Psychotherapy for Ketamine's Enhanced Durability in Chronic Neuropathic Pain: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
JMIR research protocols April 17, 2024 Akash Goel, Bhavya Kapoor, Hillary Chan et al. 2 citations
Chronic pain affects about 8 million Canadians (20%) and costs the healthcare system over US $60 billion yearly. This paper describes the planned protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial testing three treatments: intravenous ketamine alone, cognitive behavioral therapy with mindfulness meditation (CBT/MM), or a combination of both. The primary goal is to assess feasibility—recruitment, consent, withdrawal, adherence, missing data, and adverse events—in 30 participants over 20 weeks. Secondary outcomes include changes in pain intensity and pain interference at week 20. Recruitment had not started as of November 2023; the study is expected to complete by December 2025. Results will inform a larger trial.