What Is A Ketamine Nasal Spray? Esketamine is a new type of medicine related to ketamine, a drug commonly used for anesthesia (numbing) during surgeries by board-certified anesthesiologists. Ketamine has also been used in smaller amounts through IVs to help people with depression who do not respond to other treatments.
Now, esketamine is a bit different from regular ketamine, but it works similarly. Instead of being given through an IV, it comes in a nasal spray form. This spray will only be administered in places like a doctor’s office or a hospital because it can make people feel disconnected or delusional. Some people even misuse ketamine for its hallucinogenic effects, calling it “Special K.”
This special spray is part of a treatment called ketamine therapy. Sometimes it’s also called “ketamine-assisted psychotherapy” or “ketamine infusion therapy.” It’s like a helping hand for people who are struggling with conditions like depression, anxiety, or constant pain.
Patients who are prescribed esketamine will go to their doctor’s clinic once or twice a week to get a puff of the nasal spray. After taking it, they’ll need to stay at the doctor’s office for about two hours because they might feel confused or disoriented. Also, they shouldn’t drive or do tasks that need a lot of focus for the rest of the day because of how it affects their thinking.
So, esketamine is a new option for treating depression, but it needs to be carefully managed by healthcare professionals because of its effects. For the best ketamine therapy CT, consult with qualified healthcare providers familiar with s ketamine therapy.
Assessing Its Potential: How Promising Is It?
The new drug we’re talking about is pretty exciting because it works quickly. You might start feeling better within just a few hours after using it, and this relief could stick around for several days. This is different from a lot of other antidepressants that can take several weeks to start kicking in.
Here’s why it’s different: most antidepressants we have now focus on chemicals like serotonin, norepinephrine, or dopamine in the brain. But this new drug, ketamine, does things differently. It mainly targets another chemical called glutamate, which is found a lot in the brain.
Because it works on this different chemical pathway, it can help people be treated faster compared to other antidepressants. That’s why there’s a lot of hope and interest in it, especially in the context of ketamine therapy CT.
Uses Of Ketamine Nasal Spray
Ketamine nasal spray is a type of medicine that’s regulated by the government because it can cause some dependence, but not as much as some other drugs.
Sedation and Pain Relief
Ketamine is mainly used as an anesthetic, which means it makes people feel calm and relaxed. It can also reduce pain and even make people feel a bit euphoric, or very happy.
Ketamine for Depression
Ketamine nasal spray is becoming more popular as a treatment for major depression. It works differently from other common depression medicines like SSRIs. Instead of boosting serotonin, it affects something called glutamate in the brain. This helps with learning, memory, and building connections between brain cells.
Ketamine can start working much faster than SSRIs, sometimes within a day. This is good news for people who have tried lots of different depression treatments without success.
Ketamine for Chronic Pain
While we’re still learning exactly how ketamine helps with chronic pain, recent studies suggest that it can be effective. Ketamine treatment has anti-inflammatory effects, meaning it can reduce swelling and pain. It does this by affecting something called the NMDA receptor in the brain.
People using ketamine nasal spray for chronic pain can feel relief right away, and it might keep working for up to three months or more.
Types of Ketamine Nasal Spray
Ketamine nasal sprays have become popular for treating depression, offering positive results. There are two main types, traditionally prescribed and compounded nasal sprays.
Traditionally Prescribed Esketamine Nasal Spray
This type of nasal spray contains an S-enantiomer of ketamine, which strongly interacts with NMDA glutamate receptors.
- Dosage: Each spray delivers 14 mg, with two sprays per device. Patients usually take either 56 mg or 84 mg per application, as recommended by their doctor.
- Administration: Patients must take this under a doctor’s supervision, usually in a medical setting like a doctor’s office. This helps monitor any side effects, such as shortness of breath or hallucinations.
- Frequency: Initially, patients use it twice a week for four weeks, then once a week for the next four weeks. After that, the frequency may be reduced to every other week, depending on the doctor’s advice.
Compounded Ketamine Nasal Spray
Compounding pharmacies produce this type of ketamine nasal spray for depressed patients.
- Preservatives: These nasal sprays don’t contain preservatives like benzalkonium chloride, making proper storage crucial. Patients might need to take smaller doses due to this.
- Dosage Customization: Unlike traditionally prescribed ones, compounded nasal sprays can be customized in terms of concentration and size. They aren’t limited to 28 mg per bottle.
- Administration: The most significant difference is that patients can take compounded ketamine at home without direct doctor supervision. This provides more comfort and convenience for the patients.
What Sets Spravato Apart From Oral Antidepressants?
Spravato is a medication derived from ketamine, an anesthetic that has been around for 50 years. Ketamine treatments have been used off-label to treat conditions like major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder, making it the best ketamine therapy CT.
