K粉用於治療抑鬱症,數小時內起效大綱
Ketamine being used as depression drug that produces results within hours
K粉用於治療抑鬱症,數小時內起效
Antidepressants can take a depressingly long time to kick in – a minimum of two weeks but often more like three to four. That waiting time can be disabling for patients, but what if an antidepressant could work in a day?
抗抑鬱藥起效慢，這一點令人非常沮喪——至少需要2周才能起效，且通常情況下需要3至4周。在這段等待時間內，患者無能爲力，但如果有一種抗抑鬱藥能在一天內起效呢？
Sounds far-fetched? It isn't.
不敢相信？真的有這等好事哦。
Remember ketamine, that rather unpredictable street drug of the 90s? Well, it is now the latest approach to treating depression and could lead to a whole family of rapid acting antidepressants.
還記得氯胺酮（K粉）這一90年代流行於街頭的毒品嗎？現在，它已成爲治療抑鬱症的最新方法，且可能引領下一代起效快的抗抑鬱藥的研發。
"We haven't had anything really new for about 50 or 60 years," said Allan Young, professor of mood disorders at King's College London. "People say we are still in the age of steam and we need to go to the next technological advance."
“近五六十年來，我們在抗抑鬱藥的研發上並未有新的突破，”倫敦國王學院情緒障礙教授艾倫·楊（Allan Young）說道。“大家都說我們仍處於蒸汽時代，技術上需要更進一步。”
Ketamine is best known for being a sedative and a club drug that can induce hallucinations and calmness, but is also used for pain relief and anaesthesia. Additionally, it has rapid antidepressant effects and works in many patients who are resistant to treatment.
大家都知道，K粉是一種鎮靜劑，也是一種會引起幻覺和鎮靜作用的俱樂部毒品，但它也可以用於緩解疼痛或用於麻醉。此外，它能快速起到抗抑鬱的作用，對於抗治療的患者而言，它也能起到作用。
In the US, clinics are providing IV infusions of ketamine off label, and in March, esketamine, a nasal ketamine-based drug, was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment-resistant depression.
美國各診所正在提供K粉靜脈注射，且美國食品和藥品監管局於3月份批准了一種基於氯胺酮的鼻用藥物艾氯胺酮，可用於治療難治性抑鬱症。
Carlos Zarate of the US National Institute of Mental Health says one of the main problems with current antidepressants is slow onset speed. He explains it can take 10-14 weeks to see significant improvement with some antidepressants.
美國國家心理健康研究所的卡洛斯·扎拉特（Carlos Zarate）說，目前，抗抑鬱藥的主要問題之一是起效慢。他解釋說，服用某些抗抑鬱藥後，可能需要等待10到14周才能看到明顯的改善。
"In my mind that is too slow," he said. "We are focusing on treatments that can produce results within hours. That is where we are heading, with ketamine now the prototype for future generation antidepressants which will have rapid, robust antidepressant effects within a few hours."
“我覺得這太慢了，”他說道。“我們正專注於研究可在數小時內起效的治療方法。這也是我們努力的方向，K粉是下一代抗抑鬱藥的原型，預計下一代抗抑鬱藥將在幾小時內快速且有效地產生抗抑鬱作用。”
While ketamine does have some side effects, they subside quickly because the drug is eliminated rapidly from the body, but the therapeutic effects last seven days or longer. Zarate's team is now honing the drug's effectiveness and tolerance, and they have one form without the side effects.
雖然K粉確實存在一些副作用，但由於其可快速排出體外，因此這些副作用也會很快消失，而其治療效果卻可保持七天或更長時間。扎拉特的團隊目前正在提高這種藥物的有效性和耐受性，且計劃研究出一種沒有副作用的K粉用於治療抑鬱。
