Use of repeated intravenous ketamine therapy in treatment-resistant bipolar depression with suicidal behaviour: a case report from Spain.
Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology April 1, 2017 Álvaro López-díaz, José Luis Fernández-gonzález, José Evaristo Luján-jiménez et al. 27 citations
A case report describes a female patient hospitalized for months with treatment-resistant bipolar depression and chronic suicidal behavior. After repeated intravenous ketamine infusions with no notable side effects, she achieved complete clinical recovery for four weeks following discharge. Depressive symptoms returned in the fifth week, leading to hospital readmission after a suicide attempt. The report highlights ketamine's rapid but temporary antidepressant effects and the risk of relapse, underscoring concerns about its off-label use in clinical practice despite its potential for refractory depression.