From
CBS News:
What's the latest recreational drug to make its way to the medical field?
Ketamine, also known as "Special K." The club drug, typically used by veterinarians as a cat tranquilizer, is said to provide patients an "instant" relief from depression, according to a new study.
Doctors at Ben Taub General Hospital in Houston are now experimentally using the drug to treat some patients who come to the emergency room with suicidal depression, NPR reported.
Dr. Anu Matorin, medical director of the Psychiatric Emergency Center at the hospital, told NPR that antidepressants may help suicidal patients eventually, but often take weeks or months to kick in. During the critical few days when very depressed patients have suicidal thoughts, they may be a threat to themselves or to others and are sometimes admitted to inpatient units.
That's why researchers at Ben Taub are among a growing number of scientists trying to transform psychiatric care - with the help of the club drug. Previous research suggests the anesthetic ketamine could help treat depression almost instantly.
Ketamine works differently than other antidepressants. While pills like Prozac boost the levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin to make people feel less depressed over a period of time, an injection of ketamine works on an entirely different neurotransmitter, glutamate. It blocks the receptors critical for receiving glutamate's signals which quickly improves the brain cell's electrical flow. That in turn reduces depression, according to the NIMH.
Dr. Asim Shah, who directs the mood disorder program at Ben Taub General Hospital, told ABC News the researchers hope the effect lasts.
"Will it cure depression for a year or longer? I don't think so," Shah said. "But we're hoping it will work for a few months"
But that doesn't mean people should self-medicate with the illegal drug. Ketamine is popular and "dance clubs and raves," and can be injected, consumed in drinks, or added to smokeable materials, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Some users fall into a dissociative "trip" on the drug, which is called a "K-hole."