"Antidepressant Based On Party Drug Gets Backing From FDA Advisory Group" - Sara Reardon
A form of the hallucinogenic party drug ketamine has cleared one of the final hurdles toward clinical use as an antidepressant. If the FDA approves the drug, it could buoy the chances of other ketamine-inspired treatments currently under development. However, questions remain about esketamine’s overall effectiveness at lifting mood and its potential to be abused. Mental health researchers rejoiced at the new. “I’m still a little bit in shock,” said James Murrough, MD, PhD, director of the Depression and Anxiety Center for Discovery and Treatment at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “If this comes to pass, we’ll have done what people have been quick to point out hasn’t been done since the original discovery of antidepressants.” The FDA is expected to make a decision on esketamine by March 4.
— James Murrough, MD, Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, Neuroscience, Director, Depression and Anxiety Center for Discovery and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
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