(WSJ) – The psychedelic-like anesthetic is at the heart of a booming online industry that promises relief from depression but has also led to harm

Just a few years ago, ketamine had mostly a dual existence: as an anesthetic to sedate patients in operating rooms and as a street drug known as “K” that can deliver out-of-body experiences. 

That changed after 2019, when the FDA approved a drug for treatment-resistant depression that shares some chemical similarities with ketamine. The drug, marketed under the brand name Spravato, must be administered in a specially certified doctor’s office or clinic. Patients are then placed under observation for at least two hours. 

Those hurdles drove more people to seek out ketamine itself, which can be prescribed for any use a doctor deems medically appropriate. It is FDA-approved only as an anesthetic, and its use for psychiatric conditions is “off-label,” meaning its safety and efficacy hasn’t been vetted by the FDA for that purpose. (Read More)