ArticleCureus2025
Esketamine in a Patient With Major Depressive Disorder and Polysubstance Use: A Case Report.
Article in Cureus, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) frequently co-occurs with substance use disorders (SUDs), leading to poorer outcomes and limited options. Esketamine is approved for treatment-resistant depression (TRD); its effects on craving and abstinence in SUD are less explored. A 41-year-old man with recurrent MDD (suicidal ideation) and polysubstance use (daily morphine/prescription opioids; intermittent methamphetamine) failed multiple antidepressants and engaged in opioid-seeking behavior. Intranasal esketamine was initiated adjunctive to the ongoing oral antidepressant. At one month, depressive symptoms and craving markedly improved. At two months, he achieved abstinence from opioids and methamphetamine. At four months, he returned to work and started a business. At six months, he remained euthymic and abstinent. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scores dropped progressively from 24 at baseline to 4 at six months. Tolerability was good (transient dizziness, mild dissociation). Beyond rapid antidepressant effects, esketamine may reduce craving via glutamatergic modulation and synaptic plasticity. In conclusion, esketamine may offer dual benefits in TRD with comorbid SUD; however, controlled studies are needed.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.