New study reveals ketamine could be effective treatment for cocaine-use disorders

As cocaine use continues to climb across the United States, scientists have struggled to develop an effective pharmacological approach to treat the devastating disorder. But by seamlessly combining artificial intelligence (AI), human intelligence, clinical testing and computer analysis, researchers at Case Western Reserve University have unearthed an existing option that appears to hold promise.

Drugs Effects of Ketamine in Mice can Depend on the Sex of the Human Experimenter

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have shown that mice respond more to the antidepressant effects of the drug ketamine when administered by men and not by women. The group demonstrated that a stress response detected in the mouse’s brain from handling by a man is essential for ketamine to work.

EMS Ketamine Use on Agitated Patients on Cocaine Increases Intubation 5.75-fold

Patients with excited delirium often are administered ketamine by EMS before arriving at the hospital. Many of them are intoxicated or are using illicit substances, which may alter the properties of ketamine.

No adverse cognitive effects of ketamine or esketamine for treatment-resistant depression

Used for the treatment of depression that does not respond to standard antidepressant medications, the anesthesia drug ketamine – and the related drug esketamine, recently approved for depression treatment – has no important adverse effects on memory, attention, or other cognitive processes, concludes a systematic review of medical research in the September/October issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

Low doses of “laughing gas” could be fast acting, highly effective treatment for severe depression

A new study at the University of Chicago Medicine and Washington University found that a single inhalation session with 25% nitrous oxide gas was nearly as effective as 50% nitrous oxide at rapidly relieving symptoms of treatment-resistant depression, with fewer adverse side effects.

New study finds antidepressant drug effective in treating “lazy eye” in adults

In a new study, published in Current Biology, researchers from the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine reveal how subanesthetic ketamine, which is used for pain management and as an antidepressant in humans, is effective in treating adult amblyopia, a brain disorder commonly known as “lazy eye.”

Use of Ketamine for a Non-medical Purpose: Statement from the American Society of Anesthesiologists

The American Society of Anesthesiologists firmly opposes the use of ketamine or any other sedative/hypnotic agent to chemically incapacitate someone for a law enforcement purpose and not for a legitimate medical reason. Ketamine is a potent analgesic, sedative and general anesthetic agent which can elevate blood pressure and heart rate, and can lead to confusion, agitation, delirium, and hallucinations. These effects can end in death when administered in a non-health care setting without appropriately trained medical personnel and necessary equipment.

Seaver Autism Center For Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai Launches First Drug Trial for ADNP Syndrome

Researchers at the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai have started recruiting participants for a new clinical trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of a low dose of ketamine in children diagnosed with ADNP syndrome (also known as Helsmoortel-VanDerAa syndrome), a rare neurodevelopmental disorder caused by mutations in the activity dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) gene.