Ketamine Infusion Therapy
Many patients tried several medications over several years without much success. In fact depression is one of the leading cause of disability and health cost in the United States and worldwide. That’s why for the past 15 years researchers have known that ketamine can rapidly relieve depression symptoms when delivered via slow intravenous infusion, or recently via intranasal.
It is different from traditional antidepressant or anxiety medications (Like SSRI). Ketamine works on glutamate chemical on a unique receptor in the brain name ( NMDA receptor) , This new pathway, many neuroscientist believe that it is the key to reverse the process of depression and anxiety.
Many research by the National Institutes of Health, the Veterans Administration, Harvard, Yale, Johns Hopkins, Mount Sinai Medical School, and more confirmed that Ketamine infusion could help patients with treatment resistant depression.
How well ketamine works? 80% of patients with treatment-resistant depression (including bipolar patients) experience rapid relief after a low-dose ketamine infusion. Similar success rates have been seen in returning combat veterans suffering from PTSD.
The trained physician, based on many factors, such as patient weight and the response, precisely calculates the treatment dose.
How the ketamine infusion feels like?
During the treatment patient may experience feeling similar to receiving a short acting anesthetic agent for endoscopy procedure, or the effect of receiving gas at the dental office. Many patients reported feeling relaxed and had a pleasant sensation.
The Ketamine infusion will be administered by a trained staff at the ketamine clinic. Your vital signs will be closely monitored during and shortly after the treatment. Since ketamine is a very safe drug, side effect usually limited to nausea, and mild sedation.
Your psychiatrist can adjust the dose of the treatment based on your response, and side effects from the infusion. Your psychiatrist also will meet with the patient before each infusion to evaluate the response, and discuss with the patient future treatments.
