Depression can be a tricky beast to tame. Many people have responded well to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). If you haven’t seen results with treatments you’ve tried, you might be thinking, “Lucky them.”
You aren’t alone. Experts estimate that about 30% of people with depression have a specialized form aptly named treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Fortunately, researchers have started unlocking new options to help if you’re living with TRD.
That includes ketamine. The anesthetic has been transformative for many people with depression that hasn’t responded to other treatments.
At Americas TMS Center, Alejandra Suzuki, MD, FAPA, specializes in treating depression, and particularly treatment-resistant depression. And that means she offers Spravato®, a ketamine-based nasal spray for TRD.
Many people still think of ketamine as a “party drug.” But it’s been safely used as an anesthetic since the Vietnam War.
More than 25 years ago, researchers at Yale noted that ketamine quickly improved symptoms of depression. That kicked off an exploration of using it to help folks with depressive symptoms.
Today, medical experts regularly apply this dissociative drug in controlled clinical settings. That helps people with depression who haven’t responded to other treatments.
Specifically, ketamine interacts with glutamate, a chemical in your brain. Too much of it can negatively impact your brain, lowering your mood and hurting your brain cells. Ketamine steps in to block glutamate signals, protecting your brain cells and supporting healthy brain activity.
In recent years, psychiatrists and other doctors have used ketamine to help people with treatment-resistant depression, but the administration required an IV. The treatment was off-label, meaning the FDA never approved it.
That all changed in 2019. That year, the FDA cleared Spravato®. Instead of requiring an IV, Spravato delivers ketamine through a nasal spray. It’s a lot like taking a nasal spray for allergies.
The difference is how you’ll feel afterward. Because Spravato can cause you to dissociate, we monitor you at our office for a period after each time we administer it.
If Spravato works for you, you’ll typically see rapid improvement in your depressive symptoms. Dr. Suzuki tailors the treatment plan for you, but it usually looks like:
Research shows that Spravato gives people an effective way to get relief from their treatment-resistant depression.
To explore this nasal spray for yourself, call our office or book an appointment online today.
