Single subanaesthetic doses of i.v. esketamine may significantly improve symptoms in psychiatric patients with major depression.~In patients undergoing cardiac surgery, postoperative depressive symptoms are common.~This study hypothesizes that low-dose esketamine has a preventive effect on postoperative depression. However, evidence in this aspect is insufficient. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of a subanaesthetic dose of ketamine on POD for patients undergoing cardiac surgery.
Esketamine is a general anesthetic with anti-depressant effects at subanaesthetic doses. This study hypothesized that intraoperative administration of ketamine would prevent or mitigate postoperative depressive symptoms in surgical patients.