The dissociative and analgesic properties of ketamine are independent
Anesthesiology September 4, 2020 Jacob Gitlin, Shubham Chamadia, J. Locascio et al. 48 citations
Ketamine's pain-relieving effects are not solely due to its dissociative properties. In an open-label study, 15 healthy adults received 2 mg/kg of ketamine, with midazolam given later to reduce dissociation. Statistical models showed that dissociation and pain intensity followed similar time courses, but when dissociation scores were added to the pain model, dissociation did not account for the pain relief. This indicates that ketamine's analgesic and dissociative effects are independent, suggesting ketamine can be used to study pain circuits separate from those involved in dissociation.