusion.
Asian journal of psychiatry
June 1, 2024
Adam Włodarczyk, Jakub Słupski, Joanna Szarmach et al.
12 citations
A year-long follow-up of three adults with treatment-resistant depression who received a single intravenous dose of arketamine (R-ketamine) found substantial symptom reduction and improved social and vocational functioning, including reduced sick leave and hospitalizations. One participant developed a substance use disorder, highlighting the need for careful monitoring. The findings suggest arketamine may offer a transformative approach to managing depression, with fewer dissociative side effects and lower abuse potential than esketamine, but the small sample size and lack of randomization require cautious interpretation.
Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology
January 1, 2021
Adam Włodarczyk, Wiesław Jerzy Cubała, Maria Gałuszko‐węgielnik et al.
8 citations
In treatment-resistant inpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD) or bipolar disorder (BP), intravenous ketamine was generally well-tolerated with no lasting neurological harm. However, certain concurrent medications were linked to more psychomimetic and dissociative symptoms. Patients taking the antidepressant citalopram reported greater psychomimetic effects. Classic mood stabilizers—lamotrigine, valproate, and lithium—were each significantly associated with increased scores on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale. No long-term adverse effects were observed. The findings suggest that ketamine treatment requires careful monitoring for dissociative and psychomimetic symptoms, especially when combined with specific psychotropic drugs.
Frontiers in Nutrition
August 21, 2025
Jakub Słupski, Agnieszka Mechlińska, Adam Włodarczyk et al.
1 citation
A systematic review of five studies involving 678 participants examined how ketamine treatment affects appetite in people with treatment-resistant mood disorders. Two studies found significant improvement in reduced appetite after ketamine or esketamine treatment; one found no significant change; one reported a paradoxical worsening; and one noted minimal effect on increased appetite and atypical symptoms. The evidence suggests ketamine may improve depressive symptoms including appetite, or have neutral effects. Measuring appetite could help detect antidepressant effects beyond traditional medications and aid treatment planning for patients with metabolic disorders or malnutrition risk.
Frontiers in Psychiatry
December 4, 2025
Adam Włodarczyk, Jakub Słupski, Joanna Szarmach et al.
Ketamine may be a viable treatment option for patients with treatment-resistant post-stroke depression. Further research is needed to better understand its efficacy and safety in this specific patient population.
Magnesium research
Jakub Słupski, Adam Włodarczyk, Natalia Górska et al.
Impulsive behaviors are common in major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder, raising suicide risk and mood instability. Ketamine, an NMDA receptor antagonist, can produce rapid antidepressant and antisuicidal effects, and magnesium given with low-dose NMDA antagonists reduces anxiety- and depression-like behaviors in animals. This observational study of 49 inpatients with treatment-resistant mood disorders measured impulsivity with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) and magnesium levels before and during a four-week course of eight ketamine infusions. Magnesium ion concentration during treatment was not associated with changes in BIS-11 scores. The findings provide no evidence for a relationship between magnesium levels and impulsivity during ketamine therapy.