Electroconvulsive therapy ( ECT ) may not be the most palatable of treatment option , but new enquiry indicates that the raptus - inducing proficiency may be more effective than ketamine hydrochloride at alleviating depression . Researchers pool information from six freestanding study , obtain thatECTwas in fact superior to ketamine in every trial they look at .
Over the preceding few years , ketaminehas emerged as a highly bright treatment for depression , with several studies highlighting its remarkably rapid effects . Capable of providing reliefwithin 24 hoursof administration , the drug is not currently licence for medical use , although a related chemical compound calledeskataminehas been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) .
Despite the recent hype around ketamine , however , the study generator point out that ECT is still “ considered the golden received treatment for [ depressive disorder ] because of its proven in high spirits efficaciousness . ” At the same meter , they concede that the method acting is not particularly appeal to patients , as it requires the use of anaesthesia and involves lapse an electric current through the skull to produce a generalized seizure .
To compare the efficaciousness of Ketalar and ECT , the researchers study the results of six studies conducted in Sweden , Germany , Iran , and India , of which five were randomized clinical trials . The study include a combined total of 340 patient , 162 of whom undergo ECT for low while the remain 178 receive ketamine .
“ Every single study straight off reports ECT works better than ketamine hydrochloride , ” explicate study writer Taeho Greg Rhee in astatement . Based on this result , the researchers resolve that “ ECT may be superior to ketamine for meliorate depression severity in the intense form , ” although they also express that “ treatment options should be individualized and patient - centered . ”
For case , they mention that patients who require instant succour may profit more from ketamine , since the drug was reported to provide more rapid anti - depressant effects than ECT in three freestanding studies . In contrast , ECT was rule to be faster - acting in only one study .
The authors also point out that the two discourse options were associated with very dissimilar side effects , and that sure patients may therefore be better suited to one over the other . Ketamine , for example , was more likely to create blurred vision , vertigo , and transient dissociative symptoms , while ECT was linked to headaches and muscle pain in the ass .
what is more , as Rhee place out , “ masses are still skeptical of ECT , perhaps because of stigma . ” splendidly utilized to pacify the fiery Randle McMurphy in Ken Keysey ’s novelOne Flew Over The Cuckoo ’s Nest – later portrayed on screen door by Jack Nicholson – the invasive proficiency is likely to be less appealing than ketamine to many affected role .
Despite this assumption , though , the researchers say that none of the six studies reported on affected role ’ willingness to undergo either of these therapy . Therefore , they urge future studies to “ consider patient tolerability and acceptableness with respect to these two possible treatments . ”
The field was published in the journalJAMA Psychiatry .
