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Spravato® is an esketamine nasal spray that has FDA approval for helping patients with treatment-resistant depression. Experienced psychiatrist Karen Giles, MD, MS, at Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions in Sandy Springs and Alpharetta, Georgia, specializes in using innovative therapies like Spravato and IV ketamine infusions to treat long-term depression when nothing else is helping. To learn more about fast-acting Spravato treatments and how those treatments could benefit you, call Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions today or book an appointment online.
What is Spravato?
Spravato contains a refined form of ketamine (called esketamine) that is delivered in the form of a nasal spray. It can help patients with depression (major depressive disorder) when other treatments aren’t working.
Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions specializes in treating depression, particularly in moderate to severe cases and in patients who have treatment-resistant depression (TRD). They offer Spravato as part of their range of innovative depression treatments.
Spravato is by prescription only, and you have to receive it from a psychiatrist. It has FDA approval for use as an augmentation to antidepressant medication for depression, which means your insurance may cover it.
How does Spravato work?
Typical antidepressants increase levels of naturally occurring chemicals in the brain such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. These chemicals are messengers that allow brain cells to communicate, and in people with depression these chemicals are typically altered. The scientific understanding is that increasing these chemicals (called neurotransmitters) allows for better communication between brain cells, positively affects mood, and alleviates depression symptoms.
Spravato builds off of this same science but delivers a greater impact in a shorter amount of time for many of the people for whom traditional antidepressants haven’t worked. Spravato increases levels of glutamate, the most abundant chemical messenger in the brain. The result of this is a greater impact on more brain cells at one time.
Spravato immediately impacts brain cells, offering relief from depressive symptoms within hours rather than several weeks from traditional antidepressants.
Why would I need to use Spravato?
Dr. Giles might recommend Spravato if you’ve been receiving treatment for major depressive disorder, but your depression hasn’t improved.
Psychotherapy and antidepressant medication help many people recover from depression. However, experts believe that 30 - 40% of patients relying on psychotherapy and antidepressants don't experience relief from these treatments. Spravato specifically addresses this type of treatment-resistant depression.
Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions also offers IV (intravenous) ketamine therapy for treatment-resistant depression. Dr. Giles goes through both options with you so you can choose the one that best fits your needs.
What does Spravato treatment involve?
Spravato treatment is very straightforward. You need to visit Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions for each treatment, as you must have it under Dr. Giles’ supervision. The treatment itself simply involves administering the spray into your nasal passages.
The FDA-approved protocol for Spravato treatment is twice weekly treatments for 4 weeks, and then once a week for 4 weeks. Breakthru highly recommends a taper protocol following the FDA-approved protocol to support ongoing remission.
If you’d like to find out more about treating persistent depression with Spravato, call Breakthru Psychiatric Solutions today or book an appointment online.