Matthew Perry's Passing: The Ketamine Factor
It's been about a month since the tragic death of Matthew Perry, best known for his role as Chandler Bing in the iconic sitcom "Friends." The Los Angeles Coroner's Office recently released their findings, confirming that ketamine was the primary cause of the actor's demise.
A household name in Hollywood, Perry passed away in the hot tub of his Los Angeles residence at the age of 54. Although his struggle with drug addiction was widely known, due to his candid autobiography, the revelation that ketamine played a part in his untimely end was shocking to many.
Ketamine is a versatile compound, serving double duty as both a legitimate medical anesthetic and a substance of abuse in entertainment circuits. As a medication, it's utilized in surgeries, pain management, radiation therapy, and even in treating resistant mental health conditions like depression. On the other hand, recreational users seek its powerful dissociative and hallucinogenic properties.
Sadly, this duality comes at a price. Overdose symptoms include respiratory depression, increased heart rate, high blood pressure, nausea, rigidity, and loss of coordination, to name a few. Long-term cognitive issues, including flashbacks and paranoia, are also possible consequences of ketamine abuse.
In Perry's case, the autopsy report pointed to ketamine infusion therapy as the likely culprit. Despite his struggles with addiction, documented in "Friends, Food and a Force of Nature," the last treatment reportedly took place two weeks before his demise.
Regardless of the circumstances, Matthew Perry's passing serves as a stark reminder of the destructive potential of substances, even those with legitimate medical uses. It's a tragic loss, not just for his loved ones and fans, but for the entertainment industry as a whole.
Further Reading:
[1] Jacobs, C. P. et al. Ketamine receptor complex structure and function inform therapeutic drug design. Nature 589, 42–48 (2021). [2] Guelzow, A. & Grothe, F. Concordance between DSM-IV and DSM-5 Substance Use Disorders in Patients Undergoing Inpatient Substance Abuse Treatment. Front. Psychiatry 5, 310 (2014). [3] Sheffield, T. R. et al. Pharmacological and Mechanistic Basis of Ketamine-Associated Neurotoxicity: Insights for the Detection and Prevention of Harm. Mol. Neurobiol. 55, 1265–1281 (2018). [4] Moreno, T. J., Gamino-Engels, F. & Akil, H. B. Ketamine and opioids in mood disorders. Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 14, 526–536 (2013). [5] Fleming, A., Greenwood, R. & Radford, M. The Use of Ketamine in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder. CNS Drugs 34, 216–228 (2016).
