Alarm sounded after chemists discover new analogue of ketamine in Australia
Long-term health effects of novel psychoactive substance are unknown
Australian researchers have identified a new psychoactive substance similar to ketamine but with different effects. Global drug services around the world have now been put on alert amid warnings that the drug – being sold as ketamine – has unknown long-term health effects.
Developed in the 1960s for medicinal use, ketamine is an anaesthetic and painkiller. Considered an ‘essential medicine’ by the World Health Organization, it’s receiving increased attention as a novel treatment for depression. However, ketamine’s dissociative effects make it attractive as a recreational drug.