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Multi-organ Failure in a Patient With Chronic Ketamine Use: A Case Report.

Ayoyimika O Okunlola, Syahmina Sufrian, Temitope O Ajao, G K M Rashik Uzzaman, Cornelius J Fernandez

Cureus November 1, 2024 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.74158 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Case study Case report Peer reviewed
Sample size 1
Population 24-year-old patient with no significant past medical history and chronic ketamine abuse
Intervention ketamine cessation
Topics Ketamine Esketamine
Keywords Acute kidney injury Acute systolic dysfunction Gastric dilatation Hydronephrosis Ketamine bladder syndrome Ketamine-induce cholestasis Drug abuse Organ damage Ketamine toxicity Medical case study
Key findings Chronic ketamine abuse causes multi-organ dysfunction, and cessation of use is the only treatment that provides more than suboptimal relief.

Abstract

Ketamine is increasingly used as a recreational drug. The report outlines the various multi-organ dysfunctions identified following chronic abuse in a 24-year-old patient with no significant past medical history and the subsequent patient management. Besides ketamine cessation, other treatments only provide suboptimal relief to the damage inflicted by the toxic ketamine metabolites.

Comparable studies

Other case reports and case series on ketamine, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
The destruction of the lower urinary tract by ketamine abuse: a new syndrome? Young recreational abusers of street-ketamine in Hong Kong referred to urology units 2008 Retrospective case series n = 59
Electroconvulsive Therapy, Ketamine, and Esketamine in a Patient with Major Depressive Disorder and Multiple Comorbidities: A Case Report over 10-year Treatment from Adolescence to Adulthood. A patient with treatment-resistant depression and comorbid generalized anxiety... 2025 Case report n = 1
Treatment of compulsive behaviour in eating disorders with intermittent ketamine infusions Chronic and treatment-resistant eating disorder patients 1998 Case series n = 15
Oral Administration of the NMDA Receptor Antagonist S-Ketamine as Add-On Therapy of Depression: A Case Series Four depressed patients taking standard antidepressants 2009 Case series n = 4
A longitudinal case series of IM ketamine for patients with severe and enduring eating disorders and comorbid treatment‐resistant depression Patients with enduring eating disorders and treatment-resistant depression 2021 Case series n = 4

Citations in the library

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Ketamine Esketamine