MUMBAI: Friends is one of the most loved and popular blockbuster sit-coms of all times. The world was left in complete shock when actor Matthew Perry aka Chandler Bing was found dead in his Los Angeles home on 29th October. The actor, 54 was found unresponsive in his hot tub at his home.The actor’s death certificate now has ‘deferred’ as his reason of death.

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Mathew Perry’s autopsy report has now been released which says the actor's cause of death was the "acute effects of ketamine,". This has sparked a lot of worry on the use of this medication. 

As per reports, the Friends actor was undergoing a Ketamine infusion therapy and had received an infusion just a week and half before he was found dead at his home. Other factors that have been listed as his cause of death included The research also listed coronary artery disease, the effects of buprenorphine, and drowning.

What is Ketamine that led to Matthew Perry’s death? 

According to the the Pacific Neuroscience Institute, “Ketamine therapy is used to treat depression, anxiety, PTSD, end-of-life distress, chronic pain, drug/alcohol problems, and more.” On the other hand, as per the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Buprenorphine which was also found in Perry’s system is usually consumed to treat Opioid Use Disorder. The Associated Press quoted Dr. Andrew Stolbach referencing to Matthew Perry’s death “Using sedative drugs in a pool or hot tub, especially when you’re alone, is extremely risky and, sadly, here it’s fatal.”

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Ketamine, is also known as Ketalar, which is widely used by doctors to give patients so that they cannot feel the pain. Ketamine is available only by prescription in the US but it is used illegally by many due to its dissociative nature. People sniff it, inject it, smoke it or mix it in their drinks. It is used as a treatment for depression when the conventional methods fail.

Ketamine has been used for many years as medicine and anesthesia. It can cause heightened levels of consciousness, which is why it has led to abuse. When injected, it kicks in within a few seconds or minutes but snorting might take much longer. Overdose can cause deadly respiratory depression by drastically slowing down breathing. 

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Credit-HindustanTimes