Post by Hoppy on Feb 1st, 2014 at 5:11pm
Ketamine Trial for Cluster Headache.
Ketamine Trial- Initial results:
I am very happy to report that the initial outcomes of my one week ketamine infusion therapy are very positive. I remain absolutely pain free and for a long-term and medically intractable chronic cluster headache sufferer, that is a huge leap forward. It has only been a short while now, but I have not been completely pain free for several years.
The advantages of ketamine in chronic pain treatment are many. Ketamine gained an unflattering reputation as a street drug that curtailed it’s use medically for some time, but it is a highly effective analgesic and anesthetic used in human and animal therapy that is well tested and FDA approved for safety and efficacy. It’s disassociative properties actually work extremely well for regional neuropathic pain syndromes when used as an infusion over an extended period (START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!! You need to
or 
END PRINTPAGE, 2013).
The great thing about this trial is that it was truly a team effort, working closely with both the neurology team from the Jefferson Headache Center as well as the Pain Management Center team from the Jefferson Pain Management Center. Each day, we discussed the approach, therapy levels, and augmentation with other medications to break ongoing break-through pain events. At one point, I suggested adding medical marijuana as an adjunct to ease side effects and in order to increase dosage, and we were able to use diazepam instead. It worked a charm and we were able to reach a treatment level of 90% ketamine ml/hr dosing. The ramp down was fast and by the time I was able to leave the hospital entirely side-effect free and absolutely pain free.
This is an exciting event and a leap forward in treatment options for medically intractable cluster headache. I am excited to report that CHSG will be working with the Jefferson teams to perfect the protocol for reuse. We will also hopefully get this in front of pharma in the near term, leveraging proven medications in combination, and likely leveraging our recent adoption as an Orphan Drug through our work with NORD.
It’s an exciting step forward toward pain free living for cluster sufferers.
Update on Ketamine Infusion.
It has been a full 3 months since my ketamine infusion and I remain largely pain free. I say largely because I havr experienced a few attacks, all triggered by known triggers for me (hair spray, candle scent, perfume, and alcohol). However, other than that having 3 full months pain free has been nothing short of miraculous for this chronic intractable sufferer.
The key elements of the infusiom therapy are as follows:
- at least 5 days infusion in hospital
- reaching 90% ketamine at 3 ml/hr
- adding an antihypertensive med to keep blood pressure normal
- a sedating medication to level out side effects (hallucinations)
these are the basics of the protocol at this point. We are continuing to work with Jefferson Headache Center on outcomes.
Very promising results so far!
Great news regarding progress with ketamine infusion therapy for CH. In my most recent meeting with Jefferson Headache Center, they are actively enrolling people in the evaluation and recently completed the therapy for one other person with very positive results. We (CHSG) will continue to work with Jefferson in developing a repeatable protocol and they have committed to publishing at least two clinical reports on outcomes of the trial! I am hoping more people are enrolled soon, and we have been helping with suggested candidates in the Philly area. I am hopeful that within a few months we will have the final protocol and results data published and ready for broader use. For me so far, still completely cluster headache free! That's saying quite a bit for a medication resistant chronic sufferer like me. Absolutely fabulous working with Jefferson to bring this preventive / possible CURE to more sufferers!
Ketamine Trial- Initial results:
I am very happy to report that the initial outcomes of my one week ketamine infusion therapy are very positive. I remain absolutely pain free and for a long-term and medically intractable chronic cluster headache sufferer, that is a huge leap forward. It has only been a short while now, but I have not been completely pain free for several years.
The advantages of ketamine in chronic pain treatment are many. Ketamine gained an unflattering reputation as a street drug that curtailed it’s use medically for some time, but it is a highly effective analgesic and anesthetic used in human and animal therapy that is well tested and FDA approved for safety and efficacy. It’s disassociative properties actually work extremely well for regional neuropathic pain syndromes when used as an infusion over an extended period (START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!! You need to
or END PRINTPAGE, 2013). The great thing about this trial is that it was truly a team effort, working closely with both the neurology team from the Jefferson Headache Center as well as the Pain Management Center team from the Jefferson Pain Management Center. Each day, we discussed the approach, therapy levels, and augmentation with other medications to break ongoing break-through pain events. At one point, I suggested adding medical marijuana as an adjunct to ease side effects and in order to increase dosage, and we were able to use diazepam instead. It worked a charm and we were able to reach a treatment level of 90% ketamine ml/hr dosing. The ramp down was fast and by the time I was able to leave the hospital entirely side-effect free and absolutely pain free.
This is an exciting event and a leap forward in treatment options for medically intractable cluster headache. I am excited to report that CHSG will be working with the Jefferson teams to perfect the protocol for reuse. We will also hopefully get this in front of pharma in the near term, leveraging proven medications in combination, and likely leveraging our recent adoption as an Orphan Drug through our work with NORD.
It’s an exciting step forward toward pain free living for cluster sufferers.
Update on Ketamine Infusion.
It has been a full 3 months since my ketamine infusion and I remain largely pain free. I say largely because I havr experienced a few attacks, all triggered by known triggers for me (hair spray, candle scent, perfume, and alcohol). However, other than that having 3 full months pain free has been nothing short of miraculous for this chronic intractable sufferer.
The key elements of the infusiom therapy are as follows:
- at least 5 days infusion in hospital
- reaching 90% ketamine at 3 ml/hr
- adding an antihypertensive med to keep blood pressure normal
- a sedating medication to level out side effects (hallucinations)
these are the basics of the protocol at this point. We are continuing to work with Jefferson Headache Center on outcomes.
Very promising results so far!
Great news regarding progress with ketamine infusion therapy for CH. In my most recent meeting with Jefferson Headache Center, they are actively enrolling people in the evaluation and recently completed the therapy for one other person with very positive results. We (CHSG) will continue to work with Jefferson in developing a repeatable protocol and they have committed to publishing at least two clinical reports on outcomes of the trial! I am hoping more people are enrolled soon, and we have been helping with suggested candidates in the Philly area. I am hopeful that within a few months we will have the final protocol and results data published and ready for broader use. For me so far, still completely cluster headache free! That's saying quite a bit for a medication resistant chronic sufferer like me. Absolutely fabulous working with Jefferson to bring this preventive / possible CURE to more sufferers!