Fast-Acting Relief
One significant difference between Spravato and oral antidepressants is how quickly they work. Traditional antidepressant pills can take 2 to 4 weeks to start working, and sometimes they don’t work for everyone. However, Spravato can improve depressive symptoms within hours or days of taking it.
Administration Method
Spravato is administered as a nasal spray, which helps esketamine (the active ingredient) get absorbed faster compared to taking a pill. This means the medication can start working more quickly.
Treatment Schedule
When starting Spravato treatment, it’s typically given in a healthcare provider’s office twice per week for the first month. After that initial period, the frequency may decrease to once a week or every other week, depending on the individual’s response and the healthcare provider’s recommendation.
Efficacy Of Ketamine Nasal Spray
A study observed how well a ketamine nasal spray version of ketamine, called esketamine, works for adults with depression. They studied 297 adults, mostly women, with an average age of 46.3 years. They split these people into two groups, one group got esketamine along with an antidepressant. The other group got an antidepressant along with a placebo, a dummy pill with no active ingredients.
During the study, they found 26.7% of the people using the esketamine nasal spray were less likely to have their depression come back, compared to those 45.3% using the placebo spray. For those who were feeling better but still had some symptoms, esketamine also helped prevent their depression from getting worse by 51%. The treatment lowered the risks by up to 70% for the stable patient. Eskatemine has shown vital signs of effective treatment.
The side effects of the esketamine nasal spray were mostly mild and temporary. The most common ones were changes in taste, dizziness, sleepy, and feeling dissociation. Fortunately, they didn’t find any serious issues like breathing problems or bladder inflammation.
Some people did have a temporary increase in blood pressure after using esketamine, but it went back to normal quickly. They didn’t see any big problems with heart health.
As for suicidal thoughts, there weren’t any reports of people having that during the study. Most people didn’t have these thoughts before or during the study, and even if they did, it usually wasn’t serious.
Overall, the study shows that esketamine nasal spray can help people with depression, especially by preventing it from coming back. And it seems to be safe for most people to use. This could be a helpful treatment option for those with depression that’s hard to treat.
What You Need To Know About Spravato (Esketamine)
With FDA approval, the ketamine nasal spray, Spravato (esketamine), is for adults with depression who haven’t gotten better with other medications. Administered by healthcare providers on an outpatient basis, it’s only available through a special program. Because it can cause drowsiness, and disorientation, and has a risk of misuse,
Dr. Tiffany Farchione from the FDA says there’s been a big need for better treatments for severe depression. They carefully checked how well Spravato works and how safe it is before allowing its use. Because of safety concerns, patients can only get it from specific places where doctors can monitor them closely.
If you’ve tried at least two antidepressants without success, you might have what’s called treatment-resistant depression, which is what Spravato is meant for. It’s also used to stabilize mood disorders.
But there are important things to know. Using Spravato can make you feel drowsy and disconnected, and some people might misuse it. There’s also a risk of having thoughts of harming yourself after taking it. That’s why most patients have to be observed for at least two hours after using it, and they’re not allowed to drive or use heavy machinery on the day they receive the drug.
The spray is given by a healthcare provider in a specialized clinic, and patients can’t take it home. The healthcare provider will demonstrate how to use it and supervise them while they do clinical trials.
Spravato was tested in several short-term studies and one longer-term study. It helped with depression symptoms in some short-term studies, but not all. In the longer-term study, patients who continued using Spravato along with another antidepressant had a longer time before their symptoms returned compared to those who didn’t use it.
The most common side effects include feeling disconnected, dizziness, nausea, drowsiness, and feeling like the room is spinning.
People with certain health issues, like uncontrolled high blood pressure or certain blood vessel problems, might have more risks with Spravato. It can also affect your ability to think clearly and react quickly, so it’s important not to drive or operate machinery until the next day after using it.
Pregnant women should be cautious because it could harm the baby, and they shouldn’t breastfeed while using it.
This is the first time the FDA has approved esketamine, which is a part of ketamine. Ketamine itself was approved by the FDA in 1970.
The FDA thought Spravato showed promise, so they fast-tracked its approval process, giving it Fast Track and Breakthrough Therapy designations.
Find the Best Ketamine Therapy CT
Looking for ketamine therapy ct. Contemporary Care is a place where you can find relief and renewal. Through their ketamine therapy service, they aim to help individuals overcome the challenges that weigh them down. With a team of compassionate professionals, they provide a safe and supportive environment for healing. Whether it’s managing depression, anxiety, or chronic pain, Contemporary Care Ketamine offers personalized treatments tailored to each person’s needs. Visit www.contemporarycarecenters.com for free consultation.
