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Understanding and Treating Suicidal Ideation With Ketamine

NCT06891300 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: PHASE2/PHASE3 · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 36

Last updated 2026-05-19

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to treat active suicidal ideation in individuals with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) using ketamine and to understand suicidal ideation by examining biological mechanisms using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and psychological mechanisms through validated clinical scales and qualitative interviews. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. Will ketamine will reduce suicidal ideation in a significant proportion of study participants?
2. Will reduction in suicidal ideation will be accompanied by rapid changes in neuroimaging biomarkers?

Participants will receive four intravenous (IV) ketamine infusions administered twice weekly for two weeks. Participants will undergo two identical MRI scans: 1) within 48 hours prior to starting ketamine treatment, and 2) 24 hours after the fourth ketamine infusion. Suicidal ideation and depressive symptoms will be assessed prior to each imaging session alongside additional self-report measures. Qualitative interviews will occur within 72 hours after the fourth ketamine treatment.

Conditions

Interventions

DRUG

ketamine hydrochloride

Participants will undergo intravenous (IV) ketamine infusions (0.5 mg/kg infused over 40 minutes) under medical supervision. Treatments will be administered twice weekly for two weeks, for a total of four infusions.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Jennifer Phillips, PhD · University of Ottawa Institute for Mental Health Research at The Royal

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
65 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-04-08
Primary Completion
2026-10-31
Completion
2026-10-31

Countries

  • Canada

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT06891300 on ClinicalTrials.gov