‘Party drug’ could ‘help children as young as five beat depression’
PARTY drug ketamine could be given to children as young as five to treat depression, experts have revealed.
The Class B tranquilliser can have powerful beneficial effects on severely depressed adults.
But it’s impact on children is still relatively unknown.
Research from Great Ormond Street in London, has found the drug is safe to use in children over the age of and should be trialled as a depression therapy.
The systematic review, analysed five studies which included 87 children between the ages of 5–18 who were given the drug for various conditions.
It found that none of the children had any long-term consequences up to six months after taking the drug.
“Ketamine is well tolerated and safe for use in children, even when given repeatedly in regimens analogous to those used for the treatment of depression in adults,” scientists wrote in the paper published in Sage Journals.
“This finding supports the expansion of research into the use of ketamine as a novel antidepressant in children,” they added.
Ketamine has a reputation as a party drug because of its short-term dissociative effects – but is licensed as an anaesthetic.
It can leave users feeling in a dream-like state, relaxed. happy and even confused.
When abused, the drug can lead to long-term problems such as ulcers, pain in the bladder and kidney problems.
But it has shown potential in depression treatment trials in those resistant to other treatments.
The drug is only licensed to be used by doctors as an anaesthetic, meaning doctors can prescribe it off-license for depression.
This is why a several private clinics offering ketamine for depression have emerged.