Problematic drug has a byproduct that makes it a great antidepressant

(credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Clinical depression is a devastating disease that is made worse by the lack of effective treatment. Several drugs can treat the disease, but they take months to become effective, often cause side effects, and only work in a subset of the patient population. Treatment often begins with an extended period of trial and error, sometimes taking more than a year.

Ketamine provides a shortcut. The drug can often lift symptoms of depression in under 24 hours, and the effects persist for roughly a week after a single administration. So why isn't everybody using it?

Well, ketamine comes with some pretty dramatic side effects. At high concentrations, it creates a combination of sedation and pain relief, while blocking memory use, making it an effective anesthetic. At lower concentrations, it produces a dissociative state, which has led to the drug being used recreationally. In either case, coming down from these states tends to produce disorientation and sometimes more severe problems. So, ketamine is not quite ready for widespread use.

Read 9 remaining paragraphs | Comments