Ketamine and Spravato

What did the study examine?

The study examined real-world outcomes among adults with treatment-resistant
depression receiving induction treatment with either intranasal esketamine or
intravenous ketamine.

How many patients were included?

Sixty-three patients met study criteria: 37 received intranasal esketamine and 26
received intravenous ketamine.

How many patients experienced clinically meaningful improvement?

In our study, clinically meaningful improvement was noted in 83.8% of patients
receiving SPRAVATO® (esketamine) and 73.1% of patients receiving IV
ketamine during induction treatment.
Individual outcomes vary. These findings reflect outcomes observed in this
retrospective cohort and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of treatment
response.

How much did depression scores improve?

Mean PHQ-9 scores decreased by approximately 10 points during induction
treatment in both groups.

Were serious adverse events observed?

No serious adverse events were documented in this 63-patient cohort.

Did the study prove ketamine and esketamine are equally effective?

No. The study was not large enough to establish equivalence between treatments,
and the absence of a statistically significant difference between groups should not
be interpreted as evidence that the treatments are equivalent.

However, when each treatment group was examined independently, both
demonstrated large and statistically significant reductions in depressive
symptoms during induction treatment.

What are the limitations of this research?

This was a retrospective observational study conducted at a single clinical practice
and included 63 patients. Treatment assignment was not randomized, and
treatment schedules differed between intravenous ketamine and intranasal
esketamine. The study therefore cannot establish causality or demonstrate that the
two treatments are equivalent. Longer-term outcomes and durability of treatment
response were not directly evaluated.

Despite these limitations, both treatment groups experienced substantial
reductions in depression symptoms during induction treatment. These
real-world findings are consistent with the broader published literature
demonstrating antidepressant effects of both intravenous ketamine and
intranasal esketamine in patients with treatment-resistant depression.