Ketamine-dependent patients with persistent psychosis have higher neurofilament light chain levels than patients with schizophrenia.
Asian journal of psychiatry October 1, 2024 An-Nie Chung, Ming-Chyi Huang, Tung-Hsia Liu et al. 5 citations
People who develop persistent psychosis from heavy, chronic ketamine use show the highest blood levels of neurofilament light chain (NFL), a marker of nerve cell damage, compared to ketamine users without persistent psychosis, people with schizophrenia, and healthy controls. NFL levels averaged 24.5 pg/mL in ketamine users with persistent psychosis, 12.9 pg/mL in those without, 9.2 pg/mL in schizophrenia patients, and 6.2 pg/mL in controls. Ketamine dependence was linked to higher NFL than schizophrenia, and the elevated NFL in those with persistent psychosis suggests a distinct neurobiological basis for this condition, even though its symptoms resemble schizophrenia.