Providers
Ketamine & Wellness Clinic of South Florida Wants To Partner with Providers for Patient Success
Major depressive disorder is a leading cause of disability worldwide, and traditional treatments don’t work for everyone.
Only 67% of patients achieve clinical remission, but something still needs to be done for the remaining 33% that continue to suffer. Our community needs new options for MDD and TRD patients, and we at Ketamine & Wellness Clinic of South Florida aim to provide just that.
We are here for you and your patients. Please contact us if you believe that one of your patients may benefit from low-dose ketamine infusions. One of our practitioners can come to your office or set up a video conference to help learn more about this new treatment option.
Ketamine May Be The Solution Your Patients Need
Ketamine, long used as an anesthetic agent, produces rapid antidepressant
effects even when administered at low doses.
With a series of six low-dose ketamine infusions,
patients are better able to tolerate and utilize other therapeutic modalities. Although not yet
FDA-approved ketamine is effective in many patients when given in a carefully monitored
medical setting under strict protocols to ensure safe delivery.
What Is Ketamine?
Ketamine is known as an NMDA receptor antagonist. Many researchers are still searching for exactly how the medication can affect mood so rapidly and effectively, but what is known is that ketamine works on glutamate, one of the most numerous neurotransmitters in the brain and body. Increasing glutamate can cause a cascade effect of increased neural activity and communication in the brain.
The areas of the brain which have shut down due to anxiety and depression are suddenly awakened. Ketamine causes neuroplasticity, or new neural growth, a “rewiring” of the brain believed to play a big part in the lasting anti-depressant effects.
How Does Ketamine Treat Major Depressive Disorder?
While traditional treatments focus on increasing levels of monoamine neurotransmitters, new research suggests an earlier imbalance exists in the excitatory/inhibitory transmission involving glutamate and GABA.
Glutamate is part of the major excitatory neurotransmitter system in the brain and is hypothesized to play an important role in the pathophysiology of this disorder. When the neurotransmitter glutamate binds to NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor sites, the production of certain proteins is limited.
These proteins make it easier for signals to be transmitted between neurons. Suppressing their synthesis may cause depressive effects by reducing communication between neurons in the prefrontal cortex. Ketamine works by blocking NMDA receptor activity, thus blocking the presynaptic inhibition of glutamate release and restoring normal levels of protein synthesis, thereby improving communication between neurons in the cortex.
How Can We Help You Improve Patient Outcomes?
If you have patients that have exhausted traditional treatment modalities and are still unresponsive, we may be able to help. Patients who visit us will receive six low-dose infusions, paired with ketamine integration coaching. This combination of ketamine and coaching allows patients to more easily participate in and integrate other therapies, like CBT, EMDR, talk therapy or IOP services.
How To Get Started
