Is Low-Dose Ketamine an Effective Alternative to Opioids for the Treatment of Acute Pain in the Emergency Department?

The search identified 1,396 articles, of which 44 were deemed eligible for full-text review. Of these, a total of 8 articles (n=609 patients) were included in the final qualitative analysis. The review included 6 randomized controlled trials and 2 observational studies. Five studies were conducted in the United States, with the remainder conducted in France, India, and Iran. Most of the randomized controlled trials used low-dose ketamine, with doses ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 mg/kg given intravenously; however, one study followed the initial intravenous dose with a subcutaneous infusion at 0.1 mg/kg per hour.

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