Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy

Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy is the use of prescribed doses of ketamine, an analgesic anesthetic with dissociative properties, in combination with psychotherapy for treatment of various psychiatric conditions. Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy shows potential in treating mental disorders including major depressive disorder, anxiety, obsessive–compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorders, substance use disorder, and neuropathic pain. Despite initial usage as a rapid-acting antidepressant, its psychedelic effects have sparked interest in its potential for treatment of mental illnesses beyond depressive symptoms. Ketamine appears to offer promising results as an effective modality of treatment for a variety of mental conditions and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States for usage in treatment-resistant depression, but does display areas in need of further research across different domains of mental illness.