Tissue Distribution of Ketamine in a Mixed Drug Fatality

While reports of ketamine abuse are increasing, reports of ketamine deaths and tissue concentrations associated with fatalities are rare. We report here a case of a mixed drug fatality involving ketamine and ethanol. Ketamine analysis was carried out by gas chromatography with a nitrogen-phosphorus...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of forensic sciences 1997-11, Vol.42 (6), p.1183-1185
Main Authors: Moore, KA, Kilbane, EM, Jones, R, Kunsman, GW, Levine, B, Smith, M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Anesthetics, Dissociative - pharmacokinetics
Anesthetics, Dissociative - poisoning
Chromatography, Gas
Drug Interactions
Drugs
Ethanol - poisoning
Fatal Outcome
Fatalities
Forensic Medicine
Forensic sciences
Humans
Ketamine - analysis
Ketamine - pharmacokinetics
Ketamine - poisoning
Male
Tissue Distribution
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Summary:While reports of ketamine abuse are increasing, reports of ketamine deaths and tissue concentrations associated with fatalities are rare. We report here a case of a mixed drug fatality involving ketamine and ethanol. Ketamine analysis was carried out by gas chromatography with a nitrogen-phosphorus detector (NPD). We found the following tissue concentrations: blood 1.8 mg/L; urine 2.0 mg/L; brain 4.3 mg/kg; spleen 6.1 mg/kg; liver 4.9 mg/kg, and kidney 3.6 mg/kg. The blood ethanol concentration was 170 mg/dL. Because an empty nalbuphine ampule was found in the possession of the deceased, the blood was assayed for this opioid compound using a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) method. None was detected at a limit of detection of 0.02 mg/L.
ISSN:0022-1198
1556-4029
DOI:10.1520/JFS14283J