Ketamine is a generic name for the drug Ketalar and is a dissociative anesthetic drug that was first developed in the 1960s to be used in medicine. A few decades ago, ketamine was mainly known as an anesthetic drug used in pet surgery and a party drug nicknamed “special K” which was quite popular. But with time, its uses evolved and now, it’s the latest approved treatment for treatment-resistant depression. Several ketamine clinics have been developed across the United States and Europe in the past few decades where the number of people with severe depression and treatment-resistant depression gets treated. These clinics offer ketamine infusion therapy from big cities like New York, London, Chicago to small developing cities like Jackson and Vermont. Here I will be discussing the interesting things about ketamine:
What can Ketamine do?
In a healthcare setting, ketamine is injected to maintain anesthesia. If it is recreationally used, it can be taken orally in the form of a capsule or a pill. If in liquid form, it can be used as a drink or added to smokable material. Some inject it intramuscularly as well. Ketamine has effects similar to PCP but of shorter duration. People who frequently use ketamine describe the experience as if they are floating or in a dissociative state of being separated from the body.
Ketamine is categorized as Schedule III Drug:
This means that there are fewer chances that ketamine will be used for drug abuse as compared to the drugs labeled as Schedule I or II. The drugs in this category can lead to dependence but their major use is for medical purposes.
For treating treatment-resistant depression:
Ketamine has the potential of treating depression which has not responded well to pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy. Since more than 300 million people suffer from depression all over the world, it is a very important development. Multiple pharmaceutical companies are investing to create ketamine-containing drugs to treat meet the rising cases of depression.
Addictive property of Ketamine:
It is very important to know that ketamine is highly addictive which can result in physical dependence. As a person gets euphoric after consuming ketamine, it is easy to be used for abuse. If you are familiar with anyone who uses ketamine for abuse, it is important to get them some help immediately
Long- and Short-term effects of Ketamine:
Ketamine can either have a short-term effect or a long-term effect. Symptoms of short-term effects are hallucinations, state of euphoria, vomiting, nausea, and vivid dreams or illusions whereas the long-term effects include irritative urinary tract symptoms, cognitive decline (for example memory loss)
Ketamine therapy is expensive:
Ketamine infusion therapy is very expensive and chances are your insurance company wouldn't agree to pay for it. It is because ketamine is still considered experimental for the treatment of depression. However, it is permissible for doctors to prescribe ketamine “off-label” for patients having depression not treated by any other medications.
It is highly advised to consult your doctor and get to know everything about ketamine before using it for whatsoever purposes.
Sign in to leave a comment.