The Basic and Clinical Pharmacology of Ketamine

Ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) glutamate receptor antagonist developed as an anesthetic, has shown efficacy as an antidepressant in a number of studies since 2000. Multiple routes of ketamine administration, each with unique pharmacokinetics, have been investigated in the treatment of depression, including intravenous, intramuscular, intranasal, sublingual, and oral delivery.