The emergence of ketamine--previously known as a combat anesthetic and club drug--as a treatment for depression.

Ketamine, approved in 2019 by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of depression, has been touted by scientists and media reports as something approaching a miracle cure. This volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series chronicles the ascent of a drug that has been around for fifty years--in previous incarnations, a Vietnam-era combat anesthetic and a popular club drug--that has now been reinvented as a treatment for depression. Bita Moghaddam, a leading researcher in neuropharmacology, explains the scientific history and the biology of ketamine, its clinical use, and its recently discovered antidepressant effects, for the nonspecialist reader.
Bita Moghaddam is a leading researcher in the field of neuropsychopharmacology. She is Ruth Matarazzo Professor of Behavioral Neuroscience at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland.
Series Foreword ix
Preface xi
1 The Molecule Ketamine 1
2 Uses of Ketamine 17
3 Neuroscience of Ketamine 31
4 Ketamine as an Antidepressant 65
5 How Does Ketamine Produce Antidepressant Effects? 101
6 Safety Concerns with Ketamine and Esketamine 121
7 Where Do We Go from Here? 141
Acknowledgments 155
Glossary 157
Notes 161
Further Reading 177
Index 179

About

The emergence of ketamine--previously known as a combat anesthetic and club drug--as a treatment for depression.

Ketamine, approved in 2019 by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of depression, has been touted by scientists and media reports as something approaching a miracle cure. This volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series chronicles the ascent of a drug that has been around for fifty years--in previous incarnations, a Vietnam-era combat anesthetic and a popular club drug--that has now been reinvented as a treatment for depression. Bita Moghaddam, a leading researcher in neuropharmacology, explains the scientific history and the biology of ketamine, its clinical use, and its recently discovered antidepressant effects, for the nonspecialist reader.

Author

Bita Moghaddam is a leading researcher in the field of neuropsychopharmacology. She is Ruth Matarazzo Professor of Behavioral Neuroscience at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword ix
Preface xi
1 The Molecule Ketamine 1
2 Uses of Ketamine 17
3 Neuroscience of Ketamine 31
4 Ketamine as an Antidepressant 65
5 How Does Ketamine Produce Antidepressant Effects? 101
6 Safety Concerns with Ketamine and Esketamine 121
7 Where Do We Go from Here? 141
Acknowledgments 155
Glossary 157
Notes 161
Further Reading 177
Index 179