Ketamine Overdoses on the Rise in Florida
Ketamine is a widely used sedative drug, both in medical settings and in a recreational context. It is not the scariest drug around; media personalities and lonely sharers of online content who get their kicks by instilling fear in people about various drugs would have an easier time casting vape pens as the bogeyman than ketamine. When ketamine had its 15 minutes of fame in the media about two years ago, the tone was one of comic Schadenfreude rather than menace; journalists attributed the rise of an alleged fashion trend called “ketamine chic” to the drug. They claimed that teens who took the drug would speak and behave like the Minions from the Despicable Me movies and wear baggy clothes in garish colors. The ketamine chic fashion trend, if it ever existed, has not caught on, but ketamine overdoses have continued to increase, especially in Florida. If you are facing criminal charges for illegal possession or distribution of ketamine, contact a Florida drug offenses attorney.
You Have Probably Taken Ketamine Before, Even If You Don’t Know It
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic with several common applications. It is administered intravenously or by intramuscular injection to induce sedation for minor surgical procedures, especially for pediatric patients or in emergency settings; for example, it is one of the preferred sedation drugs for sedation dentistry. At lower doses, ketamine can relieve pain without causing sedation. Recently, doctors have started administering low doses of ketamine intranasally to treat mood symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Ketamine has been used in medicine since 1970, but in recent years, it has gained a following as a recreational drug more recently. When people buy ketamine at nightclubs or on the street, it is usually in the form of a pill, but sometimes people buy ketamine powder and snort it.
Why Is Ketamine So Dangerous
At doses not high enough to cause sedation, ketamine causes a dissociative, dreamlike state known colloquially as a “K-hole,” because users feel like they have been transported to another dimension. There have been reports of people getting injured or dying in accidents while under the influence of ketamine. The rapid increase in ketamine overdose deaths in the past two years is largely due to the amplifying effect that ketamine has when taking in combination with other drugs, including but not limited to opioids. Most overdose victims who tested positive for ketamine also tested positive for other drugs. It is possible to reverse the effects of opioids, even powerful ones like fentanyl, by administering naloxone, but since ketamine is not an opioid, it does not respond to naloxone. Therefore, respiratory depression and dangerously low heart rate might persist after first responders administer naloxone if the person has taken a pill that contains both ketamine and opioids.
Contact FL Drug Defense Group About Drug Cases
A Central Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing drug charges for ketamine. Contact FL Drug Defense Group in Orlando, Florida to discuss your case.
Source:
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