The researchers in a recent study found that nitrous oxide, also called nitrous oxide, could offer a potential breakthrough to quickly cure severe or treatment-resistant depression.
The analysis led by the team from the University of Birmingham in the UK consists of robust clinical data demonstrating the impact of medically administered nitrous oxide on adults reeling from treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and major depressive disorder (MDD).
In the medical industry, nitrous oxide or nitrous oxide is often used for pain relief. Several studies often attributed nitrous oxide to fast-acting antidepressants.
According to findings, published in eBioMedicineInhaling a 50 percent concentration of nitrous oxide in one session produced significant results in reducing symptoms of depression within 24 hours.
Unfortunately, the relief proved short-lived and disappeared within a week. However, the repeated inhalations tend to produce more lasting results.
According to Kiranpreet Gill, a PhD candidate at the University of Birmingham and first author of the analysis: “Depression is a debilitating disease, made even more so by the fact that antidepressants do not make a meaningful difference for almost half of all patients diagnosed with it.”
“This study brings together the best possible evidence indicating that nitrous oxide has the potential to produce rapid and clinically significant short-term improvements in patients with major depression,” she added.
Dr. Gill called nitrous oxide “part of a new generation of fast-acting treatments” and urged longer studies to assess the treatment’s long-term efficacy.
Considering the efficiency of the results, the team is also ready to launch its first National Health Service (NHS) study in Britain to analyze whether nitrous oxide could be the next fast-acting breakthrough for the treatment of severe clinical depression or not.
