Common Anesthetic Can Reduce Severe Pain

CRPS is also known as reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD). The study involved 33 patients with unrelenting CRPS, who underwent a low-dose infusion of ketamine. After only one treatment, there was complete relief in 76% of the group, while 54% remained free of pain for more than three months, and 31% for more than six months. Outcome was improved by a second treatment. In this group, 58% remained pain free for more than a year, and almost 33% experienced relief for more than three years. Side effects included a feeling of inebriation and, less frequently, hallucinations, dizziness, light-headedness, and nausea. The results were reported in the September 2004 issue of Pain Medicine.

"Ultimately, we want to find a way to improve the quality of life for those who suffer with intolerable and endless CRPS--that is our hope,” said corresponding author Ronald E. Harbut, M.D., Ph.D., of Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center (Hershey, PA, USA; www.hmc.psu.edu). "Certainly more study is needed to further establish the safety and efficacy of this novel approach.” A large clinical study is currently under development at the center.




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Penn State Hershey Medical Center