News and Articles Related to Ketamine

Depression afflicts 16 million Americans. One third don't get better with treatment. A surprising new drug may change that.

Ketamine, a non-competitive N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor antagonist, is commonly used as an anesthetic and analgesic but has recently shown promising research in treating certain psychiatric conditions such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), suicidal ideation, and substance use disorder. 

Over the past 2 decades, the use of intravenous ketamine infusions as a treatment for chronic pain has increased dramatically, with wide variation in patient selection, dosing, and monitoring. This has led to a chorus of calls from various sources for the development of consensus guidelines.

Conventional antidepressants take two weeks before their therapeutic action begins. Recent studies have reported on the rapid antidepressant effect of ketamine when given as an intravenous (I.V.) infusion. Little is known about its intramuscular (I.M.) use in depression. Hence this study was conducted to compare the safety, tolerability and efficacy of I.M. versus. I.V. ketamine in Major Depression (ICD-10).

Ketamine is a medication that doctors use as an anesthetic to induce loss of consciousness. Effects include sedation and pain relief. Inappropriate use can lead to hallucinations and potentially life-threatening adverse effects.

A new study finds that the drug can significantly improve serious depression and some suicidal thoughts.