For more than 50 years, ketamine has proven to be a safe anesthetic drug with potent analgesic properties. The active enantiomer is S(+)-ketamine. Ketamine is mostly metabolized in norketamine, an active metabolite. During "dissociative anesthesia", sensory inputs may reach cortical receiving areas, but fail to be perceived in some association areas. Ketamine also enhances the descending...
Several studies have documented impairments in memory processes as a result of ketamine administration; however, few studies have compared the profile of cognitive effects of ketamine to other drugs. The aim of this study was to compare the cognitive effects of ketamine with those of triazolam in healthy volunteers. Doses of ketamine (0.2, 0.4 mg/kg intramuscular (i.m.)), triazolam (0.2, 0.4...
The anaesthetic ketamine is used to treat various chronic pain syndromes, especially those that have a neuropathic component. Low dose ketamine produces strong analgesia in neuropathic pain states, presumably by inhibition of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor although other mechanisms are possibly involved, including enhancement of descending inhibition and anti-inflammatory effects at central...
BACKGROUND: Clinical studies demonstrate that the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, ketamine, induces rapid antidepressant effects in patients with refractive major depressive disorder and bipolar depression. This rapid onset of action makes ketamine a highly attractive drug for patients, particularly those who do not typically respond to therapy. A recent study suggested that...
Ketamine (Ketalar®) is an anesthetic agent derived from the hallucinogenic drug phencyclidine (PCP). It is a high-affinity antagonist at N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors and also binds to opioid mu and sigma receptors. Ketamine is being intensively investigated as an antidepressant therapy. To date, five short-term controlled studies and other open-label studies in patients with unipolar or...
The dissociative anesthetic ketamine has been subject to growing abuse worldwide, particularly in adolescents. This project compared the effects of ketamine in conditioned place preference and intravenous self-administration in adolescent (PND 28-50) and adult (>PND70) Sprague-Dawley rats. Cocaine served as a positive control. In CPP, adolescents demonstrated preferences for ketamine, while...