Ketamine Infusion Combined With Mindfulness Program May Improve Cocaine Abstinence

Adding a single infusion of ketamine to a program of mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP) may promote abstinence in patients who use cocaine, according to a study published in the NovemberAmerican Journal of Psychiatry.In a five-week trial conducted by Elias Dakwar, M.D., of Columbia University Medical Center and colleagues, 55 patients who met theDSM-IV criteria for cocaine dependence were randomized to receive a 40-minute intravenous infusion of either ketamine or midazolam (a preoperative sedative). They received their infusions on the second day of a five-day hospitalization in a psychiatric research unit. During their hospitalization, they began MBRP, which includes cognitive-behavioral strategies that help patients become aware of feelings as they occur. The goal of MBRP is to enable patients to make choices that improve wellness rather than react automatically in ways that may be detrimental to their health and abstinence.After their five-day hospitalization, patients returned to the hospital twice a week for four more weeks of MBRP sessions, physician visits, and drug testing. At the end of the five-week trial, researchers assessed the patients ’ cravings to use cocaine. At six months, patients participated in a follow-up telephone interview.During the last two weeks of the trial, 48.2% of patients in the ketamine group had remained abstinent from cocaine use, compared with only 10.7% in the midazolam group. At the end of five weeks, craving scores were 58.1%...
Source: Psychiatr News - Category: Psychiatry Tags: abstinence cocaine dependence Elias Dakwar ketamine M.D. midazolam mindfulness-based relapse prevention Source Type: research