Initiating Ketamine in Acutely Suicidal Patients in the Emergency Department

Stopped early · Phase 3 · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: Suicide, Suicide Threat, Depression Severe

In brief

Current treatment for acutely suicidal patients are limited to hospitalization, psychotherapy, electro-convulsant therapy, or a combination of the aforementioned. However, this has added to the national boarding problem. Long term pharmacologic treatment for suicidal behaviors and mood stabilization has been studied in specific populations. In these populations, the decreases in suicidal ideation results from stabilization of the underlying psychiatric illness. Ketamine is most commonly used as an anesthetic with analgesic properties. It has been used off-label for pain management, procedural sedation, status epilepticus, and treatment resistant depression. It has been safely administered intravenously and well tolerated for chronic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It increases norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin through adrenergic neuron stimulation and prevention of catecholamine uptake. There is a strong corollary between stress and the development of depression and suicidal behaviors. It is proposed that the use of low dose intravenous ketamine may have benefit on the suicidal ideation of patients presenting to the Emergency Department.

Key facts

Study ID
NCT04260607
Run by
Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune
People needed
1
Starts
2020-01-14
Expected to finish
2022-02-16
Last updated by the study team
2025-05-14

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 89. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

Where it is running

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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