King's College London

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a psychiatric disorder affecting your physical and mental well-being. Only around 2/3 of patients achieve remission after treatment of the currently approved antidepressants and up to 30% of adults experience treatment-resistant depression. This is characterised by patients who have not improved after taking at least two prescribed antidepressants. Despite the different therapies for managing MDD, none provide complete efficacy and their delay in onset of therapeutic action are failing to improve such prevalence. However, administration of a new oral ketamine has been found to significantly reduce antidepressant effects and produce a faster onset of action. Thus, we have supported this study in using a novel formulation of Ketamine hydrochloride as a treatment for treatment-resistant depression. As the oral pharmokinetics of ketamine are not well established, clinical trials are a crucial step in developing health breakthroughs. Consequently, partnering with the Wellcome trust enabled noble support of the study design and development of the new therapeutic intervention in improving depressed patients’ health.