Characteristics of patients with major depressive disorder eligible for and prescribed esketamine, treatment outcomes and physician experiences: a physician and patient survey in the United States

OBJECTIVE: Esketamine is an FDA-approved treatment for treatment-resistant depression (TRD) or major depression with acute suicidal ideation or behavior (MDSI). This analysis addressed the lack of data on real-world characteristics of patients with TRD and MDSI or prescribed esketamine. METHODS: Data were derived from the Adelphi Real World Depression Disease Specific Programme a cross-sectional survey of physicians and patients with TRD, MDSI, or those prescribed esketamine in the US (July 2022-February 2023). Physicians reported demographic and clinical characteristics, patients completed PHQ-9 and WPAI measures. RESULTS: = 94) were 43.3 ± 13.3 years old, diagnosed 5.7 ± 6.6 years before survey, sex was evenly split, and 64.8% were working full or part time. Most common diagnoses were TRD (38.3%), MDD (37.2%) or MDSI (17.0%). Patients showed improvements in CGI-S (64.6-77.8%) and activities of daily living (34-67%) following esketamine. CONCLUSIONS: The substantial impact of TRD and MDSI on daily life and unmet treatment need was underestimated by physicians. Patients treated with esketamine reported favorable outcomes.