"K Cramps," Recurrent Abdominal Pain in a Patient with Chronic Ketamine Use: A Case Report.
Clinical practice and cases in emergency medicine August 1, 2024 Tucker Avra, Jesus Torres, Kumar Felipe Vasudevan et al. 2 citations
A 31-year-old man with a three-year history of using ketamine by inhalation, injection, and intravenously visited the emergency department twice in one week with severe back and abdominal pain and indigestion. Standard tests and advanced imaging found no clear cause. The patient identified from Reddit that his symptoms likely stemmed from chronic ketamine use; after stopping ketamine, his pain improved within 24 hours. He then sought addiction treatment on his own. Emergency physicians should consider chronic ketamine use as a possible cause for gastrointestinal and urinary symptoms, and offer education, symptom relief, and links to substance use treatment.