Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Wednesday March 06 2019, @11:00PM   Printer-friendly
from the depression-sucks dept.

Fast-Acting Depression Drug, Newly Approved, Could Help Millions

Of the 16 million American adults who live with depression, as many as one-quarter gain little or no benefit from available treatments, whether drugs or talk therapy. They represent perhaps the greatest unmet need in psychiatry. On Tuesday, the Food and Drug Administration approved a prescription treatment intended to help them, a fast-acting drug derived from an old and widely used anesthetic, ketamine.

The move heralds a shift from the Prozac era of antidepressant drugs. The newly approved treatment, called esketamine, is a nasal spray developed by Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., a branch of Johnson & Johnson, that will be marketed under the name Spravato. It contains an active portion of the ketamine molecule, whose antidepressant properties are not well understood yet. "Thank goodness we now have something with a different mechanism of action than previous antidepressants," said Dr. Erick Turner, a former F.D.A. reviewer and an associate professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University. "But I'm skeptical of the hype, because in this world it's like Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown: Each time we get our hopes up, the football gets pulled away."

[...] Esketamine, like ketamine, has the potential for abuse, and both drugs can induce psychotic episodes in people who are at high risk for them. The safety monitoring will require doctors to find space for treated patients, which could present a logistical challenge, some psychiatrists said.

The wholesale cost for a course of treatment will be between $2,360 and $3,540, said Janssen, and experts said it will give the company a foothold in the $12 billion global antidepressant market, where most drugs now are generic.

[...] One question that will need to be answered is how well esketamine performs in comparison to intravenous ketamine.

Also at STAT News, Reuters, and NPR.

Previously: Ketamine Reduces Suicidal Thoughts in Depressed Patients
Studies Identify How Ketamine Can Reverse Symptoms of Depression
Ketamine Shows Promise as a Fast-Acting Treatment for Depression

Related:


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:03AM (6 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:03AM (#810930)

    Why is antidepressant use so low in Japan and Iceland? Evidence does that when you mix races, no one is happy.

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   -1  
       Troll=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Troll' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   -1  
  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:25AM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:25AM (#810938)

    FTFY:

    Evidence does that when you mix races, racist sheep fuckers ruin things for everyone and no one is happy.

    • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @01:36AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @01:36AM (#810963)

      Who said anything about Australia?

      • (Score: 3, Funny) by MostCynical on Thursday March 07 2019, @01:50AM (1 child)

        by MostCynical (2589) on Thursday March 07 2019, @01:50AM (#810969) Journal

        Or New Zealand.

        --
        "I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:51AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 07 2019, @12:51AM (#810950)

    Your mistake is thinking lack of antidepressant use always necessarily correlates with lack of depression.

    But maybe suicide is a national issue in Japan because they're so happy from not taking anti-depressants.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 08 2019, @04:25PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 08 2019, @04:25PM (#811581)

    Or maybe vulcanoes make you happy.