Reduced-dose intramuscular ketamine for severe agitation in an academic emergency department.

Rapid sedation of severely agitated patients is often necessary to ensure the safety of patients and healthcare workers. Intramuscular (IM) ketamine 4-6 mg/kg was previously studied but may carry an increased risk of intubation and other adverse effects. Therefore, the purpose of this case series was to describe the efficacy and safety of a reduced-dose (2 mg/kg) IM ketamine guideline. Consecutive patients receiving IM ketamine for agitation in the emergency department via our reduced-dose guideline were included. Successful sedation of the agitated patient was defined as documentation from a healthcare provider, a lack of additional sedating medication administration for 30 min following administration of IM ketamine, or ability to complete necessary procedure. Of 15 patients included in this case series, 13 (87%) were adequately sedated with no subsequent intubations due to excess ketamine. The median total dose administered was 157.5 mg and the median weight-based dose was 2 mg/kg. In 11 of the 15 cases, reduced-dose ketamine was used as a second-line agent. Reduced-dose IM ketamine may be effective for severe agitation, particularly when used as a second-line agent.