Skip to content

Wayne Kepner

School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA.

5 papers in the library · 44 citations · publishing 0-2026

Papers

Trends and characteristics in ketamine use among US adults with and without depression, 2015-2022.

Journal of affective disorders March 15, 2025 Kevin H Yang, Wayne Kepner, Charles M Cleland et al. 19 citations

Ketamine use among US adults increased significantly from 2015 to 2019 and again from 2021 to 2022. From 2015 to 2019, use rose among both adults with and without depression, but from 2021 to 2022, an increase occurred only among those without depression. Depression was linked to higher odds of ketamine use in 2015–2019 but not in later years. New correlates emerged in 2021–2022, including adults aged 26–34 and college graduates. Use of other drugs, especially ecstasy/MDMA and gamma-hydroxybutyrate, was consistently associated with higher odds of ketamine use. These shifts may reflect changes in the ketamine landscape or survey methodology.

Prevalence and Correlates of Past Year Ecstasy/MDMA Use in the United States.

Journal of addiction medicine Kevin H Yang, Wayne Kepner, Anamika Nijum et al. 11 citations

An estimated 0.9% of US individuals aged 12 or older used ecstasy/MDMA in the past year, based on a national survey from 2015 to 2020. Use was more common among younger people, with those aged 35–49 as the reference; those over 50 had very low odds of use. Bisexual women and people identifying as Asian, Black, or multiracial had higher odds of use compared with heterosexual men or White individuals. Past-year use of other drugs, prescription drug misuse, nicotine dependence, and alcohol use disorder were also associated with increased odds. The findings can help inform prevention and harm reduction strategies for high-risk subpopulations.

Need for a Public Health Response to the Unregulated Sales of Amanita muscaria Mushrooms

American Journal of Preventive Medicine June 10, 2024 Eric C. Leas, Nora Satybaldiyeva, Wayne Kepner et al. 10 citations

Use of psilocybin-containing mushrooms among U.S. adults rose from 11.4% in 2021 to 12.3% in 2022, making them the most commonly used hallucinogenic substance. This growing interest has spurred a commercial market for other mushrooms, including Amanita muscaria, which contains the psychoactive compounds muscimol and ibotenic acid.

Prevalence and Correlates of Lifetime Ecstasy/MDMA Use Among Asian American and Pacific Islander Adult Populations in the United States, 2015–2020

Journal of Psychoactive Drugs March 3, 2025 Wayne Kepner, Patricia Dionicio, Katie Bailey et al. 3 citations

About 1 in 20 Asian American and Pacific Islander adults (5.1%) have used ecstasy/MDMA in their lifetime, based on a nationally representative sample from 2015-2020. Females had higher odds of use than males, and adults aged 26-34 had higher odds than those aged 18-25, while those aged 50 or older had lower odds. Lifetime use of other substances—cannabis, ketamine, LSD, cocaine, psilocybin, prescription opioids, and prescription stimulants—was associated with increased odds of ecstasy/MDMA use. Variations by age, sex, family income, substance type, and mental health service use point to the need for targeted public health strategies.