Source: Robert C. Meisner, MD; Harvard Health
What else should you know about ketamine?
- A much lower dose of ketamine is given for depression compared with the dose necessary for anesthesia.
- Like opioids, ketamine has addictive properties. It’s important to understand this when weighing risks and benefits. If you have a history of substance abuse –– such as alcohol or drugs –– it’s especially important for you and your doctor to consider whether ketamine is a good option for you.
- When IV (racemic) ketamine works, people usually respond to it within one to three infusions. If a person has no response at all, further infusions are unlikely to help. Instead, it’s probably best to try other treatments for depression.
- People who experience some relief from depression within one to three ketamine treatments are probably likely to extend these positive effects if the treatment is repeated several more times. The subsequent sessions may help prolong the effects of ketamine, rather than achieving further dramatic relief of symptoms. There are no standard guidelines for this. Many studies offer eight treatments initially (acute phase). After this, patient and doctor decide whether to taper or stop ketamine treatments or continue treatments at longer intervals.