Results of a new randomized, head-to-head trial suggest intravenous ketamine is at least as effective and has fewer side effects for treatment resistant depression as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). To date, no large, head-to-head trials have compared ECT to intravenous ketamine.
The study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, states that although ECT is very effective and is fast acting, it requires anaesthesia, can be socially stigmatizing, and is associated with memory problems following the treatment. Ketamine has been shown to have rapid antidepressant effects and does not cause memory loss or carry the stigma associated with ECT, he added. For these reasons, the investigators examined whether it may be a viable alternative to ECT.
Ketamine versus ECT for Nonpsychotic Treatment-Resistant Major Depression | NEJM