Ketamine use requires careful monitoring, says UCI Health psychiatrist
Actor Matthew Perry was likely unaware of the risks of addiction, death with drug
August 30, 2024
IN THE NEWS: While ketamine is an effective therapy for treatment-resistant depression, it carries the potential to become addictive. It can even be fatal; actor Matthew Perry died of an overdose of the drug in October 2023.
UCI Health psychiatrist Dr. Robert McCarron spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the drug and its risks.
Unlike many antidepressants that affect the brain’s neurochemicals, ketamine blocks the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors to relieve depressive symptoms.
“Ketamine has the potential to harm someone or kill someone if not monitored carefully and used in an approved therapeutic way.”
McCarron said that Perry probably didn’t know that more of the drug could kill him.
“He didn’t go to medical school. He probably figured it made him feel good and lowered his depression so maybe more was better.”
McCarron is a psychiatrist who sees patients at UCI Health Psychiatry Services, as well as a professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Human Behavior in the UC Irvine School of Medicine. He was named a 2023 Physician of Excellence by the Orange County Medical Association.
He is the author or co-author of numerous publications on the topics of depression, anxiety, pain management, unexplained physical complaints, medical education and more.
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