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RecruitingPhase 2

Intravenous Ketamine for Treatment-Resistant Depression

NCT06668571 · G2K · Mayo Clinic

Recruiting
Status
Accepting participants
Phase 2
Phase
30
Target enrolment
1
Study sites
1 US states

What it is testing

Summary

The purpose of this study is to to evaluate the relationships between peak (% change from baseline) central GABA and Glu levels during a 40-min IV ketamine or normal saline infusion utilizing fMRS, and change in peripheral GABA and Glu levels from baseline to 24-hr postinfusion utilizing LCMS, with baseline to 24-hr post-infusion change in depression (MADRS) in 30 TRD adults.

Summary as written by the trial’s own sponsor and published on ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. It is the sponsor’s description, reproduced unedited, not an assessment by this site.

What counts as success

Primary outcome measures

  • Peak (% change from baseline) Anterior Cingulate Cortex metabolites (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate)

    Measured over Baseline to the end of 40-minute infusion

  • Change in peripheral Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate levels

    Measured over Baseline to the end of 40-minute infusion

  • Change in the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale

    Measured over Baseline to 24-hours post-infusion

  • Correlation between the percent change in central (anterior cingulate cortex) Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate levels and the change in depression severity measured using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale

    Measured over Baseline to the end of 40-minute infusion for GABA and Glu. Baseline to 24 hours post-infusion for MADRS

  • Correlation between the percent change in serum Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate levels and the change in depression severity measured using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale

    Measured over Baseline to the end of 40-minute infusion for serum GABA and Glu. Baseline to 24 hours post-infusion for MADRS

A trial succeeds or fails on its primary outcome, declared in advance. Everything else it reports is secondary by definition.

Who can take part

Eligibility, as published

18 Years to 65 Years
Ages
All
Sex
Not accepted
Healthy volunteers
Inclusion Criteria: * Ability to provide informed consent * Meets diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder without psychotic features per the SCID DSM-IV-TR * PHQ-9 total score ≥ 15 at screening * Treatment-resistant depression, as defined by failure of at least two previous antidepressant treatments within the current depressive episode. Failed antidepressant treatments can include pharmacotherapy for depression at an adequate dose for at least 8 weeks, trial of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) or an acute series of at least 6 administrations of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) * Ability to pass a comprehension assessment test related to effects of ketamine and trial objectives and criteria Exclusion Criteria: * Inability to speak English * Inability to provide consent or have a legal guardian * Patients with a BMI \> 40 kg/m2. * Personality disorder being the primary diagnosis * Diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, or active psychotic symptoms * Active post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms based on clinical assessment * Ongoing prescription of \> 2 mg lorazepam equivalents (total) daily, or morning dosing of any benzodiazepine at the time of assessment * Medications known to affect glutamate (i.e., Riluzole, Carbamazepine) or GABA (zaleplon, zolpidem, zopiclone, Valproate, Gabapentin, Pregabalin, tiagabine, and vigabatrin) are prohibited within two weeks prior to administration of study drug and at least 24 hours after last dose of study drug * Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs) are prohibited two weeks prior to administration of study drug * Opioid antagonists (naltrexone, naloxone, nalmefene, methylnaltrexone, buprenorphine and naloxone combination) are prohibited within two weeks prior to administration of study drug and at least 24 hours after last dose of study drug * CYP3A4 inducers carbamazepine and modafinil are prohibited within two weeks prior to administration of study drug and at least 24 hours after last dose of study drug. * Currently undergoing TMS, vagal nerve stimulation, or deep brain stimulation as either an acute or maintenance treatment of depression * ECT in the past 6 months * Any active or unstable medical condition judged by the study psychiatrist as conferring too great a level of medical risk to allow inclusion in the study * A history of bleeding in the brain * Arteriovenous malformation or a history of aneurysm * Use of methamphetamine, cocaine, or cannabis. Abuse of stimulant (s) within the prior 12 months * Any current substance use disorder (excluding nicotine and caffeine). Note: Persons will be allowed to enroll in this study if their substance use is in complete (not partial) and sustained (\> 1 year) remission * History of traumatic brain injury that resulted in loss of consciousness with brain bleeding * History of tonic-clonic (grand mal) seizures * Developmental delay, intellectual disability, or intellectual disorder * Clinical or self-reported diagnosis of delirium, encephalopathy, or related clinical diagnosis within the prior 12 months * Minor or Major Neurocognitive disorder * Received ketamine treatment for depression within the prior 2 months * History of either poor antidepressive response to or poor tolerability of ketamine (any route of administration) when previously administered * History of hypothyroidism unless taking a stable dose of thyroid medication and asymptomatic for 3 months * Hepatic insufficiency (2.5 X ULN for AST or ALT) within 3 months of consent, past liver transplant recipient, and/or clinical diagnosis of cirrhosis of the liver * Gastroesophageal reflux disease that is poorly managed * A diagnosis of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) * Pregnancy, or nursing * History of claustrophobia with active symptoms that would interfere with the MRI * Any contraindication to MRI safety questionnaire * Poorly controlled hypertension.

Where

1 study site

FacilityCityRegionCountry
Mayo Clinic in RochesterRochesterMinnesotaUnited States

On the registry

Contact the trial directly

This site does not enrol anyone and is not involved in this trial. To ask about taking part, use the sponsor’s own contact details on the official registry record, which is also where the most current version of everything above lives.

Before you do, the preparation checklist lists what a site will ask you on a first call and what is worth asking them. It is free and collects nothing.

NCT06668571 on ClinicalTrials.gov →

Last updated in the registry 2025-10-14. Registry records change; this page reflects the data build of 2026-08-25.

Related

Where this trial sits