Bladder Problems, Pelvic Pain Tied to Ketamine Use

Heavy and long-term users of the club drug ketamine risk developing incontinence and other bladder issues, suggests a small study of young ketamine users in Hong Kong.

HealthDay News reported May 30 that the study of 66 ketamine users ages 13-25 found that those who had used the drug for longer than two years were more likely to report pelvic pain and the frequent and urgent need to urinate. Heavy users also had reduced bladder capacity, the study found.

The symptoms seemed to ease when use of the drug, known colloquially as “Special K,” was discontinued, researchers said. Study leader Siu-king Mak of the Hong Kong Urological Association presented the findings at the 2010 annual meeting of the American Urological Association.