Table 2.
Side effects during the 96-hour infusion
| Symptom | # reporting side effect (and highest level of severity) | |
|---|---|---|
| 96-hr ketamine arm | 40-min ketamine arm | |
| Psychotomimetic | ||
|
| ||
| Visual distortions and hallucinations* |
7/10 (2 minimal, 1 mild, 4 moderate) |
4/10 (4 mild) |
| Unusual thoughts and delusions** |
7/10 (3 minimal, 2 mild, 2 moderate) |
5/10 (1 minimal, 3 mild, 1 moderate) |
|
| ||
| Confusion | ||
|
| ||
| Incoherent | 2/10 (2 moderate) | 1/10 (1 mild) |
| Disorientation | 3/10 (3 minimal) | 2/10 (2 minimal) |
| Decreased | 10/10 (1 minimal, 2 mild, 4 moderate, 3 severe) |
10/10 (4 mild, 6 moderate) |
| Concentration/Memory Loss | ||
|
| ||
| Other Behavioral | ||
|
| ||
| Restlessness | 10/10 (2 mild, 5 moderate, 3 severe) |
8/10 (3 mild, 5 moderate) |
| Anxiety | 10/10 (1 mild, 5 moderate, 4 severe) |
10/10 (1 mild, 7 moderate, 2 severe) |
| Palpitations | 3/10 (1 minimal, 1 mild, 1 moderate) |
4/10 (3 minimal, 1 mild) |
| Insomnia | 9/10 (2 mild, 4 moderate, 3 severe) |
8/10 (1 mild, 7 moderate) |
| Involuntary Movements | 1/10 (1 minimal) | 3/10 (2 minimal, 1 mild) |
|
| ||
| Physiological | ||
|
| ||
| Headache | 9/10 (1 minimal, 5 mild, 2 moderate, 1 severe) |
8/10 (2 mild, 5 moderate, 1 severe) |
| Dizziness | 9/10 (1 minimal, 3 mild, 4 moderate, 1 severe) |
9/10 (1 minimal, 3 mild, 5 moderate) |
| Nausea | 6/10 (1 mild, 5 moderate) | 7/10 (2 mild, 4 moderate, 1 severe) |
| Vomiting | 1/10 (1 moderate) | 1/10 (1 moderate) |
| Diplopia | 3/10 (1 minimal, 1 mild, 1 moderate) |
4/10 (1 minimal, 1 mild, 2 moderate) |
| Sedation | 9/10 (1 mild, 6 moderate, 2 severe) |
9/10 (4 mild, 3 moderate, 2 severe) |
| Nystagmus | 9/10 (5 mild, 4 moderate) | 6/10 (3 mild, 3 moderate) |
| Hypersalivation | 0/10 | 2/10 (1 mild, 1 moderate) |
| Erythema/Rash | 5/10 (3 minimal, 1 mild, 1 moderate) |
4/10 (4 minimal) |
Note: Symptoms were measured 4 times daily using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (Flemenbaum and Zimmerman, 1973) and the Clinical and Adverse Events Checklist (Newcomer et al, 1999). For symptoms which occurred on more than one assessment, the highest severity rating is reported.
Moderate symptoms in 4 participants were: reported closing eyes and seeing images such as Jesus and a bear in curtains, knew it was not real; seeing images of cathedral ceiling; seeing visual patterns (like modernistic painting) when eyes closed; and seeing lights when eyes closed. All were transient.
Moderate symptoms in 3 participants were: suspicious they were moved to another room (40-minute arm); delusion that nurses was inappropriately observing and hurting them (96-hour arm), and felt that “a force” was pulling on their bed (96-hour arm). All were transient, although the delusion about nurses led the patient to ask for the infusion to be stopped temporarily.