CClinicalTrials.gg
Active, not recruitingNCT05378100INKLING-MSUpdated May 28, 2026

Ketamine for Multiple Sclerosis Fatigue

A Phase 2 interventional study of Ketamine and Midazolam in Multiple Sclerosis Fatigue, sponsored by Johns Hopkins University. Active, not recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-05-28.

Sponsored by Johns Hopkins University · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
110
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 65 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The proposed study is a single-center, phase II, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, active-placebo-controlled trial of intravenous low-dose ketamine in patients with MS fatigue.

02

Conditions studied

  • Multiple Sclerosis Fatigue
03

In context

Lead sponsor

Johns Hopkins University is the lead sponsor of 1,783 studies on the registry; 313 are open to participants now.

Of its 203 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 140 (69%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 65 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Subject must be a man or woman, 18 to 65 years of age, inclusive.
  • Subject must be medically stable based on physical examination, medical history, and vital signs
  • Subject must meet McDonald 2017 diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis based on the PI review of the medical records
  • Subject must complain from fatigue as one of their main symptoms and have a screening MFIS score equal or higher than the cutoff based on gender, age, and education displayed in Table-226
  • Subject must be ambulatory (able to walk at least 20 feet using bilateral assistance)
  • Subject must have internet and email access and ability to use a computer or tablet or smartphone
  • Subjects that are currently taking medication for alleviating fatigue (such as amantadine, modafinil and armodafinil, and amphetamine-like psychostimulants) at Screening are eligible to participate unless the medication is one of the disallowed therapies (Table 3). Subjects taking a fatigue medication at the Screening visit must have been receiving a stable dose for at least four weeks before the Screening visit and be willing to continue the medication at the same dose for the duration of the study.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • BDI-II score of more than 29 (indicating severe depression)
  • Having a known clear cause for secondary fatigue, such as untreated sleep apnea, untreated hypothyroidism, chronic liver disease, history of moderate to severe anemia (hemoglobin concentration of less than 9 gr/dl in men or less than 8 gr/dl in women).
  • Neurodegenerative disorders other than relapsing or progressive MS
  • Breastfeeding or pregnant
  • History of coronary artery disease or congestive heart failure
  • Uncontrolled hypertension at Screening (history of high blood pressure and screening systolic blood pressure >160 or diastolic blood pressure>100)
  • History of severe liver disease, including cirrhosis
  • Terminal medical conditions
  • Currently treated for active malignancy
  • Alcohol or substance abuse in the past year (except marijuana or other cannabinoids)
  • A history of intolerance or allergic or anaphylactic reaction to ketamine or midazolam
  • Clinically unstable medical or psychiatric disorders that require acute treatment as determined by the PI
  • History of severe or untreated coronary artery disease or history of congestive heart failure
  • History of prior ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke and cerebral vascular aneurysms.
  • History of recurrent seizures or epilepsy
  • Taking any disallowed therapy(ies), as noted in the protocol.
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Quadruple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
110 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Ketamine-Ketamine

    Participants in this arm will receive two infusions of ketamine four weeks apart.

    Drug: Ketamine

  • Experimental
    Ketamine-Midazolam

    Participants in this arm will receive one infusion of ketamine followed four weeks later by an infusion of midazolam.

    Drug: Ketamine · Drug: Midazolam

  • Experimental
    Midazolam-Ketamine

    Participants in this arm will receive one infusion of midazolam followed four weeks later by an infusion of ketamine.

    Drug: Ketamine · Drug: Midazolam

Interventions

  • DrugKetamine

    Infusion of ketamine 0.5 mg/kg over 40 minutes

  • DrugMidazolam

    Infusion of midazolam 0.05 mg/kg over 40 minutes

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS) Score

    The total score of the MFIS ranges from 0 to 84. Higher scores denote more severe fatigue.

    Time frame: Baseline (infusion visit) through four weeks after the infusion.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS)

    The total score of the FSS ranges from 1 to 7. Higher scores denote more severe fatigue.

    Time frame: Baseline (infusion visit) through four weeks after the infusion.

  2. Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS)

    The total score of the ESS ranges from 0 to 24. Higher scores denote more severe sleepiness.

    Time frame: Baseline (infusion visit) through four weeks after the infusion.

  3. Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II)

    The total score of the BDI-IIranges from 0 to 63. Higher scores denote more severe depression.

    Time frame: Baseline (infusion visit) through four weeks after the infusion.

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Johns Hopkins University
    Baltimore, Maryland 21287, United States
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: Yes — After completion of the study and publication of key findings, the study investigators will make Final Research Data available to researchers upon written request. Researchers must adhere to a data sharing agreement. This agreement requires users to: (1) use the data only for research purposes; (2) not share the data with unauthorized users; (3) ensure that the data are protected from unauthorized persons; (4) require that the data be returned or destroyed at the end of the analysis; (5) provide certification of IRB review and approval.

Supporting information: Study protocol, Sap

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 28, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT05378100
Lead sponsor
Johns Hopkins University
Collaborators
United States Department of Defense
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
May 18, 2022
Start date
Jan 1, 2023
Primary completion
May 21, 2026
Completion
Oct 1, 2026 (estimated)
Last update
May 28, 2026

Study contacts

Bardia Nourbakhsh, MD
principal investigator · Johns Hopkins University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is active, not recruiting, as verified in May 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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