Depression: Esketamine preliminary leaves 'a greater number of questions than answers
A phase 3 clinical trial testing esketamine nasal spray in the treatment of severe depression found the spray mostly safe and effective. The discoveries prompted the ongoing FDA approval of this treatment. In spite of this, different analysts alert that "a larger number of questions than answers" remain. Esketamine is a form of ketamine, which doctors typically use as an anesthetic. Recent research has accumulated evidence that this substance can also quickly reduce the symptoms of severe depression, such as suicidal ideation.
These were the discoveries of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study from 2018, which recommended that an esketamine nasal spray could produce quick and positive short-term effects for individuals at risk of depression for whom traditional antidepressants had failed. Since then, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have approved an esketamine nasal spray for the treatment of severe depression, specifically for use alongside an orally administered antidepressant, and only in adults in whom other treatments had failed.