IV KETAMINE
INFUSION
Services
OUTPATIENT INFUSION KETAMINE
Ketamine hydrochloride is a medication that has traditionally been used for anesthesia, but at very low doses, ketamine has recently emerged as a promising new treatment for major depressive disorder or for severe depressive episodes associated with anxiety, chronic pain, bipolar disorder, cyclic vomiting syndrome, and/or PTSD that have not responded to conventional treatments.
Ketamine infusion treatments work differently than traditional antidepressants or pain medications. For many patients, depression, anxiety, and PTSD come from a part of the brain that is also involved with processing pain. Traditional antidepressants and pain medicines do not affect that part of the brain. Ketamine infusion treatments block specific receptors in the parts of the brain that processes pain and mood. Specifically, ketamine works on the central nervous system by partially blocking a receptor system called the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (also known as the NMDA receptor).
In 2015, The American Psychiatric Association Council of Research published a literature review of 7 placebo controlled, randomized clinical studies on ketamine hydrochloride IV infusion therapy in the treatment of depression, comprising 147 treated patients in total(1).
The American Psychiatric Association found that the meta analysis of all the gold standard research to date provided “compelling evidence that the antidepressant effects of ketamine infusion are both rapid and robust, albeit transient.”1 Many patients find that the effects are not transient at all, and that the effect from a series of treatments can last to reduce depressive symptoms for weeks, months or longer.
Among patients who have tried for months and years with traditional antidepressants, ketamine infusion treatments have been shown to create significant relief within 4 to 72 hours of the first treatment.
Treatments are given intravenously as a series in our clinic. Our goal in offering this treatment is to provide a safe and effective treatment for the people in our community that suffer from treatment resistant severe major depression and other mood disorders or pain disorders. We offer this treatment as part of a comprehensive and holistic approach, addressing the balance of hormones, nutrition, metabolism, neurotransmitter status and lifestyle factors, in the care of our patients suffering from severe depression, chronic pain, and related symptoms. If you feel that you could benefit from our approach using these treatments, then please call our clinic today for an evaluation.
INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE KETAMINE PROTOCOLS
The field of Integrative Medicine blends together state of the art and emerging therapies designed to produce a foundation of Holistic health and well being in the body, addressing the root causes of disease.
Through our dedication to the practice of Integrative medicine with our Board Certified Physician we have pioneered synergistic add on treatments to our ketamine therapy which we routinely use in practice, on an individualized basis.
Rapamycin
Rapamycin was discovered and isolated from a fungus on the island of Rapanui, and was immediately recognized for its unique biochemical properties. Taken continuously, rapamycin is used to modulate patients’ immune systems who have received transplants. However, taken intermittently rapamycin is a favored bio hack among longevity practitioners and anti-aging physicians, due to its renown as the first pharmacologic agent ever shown to enhance lifespan in experimental mammalian animals, though its inhibition of mTOR which is a nutrient signaling pathway(2). Due to these unique effects on cell biology, it has also been studies as an adjunct to ketamine therapy showing positive effects of greatly enhancing ketamine treatment(3). At out clinic, rapamycin is considered for individual patients as an add on therapy during ketamine treatment for synergistic effects.
NAD+
Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide is a ubiquitous molecule in biochemistry, found in the cells of nearly all life forms, serving a vital function in hundreds of known biochemical pathways. However, the molecule has fame and recognition as an anti aging and longevity mediator, through its beneficial action on the sirtuin system, a regulatory pathway of cellular aging and NDA repair. Fundamentally, replacing NAD levels in the body of certain individuals can turn back the biological clock of aging, giving the body a signal of decreased biological aging and giving the body an improved metabolism, leading to cognitive improvements in a variety of experimental conditions4. Due to these effects, NAD+ was studied as a possible synergist with ketamine and clinically the results have been extremely encouraging. At our clinic, NAD+ treatment is considered for individual patients as an add on therapy for synergy during ketamine infusions.
Mitochondrial Therapy
The mitochondria are the place in every animal life form where the cell produces energy form oxygen and food nutrients. This energy is responsible for all physiological functions of the cell, and so not surprisingly, when the mitochondria slow down due to aging or disease, the entire spectrum of physiological function declines as well. This is why our physicians combine mitochondrial therapy as a potential add on for synergy during ketamine treatment. Mitochondrial therapy consists of our IV and oral formulas that have years of proven clinical success and are based on the specific nutrients needs of the cell’s mitochondria.
BDNF
Brian Derived Neurotrophic Factor is a molecule found within nerve cells that signal nerve cells to grow and make connections with other neurons, called synapses. This process, mediated by BDNF, is believed to be at the core of the ketamine effect, since ketamine leads to long term rewiring of the brain through the action of BDNF, producing effects that outlast the drugs’ metabolism in the body5. Not surprisingly, treatment with BDNF concurrent with ketamine IV treatment has been shown to greatly enhance the effects of the ketamine therapy in our clinic. Our BDNF is sourced from a FDA registered drug manufacturing facility located in the United states, and is given prior to ketamine infusion as a non FDA approved IV formula.
Alpha GPC
Alpha-Glycerol Phosphorylcholine is an acetylcholine precursor and is marketed in oral supplements as a cognition enhancer6. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter involved in learning memory and executive functions in the brain. Acetylcholine and NMDA receptors (the target of ketamine treatment) are related because essentially, acetylcholine can “fine-tune” the activity of NMDA receptors without directly binding to them. Given its tuning of the NMDA receptors, and its enhancement on learning and memory, this clinic is pioneering the use of this molecule as a synergy to ketamine therapy. In our clinic, Alpha GPC is sourced form a FDA registered dug manufacturing facility located in the United states, and is given prior to ketamine infusion as a non FDA approved IV formula prior to ketamine infusion.
References:
1. Sanacora G, Frye MA, McDonald W, et al. A Consensus Statement on the Use of Ketamine in the Treatment of Mood Disorders. JAMA Psychiatry. 2017;74(4):399-405. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.0080
2. Ehninger D, Neff F, Xie K. Longevity, aging and rapamycin. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences. 2014;71(22):4325-4346. doi:10.1007/s00018-014-1677-1
3.Abdallah CG, Averill LA, Gueorguieva R, et al. Modulation of the antidepressant effects of ketamine by the mTORC1 inhibitor rapamycin. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2020;45(6):990-997. doi:10.1038/s41386-020-0644-9
4. Leila Hosseini, Fatemeh Farokhi-Sisakht, Reza Badalzadeh, Aytak Khabbaz, Javad Mahmoudi, Saeed Sadigh-Eteghad. Nicotinamide Mononucleotide and Melatonin Alleviate Aging-induced Cognitive Impairment via Modulation of Mitochondrial Function and Apoptosis in the Prefrontal Cortex and Hippocampus. Neuroscience,Volume 423,2019, Pages 29-37.
5. Haile CN, Murrough JW, Iosifescu DV, et al. Plasma brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and response to ketamine in treatment-resistant depression. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. 2014;17(2):331-336. doi:10.1017/S1461145713001119
6. Lopez CM, Govoni S, Battaini F, Bergamaschi S, Longoni A, Giaroni C, Trabucchi M. Effect of a new cognition enhancer, alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine, on scopolamine-induced amnesia and brain acetylcholine. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 1991 Aug;39(4):835-40. doi: 10.1016/0091-3057(91)90040-9. PMID: 1662399.