- Researchers investigated intranasal ketamine for treatment-resistant chronic migraine.
- Around half of participants in a study reported the treatment was “very effective.”
- Further studies are needed to investigate which people are best suited for the treatment.
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic that was initially
It has since been used for depression and pain conditions as well.
Among pain conditions,
Until now, however, the treatment has been limited to hospital settings as it requires a pain specialist to monitor dosage. To increase the treatment’s accessibility, researchers have started to consider intranasal delivery options that people can use at home.
While an intranasal version of ketamine, known as Spravato, has been
Recently, researchers examined the effects of intranasal ketamine for treating refractory chronic migraine among people who did not respond well to existing treatments, including ketamine infusion.
They reported that intranasal ketamine reduced headache intensity by a small or large degree in 89% of patients as well as improving the quality of life for around a third of study participants.
The researchers cautioned, however, that due to the drug’s potential for overuse, it should be reserved for people as a “rescue treatment” alongside appropriate safety precautions.
Their study was published in the journal Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.
For the study, the researchers recruited 242 people with refractory chronic migraine.
The participants were an average age of 44 years old and nearly 80% were women.
Most participants had daily headaches and anxiety or…
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