This New Study Found That Individuals With A History Of Childhood Trauma And Abuse Respond More Rapidly And Robustly To Ketamine As A Severe Depression Treatment

Sergii Mostovyi - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual child
Sergii Mostovyi - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual child

Despite ketamine first gaining a bad reputation as a club drug, known as Special K, during the 1980s, the dissociative anesthetic has now become a viable treatment option for people with treatment-resistant depression (TRD).

Although, a new study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders found that some patients have a higher chance of gaining rapid, significant benefits from ketamine compared to others.

Most of the participating patients did experience benefits from the drug. But, approximately one-third showed substantial results– experiencing “rapid improvement” of depression symptoms.

And according to the researchers, distinct patient characteristics may be able to predict the level of relief prior to drug prescription.

“Severely depressed individuals with a history of childhood trauma may have a better likelihood of a rapid and robust response to ketamine,” explained Brittany O’Brien, the study’s lead researcher.

This new research included nearly 300 patients, with an average age of 40, who were diagnosed with major depression.

The patient pool was also mostly made up of men, but all study participants had not responded to at least two different antidepressants in the past.

Every patient was treated using three infusions of ketamine, which took place at an outpatient clinic. Then, the researchers identified three different response patterns.

One group of study participants was suffering from severe depression prior to the treatment; then, they experienced significant, rapid improvement.

Sergii Mostovyi – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual child

A second group, which included patients who were also severely depressed, experienced minimal benefit.

Finally, the third group– whose patients were less depressed compared to the former two groups prior to treatment– experienced a gradual improvement in symptoms of depression.

And interestingly, people who struggled with severe depression and who also experienced a childhood history of trauma and abuse were most likely to respond quickly and powerfully to ketamine.

Although, the researchers are not yet sure why.

“This finding needs to be further and more carefully tested to better understand the potential role of trauma in treatment response to ketamine,” O’Brien said.

Still, the researchers do have a hunch, and it has to do with sensitization. Sensitization is when a person is repeatedly exposed to specific stimuli that they grow more sensitive to over time.

In turn, O’Brien believes that ketamine might work for certain depressed individuals by blocking sensitization effects.

“Ketamine may work as a barrier to prevent whatever stimulus is triggering the depression from having its effects,” he explained.

So, these findings are beginning to illuminate how people who underwent childhood trauma and abuse respond to ketamine.

It is important to note, though, that not all of these individuals should be prescribed ketamine using only a blanket recommendation.

As for how you can obtain ketamine infusions for depression, this option should only be explored if you have tried first-line treatments and they were not effective in symptom relief. But you can talk to your doctor to see if this option is right for you.

“Work with your psychiatrist and have that person help guide you to people who can provide it safely,” added Dr. Joshua Berman, assistant professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center.

To read the study’s complete findings, visit the link here.

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Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing ... More about Katharina Buczek

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