Seriously…Ketamine!?

Its notoriety as a rave drug jolts folks a bit, when they hear that ketamine is being used to treat refractory depression. Yes, ketamine…the ‘horse tranquilizer’ the drug that has taken many down the ‘K-hole’. That one. Over the past couple decades, scientists have conducted numerous studies that have repeatedly and consistently revealed the efficacy of low-dose ketamine infusions in treating depression in people for whom standard pharmacological treatments have not worked. Ketamine was developed in 1962 and has been used as a general anesthetic for more than 30 years. The drug has a remarkably safe track record when used in clinical settings and is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines. Ketamine is FDA-approved as an anesthetic, but research continues to inform us that low doses of ketamine, administered intravenously, can produce rapid antidepressant effects.