A combined toxicokinetic and metabolic approach to investigate deschloro-N-ethylketamine exposure in a multidrug user.
Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis June 15, 2024 Romain Magny, Bruno Mégarbane, Lucie Chevillard et al. 7 citations
A chronic user of GHB, 3-MMC, and methoxetamine lost consciousness during a chemsex session and was admitted to intensive care, recovering quickly. Analysis of ten plasma samples over 29.5 hours, plus urine, hair, and a seized crystal, using liquid and gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance, confirmed exposure to multiple drugs including GHB, two benzofurans, two cathinones, and a new psychoactive substance: deschloro-N-ethyl-ketamine (O-PCE), an arylcyclohexylamine. Molecular networking identified 27 O-PCE metabolites, some previously unreported. O-PCE had an elimination half-life of about 5 hours. Lipid metabolism was markedly altered, likely from polydrug use.