2023-12-16 15:35:00
(CNN Spanish) –– The autopsy of “Friends” star Matthew Perry ruled that the “acute effects of ketamine” and subsequent drowning were the cause of his death. The beloved actor who played Chandler Bing in the legendary series was found dead floating face down in the pool of his Malibu home on October 28. He was 54 years old.
The autopsy report, released Friday by the Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office, revealed that Perry’s blood contained ketamine, a substance known to treat depression and anxiety. But what exactly is this medication and how is it used?
Ketamine is a powerful medication used in hospitals primarily as an anesthetic, although studies have also found it to show great promise in treating severe depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. It can also be used illegally as a club drug that creates a feeling of euphoria and dissociative effects.
The autopsy report detailed that ketamine has medical and surgical uses as an anesthetic, and is also known as a recreational drug “primarily due to its ‘dissociative’ nature, which indicates disconnection between the mind and body. It can also have short-lived hallucinatory and psychedelic effects.”
But, in Perry’s case specifically, experts say that although the levels of ketamine in his system were very high, it’s unclear whether they would have been fatal on their own.
Dr. Ed Boyer, a professor of emergency medicine at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, said, “Elevated concentrations of ketamine suggest high levels of use.”
Perry’s last known treatment was a week and a half before his death, the autopsy states, well beyond the duration of ketamine in his system during treatment.
“Considering that his last ketamine therapy was at least a week earlier, misuse, even recreational use, cannot be ruled out,” Boyer added.
Dr. Victor Weedn, a professor in the Department of Forensic Sciences at George Washington University, said people can react differently to different levels of ketamine and that it could be fatal due to its effects on breathing.
In 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a close relative of ketamine called esketamine, used as a nasal spray, for treatment-resistant depression.
Ketamine Infusions Improve Symptoms of Depression, Anxiety, Study Finds
A published study in September 2022 revealed that people injected intravenously with ketamine at three private ketamine infusion clinics had “significant improvement” in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation.
The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, adds to a growing body of research showing the promise of ketamine in treating these conditions. “It provides more real-world data, which is incredibly important” because it helps show its potential for a more general population, Dr. Gerard Sanacora, a professor of psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine, told CNN at the time.
But the study leaves some critical gaps, including data on adverse effects and direct comparisons with other options, that make it difficult to conclude how it should be used, he said.
Researchers analyzed data from 424 people with treatment-resistant depression who were seen between November 2017 and May 2021 at three ketamine infusion clinics in Virginia specializing in people with suicidal ideation, depression or anxiety. During each clinic visit, patients completed physical and mental health surveys.
Patients received six infusions over 21 days. Within six weeks of starting the infusions, the researchers say, half of the participants responded to the treatment and 20% had depressive symptoms in remission. After 10 infusions, response and remission rates were 72% and 38%, respectively.
The researchers also note that they did not systematically evaluate side effects or adverse events of the treatment, but previous studies have found no permanent or long-term side effects on memory or cognitive decline. The lack of information about adverse effects is “disappointing,” Sanacora said. Ketamine carries a “unique set of risks, both for the individual and society,” including the potential for drug abuse and the unknown effects of frequent use, especially at higher levels.
CNN’s Katherine Dillinger, Josh Campbell, Cheri Mossburg and Deidre McPhillips contributed to this report.
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