Ketamine for Treatment Resistant Late-Life Depression

Phase 3

Completed

Conditions: Treatment Resistant Depressive Disorder

Interventions: Drug: Midazolam
Drug: Ketamine

Registration Number: NCT02556606

Lead Sponsor: VA Office of Research and Development

Brief Summary: The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a single infusion of ketamine (KET), to determine which dose is optimal 7 days after infusion using Bayesian Adaptive Randomization, and to learn about how ketamine works in the body and brain in persons with late-life treatment resistant depression.

Detailed Description: Primary Aim: To identify the best performing condition across a single intravenous infusion of ketamine (KET) 0.1 mg/kg, KET 0.25 mg/kg, KET 0.50 mg/kg) and midazolam (MID) 0.03 mg/kg on Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) treatment response (at least a 50% improvement in depression from baseline) 7 days after the infusion in up to 72 Veterans with Late-Life Treatment Resistant Depression (LL-TRD) , using a triple blind (patient, rater, anesthesiologist) Bayesian adaptive randomization design.

Hypothesis 1: Single KET 0.5 mg/kg infusion is superior to KET 0.1 mg/kg, KET 0.25 mg/kg, and MID 0.03 mg/kg measured by the proportion of participants demonstrating \> 50% reduction on MADRS scores 7 days post-treatment.

Secondary Aim: To evaluate the durability of day 7 treatment response across 3 sub-anesthetic doses of a single KET (0.1 mg/kg, 0.25 mg/kg, and 0.50 mg/kg) and MID (0.03 mg/kg) infusion in veterans with LL-TRD during a 4 week follow-up.

Hypothesis 2: a single KET 0.5 mg/kg infusion will be superior to a single infusion of KET 0.1 mg/kg, KET 0.25 mg/kg, and MID 0.03 mg/kg as measured by the proportion of participants demonstrating \> 50% reduction on MADRS scores at 28 days post-infusion.

Tertiary Aim: To evaluate the immediate and longer-term safety and tolerability of the most effective KET infusion relative to MID in vets with LL-TRD.

Hypothesis 3: KET infusion at the most effective dose will be safe and well tolerated compared to MID, as assessed by psychoactive and general side effect rating scales during and up to 4 weeks post study infusion.

Exploratory Aims:

1. To measure the effects of the most effective dose of KET relative to MID on neurocognitive performance.

2. To measure the effects the most effective dose of KET relative to MID on peripheral biomarkers of cellular plasticity and inflammation.

3. To measure the effects the most effective dose of KET relative to MID on resting-state quantitative electroencephalography.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: COMPLETED

Sex: All

Target Recruitment: 33

Inclusion Criteria

Male or female patients, 55 years of age,
Participants must fulfill DSM 5 criteria for a Major Depressive Episode (Unipolar), based on a structured diagnostic interview, the DSM 5 M.I.N.I. 7.0
Participants must have a history of at least one previous episode of depression prior to the current episode (recurrent MDD) or have chronic MDD (of at least two years' duration),
Participants have not responded to two or more adequate trials of FDA-approved antidepressants, determined by Antidepressant Treatment Response Questionnaire (ATRQ) criteria.
Participants must score 14 or greater on the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Self Report (QIDS-SR), and score 27 on the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS),
Each participant must have a level of understanding sufficient to agree to all tests and examinations required by the protocol and must sign an informed consent document.

Exclusion Criteria

Patients currently on fluoxetine,
History of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder or any psychotic disorder, or bipolar disorder,
Documented history of a psychotic disorder in a first-degree relative,
Current diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) or eating disorder [bulimia nervosa or anorexia nervosa],
Alcohol or substance use [except nicotine] within the preceding 6 months,
Patients with any clinically significant personality disorder that would, in the investigator's judgment, preclude safe study participation,
Patients judged to be at serious and imminent suicidal or homicidal risk,
Serious, unstable medical illnesses including respiratory [obstructive sleep apnea, or history of difficulty with airway management during previous anesthetics], cardiovascular [including ischemic heart disease and uncontrolled hypertension], and neurologic [including history of severe head injury],
For study entry, patients must be reasonable medical candidates for ketamine or midazolam infusion, as determined by a board-certified physician co-investigator during study Screening,
Clinically significant abnormal findings of laboratory parameters [including urine toxicology screen for drugs of abuse], physical examination, or ECG,
Hypertension (systolic BP >160 mm Hg or diastolic BP >90 mm Hg),
Patients with one or more 11 seizures without a clear and resolved etiology,
Patients starting hormonal treatment (e.g., estrogen) in the 3 months prior to Screening,
Past intolerance or hypersensitivity to ketamine, or history of recreational use of phencyclidine (PCP) or ketamine,
Past intolerance or hypersensitivity to midazolam,
Age-related cognitive decline or mild dementia suggested by a score of < 25 on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) at Screening,
Patients taking medications with known activity at the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDA) or AMPA glutamate receptor [e.g., riluzole, amantadine, lamotrigine, memantine, topiramate, dextromethorphan, D-cycloserine], or the muopioid receptor,
Patients taking any of the following medications: St John's Wort, theophylline, tramadol, metrizamide,
Patients who demonstrate > 25% decrease in depressive symptoms as reflected by the QIDS-SR score from Screening to Randomization,
Patients who have received electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in the past 6 months prior to Screening,
Patients currently receiving treatment with vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) or repetitive transcranial stimulation (rTMS).

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Midazolam 0.03 mg/kg	Midazolam	randomly assigned to a single 40 min infusion of either MID 0.03mg/Kg
Ketamine 0.10 mg/kg	Ketamine	randomly assigned to a single 40 min infusion of either KET 0.1mg/Kg
Ketamine 0.25 mg/kg	Ketamine	randomly assigned to a single 40 min infusion of either KET 0.25mg/Kg
Ketamine 0.50 mg/kg	Ketamine	randomly assigned to a single 40 min infusion of either KET 0.50mg/Kg

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Percentage of Participants Demonstrating at Least a 50% Reduction on Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale Scores	Day 7 post-infusion	To determine the best performing intervention among three sub-anesthetic doses of a single ketamine (0.1 mg/kg, 0.25 mg/kg, and 0.50 mg/kg) and midazolam (0.03 mg/kg) in Veterans with LL-TRD as measured by the percentage of participants demonstrating at least a 50% reduction from pre-treatment baseline on Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS; score range 0 - 60, higher scores meaning more severe depression) scores at 7 days post-infusion.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Percentage of Patients With Continuation From Day 7 to Day 28 Post-infusion of at Least a 50% Improvement in MADRS	28 days post-infusion follow-up	Patients with a day 7 treatment response (at least a 50% improvement from baseline in Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale \[MADRS\]) are followed until day 28 post-infusion; day 7 non-responders are not followed. Outcome measure is the percentage of patients who continue to be responder at day 28, and is interpreted as a measure of durability of efficacy.