Ketamine in Low Dose Reduces Pain: Study by Angela Mohan on March 12, 2021 at 1:05 PM Academic Emergency Medicine. Ketamine is known to provide pain relief comparable to opioid medications, which are highly addictive. Researchers studied 98 patients, ages 18 to 59, who presented to the emergency department with acute, moderate to severe pain. The patients were randomized prospectively to receive either 0.15 mg/kg of ketamine (low dose) or 0.30 mg/kg (high dose). Patients and providers were blinded to dose, with the primary outcome of pain measured on the 11-point numerical...