Depression and anxiety
-
Depression and anxiety · Apr 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialEffects of ketamine on explicit and implicit suicidal cognition: a randomized controlled trial in treatment-resistant depression.
Preliminary evidence suggests intravenous ketamine has rapid effects on suicidal cognition, making it an attractive candidate for depressed patients at imminent risk of suicide. In the first randomized controlled trial of ketamine using an anesthetic control condition, we tested ketamine's acute effects on explicit suicidal cognition and a performance-based index of implicit suicidal cognition (Implicit Association Test; IAT) previously linked to suicidal behavior. ⋯ Intravenous ketamine produces rapid reductions in suicidal cognition over and above active placebo. Further study is warranted to test ketamine's antisuicidal effects in higher-risk samples.