Ketamine Treatment Options in Canada

To determine if an high intensity ketamine with ECT rescue (HIKER) approach for treatment resistant depression will: 1) reduce patient suffering by hastening disease remission, 2) have fewer side effects, 3) reduce the need for ECT, and 4) be preferred by most patients. Half of participants will be randomized to the HIKER arm and receive high intensity ketamine treatment for eight consecutive days, and the other half will be assigned to the ECT with ketamine anesthesia (EAST) arm and receive 8 ECT treatments (2-3 treatment/week) Read Less

Suicide is a leading cause of death for children and adolescents. Since warning signs of suicide and links to precipitating events differ between age groups, suicide can be difficult to predict. As a result, children often seek care for suicidal ideation (SI) in the emergency department (ED) where a limited number of treatment options exist. Current psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies, such as antidepressants, provide benefit over weeks or months and thus limits their effective application in the ED. Consequently, when there is an imminent threat to the child's safety, the typical management solution is to admit the patient to a safe environment and hopefully de-escalate over time. To address a more rapid-onset treatment option for SI, a number of studies in adults have suggested that a single, sub-anesthetic dose of intravenous ketamine can rapidly reduce depression and SI severity. These results are promising, but large-scale trials are needed to determine if ketamine is a safe and effective treatment for acute suicidality in the pediatric population. This approach has the benefit of working rapidly, avoiding involuntary hospitalizations, and protecting patients from self-harm until they can be connected to longer term mental health resources. This study will compare the use of intravenous ketamine to both active and placebo controls in children 10 to 17 years of age presenting to the pediatric ED for SI. The primary objective of this pilot trial is to explore the adequacy and range of three instruments measuring suicidality and to determine the sample size required for a large definitive randomized control trial. This larger trial will be used to estimate the effectiveness of intravenous ketamine for reducing SI in children in the pediatric ED. The secondary objectives are to assess study feasibility and optimize study procedures. Given very few side effects reported in adult studies and the relatively benign nature of those reported, the investigators do not expect any major safety concerns in the study. Read Less

Postoperative pain after VATS surgery is significant and associated with moderate to high post operative morphine requirements, which can cause opioid related side effects and delay postoperative recovery. To reduce this requirement, multimodal analgesia with non opioid medication such as dexmedetomidine and ketamine can be used. These drugs have demonstrated significant opioid-sparing properties after various types of surgeries. However, very little is known about their ability to do so in VATS surgery. Also, their relative opioid-sparing properties have not been compared, and it is not known whether their combined use can lead to an additional opioid-sparing effect. The primary goal of this study will be to determine the impact of a combined intra operative infusion of ketamine and dexmedetomidine on postoperative morphine requirements in patients undergoing elective VATS, compared to both these drugs infused separately. The hypothesis is that this combined infusion will lead to a 30% further reduction in morphine requirements, 24h after surgery, compared to both these drugs infused separately. Read Less

This is a randomized clinical trial to test the effectiveness of combining a proven psychological intervention called behavioural activation therapy alongside esketamine treatment for treatment resistant major depressive episodes in individuals with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder. Encouraging participants to practice new behaviours while their mood is improved through esketamine treatment may lead to more lasting recovery from depression. Read Less

Orthopedic injuries comprise more than 10% of ED visits in children and 25 to 50% of children will sustain a fracture before age 16 years. Distal radius fractures account for 20-32% of fractures in children, making them the most common fracture type. Between 20 and 40% of extremity fractures in children require a closed reduction, often necessitating procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA). Intravenous (IV) ketamine is the most commonly used sedative agent used to perform a closed reduction. However, children rate IV insertion as the most painful hospital experience, second only to the injury itself. IV insertion can be more technically difficult in children because of smaller veins and lack of cooperation, often leading to multiple IV attempts. A combination of intranasal (IN) dexmedetomidine plus ketamine (IN Ketodex) may provide effective sedation for children undergoing a closed reduction without the distress and pain related to IV insertion. A less painful experience has been found to correlate with child satisfaction which may reduce caregiver anxiety and improve the therapeutic relationship with the health care team. This study is a multi-centre, two-arm, randomized, blinded, controlled, non-inferiority trial designed to test the hypothesis that IN Ketodex is non-inferior to intravenous (IV) ketamine with respect to depth of sedation as measured using the Pediatrics Sedation State Scale (PSSS). Read Less

Chronic daily headaches (CDH) poses a significant burden on patients, healthcare systems and the society. Intravenous (IV) ketamine infusion, an intervention that is widely available and scalable, can treat CDH by reversing receptor-mediated sensitization. This study is a multicenter, placebo-controlled, parallel group randomized trial with blinding of participants and observers with the goal of comprehensively assessing the effect of high-dose IV ketamine infusion (1 mg.kg-1.h-1 for six hours) on the frequency and intensity of headaches, mood, activity, sleep, quality of life and safety of ketamine for three months after the interventions. Use of validated questionnaires, wearable technology, a research team that includes investigators with expertise in studying ketamine and in evaluating treatments for CDH and pain syndromes are some of the unique features of this project. Our study aims to prospectively assess the efficacy and safety of high-dose intravenous ketamine infusions compared to saline infusions in participants with CDH syndrome. Read Less

Observational study to assess efficacy of IV ketamine bolus when used in the post anesthesia recovery unit for uncontrolled pain despite use of opioids. Read Less

This study is a randomized open-label single-blind non-inferiority comparative effectiveness study of ECT vs. KET for the treatment of Acute Suicidal Depression (ASD). Read Less

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or bleeding in the brain as a result of ruptured aneurysm is a devastating type of stroke. Many patients who undergo emergent neurosurgery to repair the aneurysm and remove the bleeding suffer from complications in their subsequent hospital stay, the most frequent and morbid of which is delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) or small strokes resulting from impaired blood flow to certain vital brain centers. This occurs because of changes to the brain's blood vessels that occur after the bleed. The arteries can become narrow (spasm) or small clots can form within the vasculature that disrupts normal blood flow. Patients are left with profound neurologic deficits from these secondary complications. Anesthesiologists, neurosurgeons, and intensivists are in need of a way to protect the brain during this vulnerable period following aneurysm repair. One drug that may provide such protection is ketamine, a compound frequently used in operating rooms and intensive care units to provide anesthesia and analgesia. Ketamine works by blocking glutamate receptor ion channels that play a pivotal role in promoting brain cell death during strokes by flooding the brain with too much calcium and dangerous chemicals. This project is designed to test the efficacy of ketamine in protecting the brain following aneurysm repair by using a controlled infusion of the drug in the intensive care unit (ICU) when patients return from their operation. Read Less

The Canadian Rapid Treatment Center of Excellence (CRTCE) is a healthcare facility principally focused on providing best practices of intravenous ketamine treatment to adult patients suffering from mental health conditions. The center focuses specifically on treating individuals suffering from major depression disorder, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder as their primary diagnosis. Herein, this retrospective analysis aims to look at past data in order to further develop our understanding of ketamine in the use of psychiatry. Read Less

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the comparative acute effects of ketamine vs esketamine in participants over the age of 18 for the treatment of their severe depression and suicidal ideations. Participants are already taking antidepressants and/or antipsychotics as part of their regular medical care for depression, Read Less

The purpose of the study is to investigate new therapies to alleviate pain on neuropathic chronic pain. At this time, the main purpose is to complete a feasibility or pilot study with 60 participants suffering from neuropathic chronic pain. Participants will be randomized to (1) Ketamine (Hydrochloride) HCL; (2) psychotherapy (using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy); or (3) a combination of Ketamine HL and psychotherapy. Read Less