The Washington Post:
After a lifetime of profound depression, 25 years of therapy and cycling through 18 antidepressants and mood stabilizers, Hartman, then 46, had settled on a date and a plan to end it all. The clinical trial would be his last attempt at salvation. For 40 minutes, he sat in a hospital room as an IV drip delivered ketamine through his system. Several more hours passed before it occurred to him that all his thoughts of suicide had evaporated.

Nautilus:
Ketamine's remarkable effect bolsters a new theory of mental illness. Depression is the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 30 percent of Americans at some point in their lives.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is highly prevalent in the United States military forces, with rates as high as 31% and 20% for Vietnam War and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) veterans, respectively. An estimated 50% of patients diagnosed with PTSD also present with chronic pain.

New research published in Translational Psychiatry sheds light on how ketamine, a drug known for its rapid antidepressant effects, specifically alters brain activity in people with treatment-resistant depression. This detailed investigation into the brain’s anterior cingulate cortex reveals that ketamine’s influence on different regions of this area correlates with notable improvements in depressive and anhedonic symptoms.

Researchers pitted ketamine therapy against electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) — the so-called “gold standard” intervention for severe depression.

The study found that ketamine held its own.

Are low serotonin levels really to blame for depression? Probably not, according to an umbrella review of 17 studies. (Molecular Psychiatry)