Intravenous ketamine for emergency department treatment of suicidal ideation in a paediatric population: protocol for a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, parallel-arm pilot trial (KSI study).
BMJ open July 5, 2024 Michael Schlegelmilch, Amy C Plint, Nicholas Barrowman et al. 2 citations
A single intravenous dose of ketamine may rapidly reduce suicidal ideation in adults, but it has not been tested in adolescents. This pilot trial aims to determine whether studying ketamine for suicidal ideation in a pediatric emergency department is feasible. Twenty adolescents will be randomly assigned to receive either 0.5 mg/kg of intravenous ketamine or a saline placebo over 40 minutes. Suicidal ideation severity will be measured at several time points up to seven days. The main feasibility outcome is the proportion of eligible patients who complete the study protocol. The trial will also pilot three suicidal ideation severity tools and explore the intervention's efficacy, safety, and tolerability.