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Study: Suicidal Thoughts Rapidly Reduced with Ketamine
Ketamine was significantly more effective than a commonly used sedative in reducing suicidal thoughts in depressed patients, according to researchers at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC). They also found that ketamine's anti-suicidal effects occurred within hours after its administration.
The findings were published online last week in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Ketamine for Rapid Reduction of Suicidal Thoughts in Major Depression: A Midazolam-Controlled Randomized Clinical Trial (DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2017.17060647) (DX)
The reduction in SSI score at day 1 was 4.96 points greater for the ketamine group compared with the midazolam group (95% CI=2.33, 7.59; Cohen's d=0.75). The proportion of responders (defined as having a reduction ≥50% in SSI score) at day 1 was 55% for the ketamine group and 30% for the midazolam group (odds ratio=2.85, 95% CI=1.14, 7.15; number needed to treat=4.0). Improvement in the Profile of Mood States depression subscale was greater at day 1 for the ketamine group compared with the midazolam group (estimate=7.65, 95% CI=1.36, 13.94), and this effect mediated 33.6% of ketamine's effect on SSI score. Side effects were short-lived, and clinical improvement was maintained for up to 6 weeks with additional optimized standard pharmacotherapy in an uncontrolled follow-up.
Wikipedia's entry on midazolam notes:
Midazolam, marketed under the trade name Versed, among others, is a medication used for anesthesia, procedural sedation, trouble sleeping, and severe agitation. It works by inducing sleepiness, decreasing anxiety, and causing a loss of ability to create new memories. It is also useful for the treatment of seizures
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(Score: 3, Interesting) by Pav on Sunday December 17 2017, @07:40AM (6 children)
I was given Ketamine, but it doesn't kill pain... it just makes you not care. I was in agony due to gallstone pain, and in less than 24 hours they took my gall bladder out (yay universal healthcare). The head nurse said they should discontinue the ketamine. I KNEW I was in screaming agony, and I also knew if they stopped I'd begin to care about it again, but even though I KNEW this I also didn't care enough to tell them. Weird weird stuff, and I can't understand why anyone would want to do it recreationally, although if someone is in emotional pain I can certainly see how it would help.
(Score: 2) by cubancigar11 on Sunday December 17 2017, @11:21AM (3 children)
Hallucinations?
(Score: 2) by Pav on Sunday December 17 2017, @12:21PM (2 children)
I never hallucinated. Is that meant to be a side-effect?
(Score: 2) by cubancigar11 on Sunday December 17 2017, @02:54PM (1 child)
That is what I have heard. https://erowid.org/chemicals/ketamine/ketamine_effects.shtml [erowid.org]
(Score: 2) by Pav on Monday December 18 2017, @01:41AM
The only effect close to a hallucination was auditory right after I was injected... like industrial noise... a jet engine except lower pitch. Not pleasant... quite the opposite actually.
(Score: 2) by Hartree on Sunday December 17 2017, @08:06PM (1 child)
It's a dissociator. I've heard their effects described as thinking "Wow. That's a lot of pain. I'm glad it's not happening to me."
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Pav on Sunday December 17 2017, @09:03PM
Vilanor Ramachandrin, the brain anatomist (and excellent communicator) talks about Capgras delusion - thinking that someone close to you is an imposter, often after a brain injury. His theory is that emotion becomes disassociated from vision because a "wire" has been cut somewhere, and the person in question develops a theory on-the-fly as to why this is. Having been administered ketamine it's certainly a strange experience, and I would have never otherwise understood how fundamental emotion is to the perception of pain.