What is Ketamine Therapy?
You might be asking yourself, what is ketamine therapy? IV Ketamine infusion therapy is primarily used for induction and maintenance of anesthesia. It is a sedative medication with dissociative properties – putting the patient into a deep, trance-like state with powerful pain relief.
Ketamine can be prescribed to treat mental health issues that are resistant to antidepressants. The use of ketamine dates to 1960 when it was first used in operating rooms as an anesthetic, and it was also used by the military as a pain and shock medication on the battlefield.
Ketamine’s popularity for treating difficult conditions is spreading. Outside of the operating room, this medication is best known for its success in treating cases of chronic depression.
Contrary to urban folklore, Ketamine is not a widespread “club drug,” but rather a highly effective and versatile medicine.
Types of Ketamine
There are two main types of Ketamine namely, Racemic Ketamine and Esketamine (Spravato™). The two are used to treat major depression that hasn’t responded to two or more medications (treatment-resistant depression).
Racemic Ketamine and Esketamine (Spravato™) interact differently with receptors in the brain. The route of delivery plus the chemical composition dictate effects and side effects.
Racemic Ketamine: This is mostly given as an infusion into the bloodstream and sometimes referred to as intravenous, or IV, ketamine. Racemic Ketamine is a mixture of two mirror-image molecules: “R” and “S” ketamine. While it was approved decades ago as an anesthetic by the FDA, it is used off-label to treat depression.
Esketamine (Spravato™): Unlike the Racemic Ketamine which uses a mixture of two mirror-male molecules “R” and “S”, Esketamine (Spravato™) uses only the “S” molecule. Esketamine is a nasal spray that is also approved by the FDA and used together with an oral (taken by mouth) antidepressant to treat adults with depression resistant to other treatments. The cost of Spravato™ treatment mostly depends on the dose needed. Initial estimates are between $590 and $885 per treatment session.
Who can Benefit from Ketamine Therapy?
The worldwide mental health epidemic is evident to everyone. A range of mental health sufferers may benefit from IV Ketamine infusion therapy, especially with difficult-to-treat diseases.
As more patients find relief, the variety of conditions considered for treatment expands. It is increasingly common for anyone seeking innovative treatment for mental, emotional, and behavioral health diagnoses including suicidal thoughts, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) And, not only those patients but people coping with chronic, hard to treat pain conditions. or recovering from surgical procedures. There are even clinics using Ketamine to combat substance abuse. A quick overview of Ketamine’s reach across today’s clinical landscape:
Anxiety: Ketamine effectively relaxes the mind, reduces inflammation, and triggers chemical cascades that rejuvenate stressed connections. Just as with relieving depression, this can result in clearer thinking, improved mood management, and better sleep.
Depression: Outside of its use in anesthesia, Ketamine is best known for its impact on treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Ketamine’s action of docking on NMDA receptors may be the mechanism reducing depressive ideations and emotional sensations.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): PTSD results from intensely traumatic experiences inducing shock, terror, danger, pain, violence, and near-death scenarios. Common PTSD symptoms are flashbacks, depersonalization, night terrors, and anger. Ketamine’s dissociative properties appear to defuse these memories and provide a cathartic resolution.
Substance Abuse: Ketamine is used to treat addiction, including alcoholism. For one, substance abuse frequently stems from underlying currents of depression and anxiety. By ameliorating those feelings, they become less of a reason for avoidance. Additionally, some research shows that Ketamine can have more direct effects on encouraging chemical abstinence and extending sobriety.
Chronic Pain: Ketamine is used to treat severe pain. This application goes back many decades to life-threatening injuries on the battlefield. The exact mechanism is unknown, but slowing down the glutamatergic system may reduce excitation in the nervous system that otherwise contributes to the pain response. One unique advantage of Ketamine is that it doesn’t rely on the same opioid receptors contributing to the national epidemic. It may prove a safer and more efficacious alternative.
Post-Op Pain Medication: Ketamine’s use in operations and surgical theaters goes back over fifty years. It’s especially effective as an analgesic agent for the recovery period.
How Ketamine Works For Depression
The Ketamine IV treatment involves an infusion series that takes about 90 minutes to administer. A much lower dose is prescribed for depression than anesthesia. The treatment sessions also include a two-hour post-treatment observation time to watch the patient for adverse reactions.
One of the most exciting advantages of ketamine in treating depression is the speed with which it works. In contrast to other antidepressant drugs that generally take weeks or months before they start to show results, Ketamine may begin relieving depression within just an hour after the first treatment.
Research is underway to help identify the precise mechanism of ketamine’s effectiveness in treating depression, however, the current theories suggest that it could perform by:
- Causing physical growth in the prefrontal cortex
- Increasing the formation of new synapses in the brain
- Reducing inflammation
- Restoring coordinated circuit activity
- Facilitating improved communication across areas of the brain
Though the results of ketamine IV therapy can be rapid and significant, not everyone has the same results. For some, symptom relief begins after having completed the entire course of treatment, generally consisting of six infusions spread over two to three weeks. Still, the fact of Ketamine alleviating stubborn depression in one or many treatments is incredible.
Commonly ongoing symptom relief requires “booster” infusions. Combining Ketamine with the patient’s existing medication regimen sometimes enhances its antidepressant effects or extends the time between boosters.
As in most psychiatric interventions, enrolling in psychotherapy along with the Ketamine infusion treatments may be more efficacious. Ketamine-assisted therapy (KAT) is a growing field specializing in integrating the two.
Since its invention, Ketamine treatments continue to surprise the medical community with their wide-ranging benefits. Visit FindKetamine.com to learn more.
