Chronic administration of ketamine mimics the perturbed sense of body ownership associated with schizophrenia

摘要

Rationale Subanaesthetic ketamine infusion in healthy volunteers induces experiences redolent of early psychosis, including changes in the experience of one's own body. It is not clear, however, whether repeated self-administration of ketamine has a sustained effect on body representation that is comparable to that found during acute administration. Objectives We sought to establish whether chronic ketamine use resulted in disturbances to sense of body ownership. Methods Following on from our work on the effects of acute ketamine infusion, we used the rubber hand illusion (RHI) to experimentally manipulate the sense of body ownership in chronic ketamine users, compared to healthy controls. Results Chronic ketamine users experienced the RHI more strongly and reported more body-image aberrations, even though they had not recently taken the drug. Conclusions These findings suggest that the chronic ketamine model for psychosis models more long-lasting changes in sense of ownership, perhaps more akin to schizophrenia.