ArticleBJPsych open2020
Ketamine treatment for individuals with treatment-resistant depression: longitudinal qualitative interview study of patient experiences.
Article in BJPsych open, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- How Do People Who Undergo Ketamine Treatment for a Psychiatric Problem Subjectively Experience This Intervention? A Meta-Synthesis of Qualitative Studies.International journal of mental health nursing · 2025Pooled it
- Exploring Perceived Changes to Mental Health When Restricting and Resuming Specific Adaptive Daily Actions: Longitudinal Qualitative Substudy Within a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR formative research · 2026Trial
- Patient-centred education for ketamine and esketamine therapies in mood disorders.Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology · 2026Review
- Patients' Voices on Ketamine for Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Narrative Review of Qualitative Perspectives.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- The Effectiveness of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Suicidality: An Updated Systematic Review.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025Article
- Patient experiences of treatment-resistant depression (TRD): A systematic review and qualitative meta-synthesis.PLOS mental health · 2024Article
- #TreatmentResistantDepression: A qualitative content analysis of Tweets about difficult-to-treat depression.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2023Review
- The Downstaging Concept in Treatment-Resistant Depression: Spotlight on Ketamine.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Prospective association of psychological pain and hopelessness with suicidal thoughts.Journal of affective disorders · 2022Article
- Holding on or letting go? Patient experiences of control, context, and care in oral esketamine treatment for treatment-resistant depression: A qualitative study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundKetamine has recently received considerable attention regarding its antidepressant and anti-suicidal effects. Trials have generally focused on short-term effects of single intravenous infusions. Research on patient experiences is lacking.
aimsTo investigate the experiences over time of individuals receiving ketamine treatment in a routine clinic, including impacts on mood and suicidality.
methodTwelve fee-paying patients with treatment-resistant depression (6 females, 6 males, age 21-70 years; 11 reporting suicidality and 6 reporting self-harm) who were assessed as eligible for ketamine treatment participated in up to three semi-structured interviews: before treatment started, a few weeks into treatment and ≥2 months later. Data were analysed thematically.
resultsMost participants hoped that ketamine would provide respite from their depression. Nearly all experienced improvement in mood following initial treatments, ranging from negligible to dramatic, and eight reported a reduction in suicidality. Improvements were transitory for most participants, although two experienced sustained consistent benefit and two had sustained but limited improvement. Some participants described hopelessness when treatment stopped working, paralleled by increased suicidal ideation for three participants. The transient nature and cost of treatment were problematic. Eleven participants experienced side-effects, which were significant for two participants. Suggestions for improving treatment included closer monitoring and adjunctive psychological therapy.
conclusionsKetamine treatment was generally experienced as effective in improving mood and reducing suicidal ideation in the short term, but the lack of longer-term benefit was challenging for participants, as was treatment cost. Informed consent procedures should refer to the possibilities of relapse and associated increased hopelessness and suicidality.
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