New Study Supports Ketamine Therapy As A Treatment For Cocaine Use Disorder

If you are judging by the number of overdose deaths, fentanyl is the most dangerous drug out there.  In fact, opioids have dominated the headlines about addiction, overdose, and drug-related crime in the United States for more than a decade.  Many people who have suffered from opioid use disorder began their relationship with opioids either because a doctor prescribed them opioids as a treatment for a physical injury, or else they sought out the drugs illegally to self-medicate their emotional stress.  Meanwhile, the line between what is a beneficial medication and what is an illegal drug can be blurry, especially when it comes to the treatment of conditions like addiction, chronic pain, and psychiatric illnesses.  Cannabis, psilocybin, and buprenorphine are involved in their respective journeys toward acceptance in the medical profession for treatment of mental illness and physical pain.  Ketamine is another controlled substance that has seen growing support for an expanded range of medical uses, even as it remains popular as a recreational drug.  If you are facing criminal charges for illegal possession of ketamine, contact a West Palm Beach drug offenses lawyer.

Established and Experimental Medical Applications of Ketamine

Ketamine is legally approved for use during anesthesia.  It is a preferred anesthetic drug for minor surgical procedures because, unlike some other common anesthesia drugs, it does not depress heart rate or respiration.  Meanwhile, some doctors use it for treatment of other conditions, such as depression, chronic pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder.  Using a drug in a medical setting for a use other than its legally registered one is called off-label use.  A new study by researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio suggests that ketamine is a safe and effective treatment for cocaine use disorder.

Florida Ketamine Laws

Ketamine is a Schedule III controlled substance, which means that it is in the same legal category as benzodiazepines.  Florida has adopted a “zero tolerance” policy toward possession of ketamine for recreational use, which means that you can get felony charges for possession of even a small quantity of ketamine.  Despite this, ketamine is so popular among young people that journalists have even started referring to a cartoonish style of dress and hairstyles as “ketamine chic.”  As a recreational drug, the dissociative effects of ketamine are what accounts for its popularity.  Some consider its effects entheogenic or hallucinogenic, similar to the effects of psilocybin or ayahuasca.  Meanwhile, several licensed ketamine clinics operate in Florida, including clinics in Miami, Pompano Beach, and West Palm Beach.  In these clinics, ketamine is administered intravenously.  Meanwhile, it can be administered through a variety of routes of administration, some of which are more dangerous than others, when used recreationally.

Contact a West Palm Beach Internet Crimes Lawyer Today

Attorney William Wallshein has more than 38 years of experience, including five years as a prosecutor in Palm Beach County.  Contact William Wallshein P.A. in West Palm Beach, Florida to discuss your case.

Sources:

ketaminehealthcenters.com/

neurosciencenews.com/addiction-ketamine-treatment-22532/

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