Ketamine

"Ketamine or ketamine hydrochloride (2‐[2‐chlorophenyl]‐2‐methylamino‐cyclohexan‐1‐one) is a non‐barbiturate dissociative anaesthetic derived from phencyclidine synthetized in 1962 by the Parke‐Davis Pharmaceutical Company US [1]. Patented in 1966 as Ketalar®, ketamine was finally approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1970 and was widely used to induce and maintain anaesthesia in humans and in veterinary medicine for over 40 years [2]. The psychoactive properties of ketamine were also quickly responsible for the emergence of its misuse as a recreational drug since the 1970s. Often used as a sniffing powder or injected in its liquid form by young people, particularly at raves and in electronic music circles [3], ketamine acts as a stimulant at low doses and as a hallucinogen at high doses [4]. Despite its widespread misuse [5, 6], ketamine is currently not subject to international control. In fact, due to its low cost and ease of use, ketamine is listed among essential medicines by World Health Organization (WHO) and is considered as difficult to replace in developing countries [7]."