Ketamine is a drug that can be found in both human and veterinary medicine practices. It is a dissociative anesthetic. Ketamine is typically used as an anesthetic before surgeries or any other producers that do not require the realization of muscles. It selectively interrupts pathway of the brain in order to relieve painful sensations. Ketamine may also be used in emergency situations if a patient is suffering from severe trauma, it can also be used to supplement epidural anesthesia. Another use for ketamine would also be for the treatment of depression. When ketamine is given, usually administered in the form of an injection by a doctor, it is injected into the bloodstream and can relieve depression and suicidal thoughts and also can have affects lasting up for over a few weeks. Doctors have actually found that not only does ketamine work almost instantly; it is also very effective in patients who have failed to respond to traditional antidepressant treatment.
Ketamine is very different from a normal antidepressant medication. While most antidepressants work on the neurotransmitters serotonin or norepinephrine.
Ketamine focuses on a different neurotransmitter called glutamate. Ketamine blocks the receptors critical for receiving glutamate’s signals, which improves the brain’s electrical flow, resulting in reduced depression. Ketamine can also result in a state of dissociative anesthesia, making one feel a generalized sense of well being. This anesthetic effect is why the drug is used for surgeries.

Describe the roll of the Limbic system:

The limbic system is a set of evolutionarily primitive brain structures located on top of brainstem and buried under the cortex. Limbic system structures are involved in many of our emotions and motivations, particularly those that are related to survival. Such emotions include fear, anger, and emotions related to sexual behavior. The limbic system is also involved in feelings of pleasure that are related to our survival, such as those experienced from eating and sex.