Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review
Introduction Ketamine is a well-known anesthetic and analgesic agent which primarily works through N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonism, offering powerful analgesic effects that is particularly useful in opioid-refractory pain. Beyond pain control, it garnered significant attention in...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
2025-07-01
|
| Series: | Quality in Sport |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://apcz.umk.pl/QS/article/view/61429 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849429344403849216 |
|---|---|
| author | Kinga Dowierciał Joanna Wziątek Piotr Kowalik Daria Krzyżanowska Patrycja Fatyga Wiktoria Fatyga Gabriela Pabis Paula Bętkowska Iwona Koziołek Magdalena Strzelczyk |
| author_facet | Kinga Dowierciał Joanna Wziątek Piotr Kowalik Daria Krzyżanowska Patrycja Fatyga Wiktoria Fatyga Gabriela Pabis Paula Bętkowska Iwona Koziołek Magdalena Strzelczyk |
| author_sort | Kinga Dowierciał |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Introduction
Ketamine is a well-known anesthetic and analgesic agent which primarily works through N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonism, offering powerful analgesic effects that is particularly useful in opioid-refractory pain. Beyond pain control, it garnered significant attention in depression and anxiety research, which are some of the most frequent and serious symptoms experienced by patients in need of palliative care. This article provides an overview of Ketamine therapeutic applications in treatment of depression, anxiety, physical pain, opioid tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH), drawing on research from PubMed published between 2020 and 2025.
Aim of study
This review aims to present the current state of knowledge regarding Ketamine, focusing on its pharmacological properties, clinical applications, and potential role in palliative care.
Material and methods
The review was based on research of articles published from 2020 to 2025 on the PubMed database. Keywords used in research were among others: Ketamine, palliative care, pain, neuropathic pain, depression.
Current state of knowledge
Ketamine plays important role in anesthesiology and it shows a lot of potential in psychiatry. Multifactoral effects result from complex mechanism of action. Evidence suggests Ketamine can be effective in managing refractory pain (enabling lower doses of opioids even in severe pain), depression and anxiety disorders, opioid tolerance and OIH, positioning ketamine as a promising agent for palliative care.
Summary (conclusions)
Ketamine's advantages such as its rapid onset, wide range applications, favorable safety profile at subanesthetic doses and many routes of administration make it a valuable tool in the end-of-life care. However long term studies are crucial for identifying both benefits and possible risks.
|
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-209651eb45cc4d8c8e34de76d57353b3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2450-3118 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Quality in Sport |
| spelling | doaj-art-209651eb45cc4d8c8e34de76d57353b32025-08-20T03:28:24ZengNicolaus Copernicus University in ToruńQuality in Sport2450-31182025-07-014310.12775/QS.2025.43.61429Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic reviewKinga Dowierciał0https://orcid.org/0009-0000-9132-1026Joanna Wziątek1https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1656-7477Piotr Kowalik2https://orcid.org/0009-0009-4813-9742Daria Krzyżanowska3https://orcid.org/0009-0002-5349-5679Patrycja Fatyga4https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1277-1246Wiktoria Fatyga5https://orcid.org/0009-0000-5931-925XGabriela Pabis6https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3208-5160Paula Bętkowska7https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7050-4039Iwona Koziołek8https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1077-3640Magdalena Strzelczyk9https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6312-3002Independent Public Regional Specialist Hospital in ChełmMunicipal Medical Centre Jonscher in ŁódźMedical University of LodzMunicipal Medical Centre Jonscher in LodzThe Provincial Hospital in KielceNon-public Health Care Facility Prophylactics Wiesława Piotrowska Limited Liability CompanyThe Provincial Hospital in KielceMunicipal Medical Centre Jonscher in LodzThe Provincial Hospital in KielceMunicipal Medical Centre Jonscher in Lodz Introduction Ketamine is a well-known anesthetic and analgesic agent which primarily works through N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonism, offering powerful analgesic effects that is particularly useful in opioid-refractory pain. Beyond pain control, it garnered significant attention in depression and anxiety research, which are some of the most frequent and serious symptoms experienced by patients in need of palliative care. This article provides an overview of Ketamine therapeutic applications in treatment of depression, anxiety, physical pain, opioid tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH), drawing on research from PubMed published between 2020 and 2025. Aim of study This review aims to present the current state of knowledge regarding Ketamine, focusing on its pharmacological properties, clinical applications, and potential role in palliative care. Material and methods The review was based on research of articles published from 2020 to 2025 on the PubMed database. Keywords used in research were among others: Ketamine, palliative care, pain, neuropathic pain, depression. Current state of knowledge Ketamine plays important role in anesthesiology and it shows a lot of potential in psychiatry. Multifactoral effects result from complex mechanism of action. Evidence suggests Ketamine can be effective in managing refractory pain (enabling lower doses of opioids even in severe pain), depression and anxiety disorders, opioid tolerance and OIH, positioning ketamine as a promising agent for palliative care. Summary (conclusions) Ketamine's advantages such as its rapid onset, wide range applications, favorable safety profile at subanesthetic doses and many routes of administration make it a valuable tool in the end-of-life care. However long term studies are crucial for identifying both benefits and possible risks. https://apcz.umk.pl/QS/article/view/61429Ketaminepalliative carepaindepressionanxietyOIH |
| spellingShingle | Kinga Dowierciał Joanna Wziątek Piotr Kowalik Daria Krzyżanowska Patrycja Fatyga Wiktoria Fatyga Gabriela Pabis Paula Bętkowska Iwona Koziołek Magdalena Strzelczyk Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review Quality in Sport Ketamine palliative care pain depression anxiety OIH |
| title | Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review |
| title_full | Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review |
| title_fullStr | Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review |
| title_short | Ketamine in palliative care: an updated systematic review |
| title_sort | ketamine in palliative care an updated systematic review |
| topic | Ketamine palliative care pain depression anxiety OIH |
| url | https://apcz.umk.pl/QS/article/view/61429 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kingadowierciał ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT joannawziatek ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT piotrkowalik ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT dariakrzyzanowska ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT patrycjafatyga ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT wiktoriafatyga ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT gabrielapabis ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT paulabetkowska ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT iwonakoziołek ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview AT magdalenastrzelczyk ketamineinpalliativecareanupdatedsystematicreview |