%0 Journal Article
%T Case Reports Showing a Long-Term Effect of Subanesthetic Ketamine Infusion in Reducing l-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesias
%A Ari B. Magill
%A Miguel Estevez
%A Scott J. Sherman
%A Torsten Falk
%J Archive of "Case Reports in Neurology".
%D 2016
%R 10.1159/000444278
%X Ketamine is an FDA-approved drug with a known safety profile. Low-dose subanesthetic intravenous ketamine infusion treatment has led to long-term reduction of treatment-resistant depression and of chronic pain states. We report on low-dose subanesthetic intravenous ketamine infusion treatment in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients by 5 case studies and show a long-lasting therapeutic benefit to reduce l-DOPA-induced dyskinesia (LID), improve on time, and reduce depression. Based on the literature we hypothesize that low-dose ketamine may act as a ¡®chemical deep brain stimulation¡¯, by desynchronizing hypersynchronous oscillatory brain activity, including in the basal ganglia and the motor cortex. The presented PD case reports indicate tolerability, safety and long-term beneficial effects of low-dose ketamine infusion that should be further investigated in a properly controlled prospective clinical trial for treatment of LID, as well as the prevalent nonmotor features pain and depression in PD patients
%K Parkinson's disease
%K Depression
%K Pain
%K Hypersynchrony
%K NMDA receptors
%K Levodopa
%U https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4899651/