Ketamine has a profound effect on individuals with severe depression whose symptoms have not been relieved with orthodox treatments. An Oxford trial has found that this drug led to significant mood improvement within one week for 29 percent of study participants.

This illegal dance club drug, which was recently upgraded to a Class B banned substance in response to the physical and psychological harm it can cause to recreational users, showed consistently positive results throughout the course of the study.

Researchers from the Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Oxford noted that 29 percent of the patients, some who had suffered from severe depression for at least 20 years, in the study experienced dramatic improvement over the span of four to seven days following their final dose of the drug. Four of the 28 subjects involved were completely free from depression at this point.

Oxford University psychiatrist, Dr. Rupert McShane, said, “We’ve seen remarkable changes in people who’ve had severe depression for many years that no other treatment has touched. It’s very moving to witness.”

McShane continues to explain that, “Patients often comment that the flow of their thinking seems suddenly freer. For some, even a brief experience of response helps them to realize that they can get better and this gives them hope.”

Valid health concerns have been raised over this party drug and horse tranquilizer, such as evidence that has shown that users as young as 20 have had their bladders removed from heavy use of the drug.

The doses that were used in the patient trial were much smaller than those on the street. Side effects from the drug were minimal, despite the fact that the drug was injected into the study participants rather than swallowed.

Results from the first 28 patients that were treated with the drug have been reported in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. Three or six transfusions of up to 80 mg of ketamine were given during the three-week treatment period.

The researchers tested participants’ memories days later, and patients reported their mood and symptoms by text or email. There was no evidence that they suffered from bladder or memory problems.