Ketamine Holds Promise for Cognitive Benefits, Study Shows

Key points

In low doses, ketamine can induce neuroplasticity, allowing the brain to reorganize itself.

Ketamine has been shown to be effective in treating depression and other psychiatric disorders.

Animal studies suggest low-dose ketamine may improve both emotional and cognitive symptoms.

Since its introduction more than 50 years ago, ketamine has proven itself to be a safe and useful agent for use as anesthesia, and—more recently, and at lower doses—as an effective psychiatric drug. At sub-anesthetic doses (sufficient to achieve a therapeutic effect but not enough to anesthetize a patient), ketamine has been increasingly used to treat depression , with good results, particularly in cases where other treatments have failed. Its rapid onset makes it an especially effective tool f