Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy: A Systematic Narrative Review of the Literature

Summary & key facts

Researchers reviewed 17 papers that together included about 600 people to see what we know about ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, where ketamine is given alongside talk therapy. They found that, in some cases, combining ketamine with psychotherapy can start and extend meaningful drops in pain, anxiety, and depression. The studies also reported better patient engagement and some evidence of helping people stop using other substances. But the way ketamine and therapy were used varied a lot across studies, and most evidence is short-term. The authors say bigger, carefully controlled trials are needed to know which methods work best and how to keep benefits over the long run.

Key facts:

• The review looked at 17 studies that included about 600 people to summarize current ketamine-assisted psychotherapy practices.
• Several studies reported that adding psychotherapy before, during, and after ketamine sessions can sometimes produce and prolong clinically meaningful reductions in pain, anxiety, and depressive symptoms.
• Some reports said KAP helped build rapport between patients and therapists and increased treatment engagement.
• A few studies suggested KAP promoted abstinence in people addicted to other substances, but this finding came from a small number of reports.
• There was a lot of variation in how ketamine was given, the dose and how often it was given, what kind of psychotherapy was used, and how long the overall treatment lasted.
• Because of small sample sizes and inconsistent methods, the authors recommend larger, carefully controlled trials to identify best practices and to test whether benefits last over time.

Abstract

Abstract: Currently, ketamine is used in treating multiple pain, mental health, and substance abuse disorders due to rapid-acting analgesic and antidepressant effects. Its limited short-term durability has motivated research into the potential synergistic actions between ketamine and psychotherapy to sustain benefits. This systematic review on ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) summarizes existing evidence regarding present-day practices. Through rigorous review, seventeen articles that included 603 participants were identified. From available KAP publications, it is apparent that combined treatments can, in specific circumstances, initiate and prolong clinically significant reductions in pain, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, while encouraging rapport and treatment engagement, and promoting abstinence in patients addicted to other substances. Despite much variance in how KAP is applied (route of ketamine administration, ketamine dosage/frequency, psychotherapy modality, overall treatment length), these findings suggest psychotherapy, provided before, during, and following ketamine sessions, can maximize and prolong benefits. Additional large-scale randomized control trials are warranted to understand better the mutually influential relationships between psychotherapy and ketamine in optimizing responsiveness and sustaining long-term benefits in patients with chronic pain. Such investigations will assist in developing standardized practices and maintenance programs. Keywords: addiction, alternative treatment, anesthesia, chronic pain, mental health, novel therapeutic

Topics

Mental Health Research Topics Treatment of Major Depression Tryptophan and brain disorders

Categories

Health Sciences Medicine Pharmacology

Tags

Anxiety Intensive care medicine Ketamine Law Medicine MEDLINE Mental health Narrative review Political science Psychiatry Psychology Psychotherapist Randomized controlled trial Surgery Systematic review

Substances

Ketamine

Conditions & symptoms

Anxiety Addiction or harmful habbits Anxiety or worry Chronic pain Sadness or low mood