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Ketamine for Acute Pain Management and Sedation
1Kyle Brown is a critical care pharmacy specialist, Memorial Healthcare System, Pembroke Pines, Florida.
Critical Care Nurse
|October 1, 2020
Summary
Ketamine offers significant benefits for acute pain and sedation, providing analgesia and amnesia without causing hypotension or respiratory depression. This review covers its clinical utility, pharmacology, and nursing considerations.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacology
- Anesthesiology
- Critical Care Medicine
Background:
- Ketamine is utilized in diverse clinical settings, including procedural sedation and chronic pain management.
- Its efficacy in acute pain and sedation for mechanically ventilated patients is well-documented.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the clinical utility and pharmacological properties of ketamine.
- To summarize current research on ketamine for acute pain and sedation.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of current studies on ketamine.
- Narrative review detailing pharmacological properties, dosing, administration, and adverse effects.
Main Results:
- Ketamine provides analgesia and amnesia via N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor inhibition and opioid receptor activation.
- Unlike other sedatives, ketamine does not induce hypotension or respiratory depression.
Conclusions:
- Ketamine's clinical benefits are established across various settings, extending beyond critical care.
- Nurses require knowledge of optimal ketamine use, monitoring, and contraindications.
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