It is called a dissociative anesthetic because it puts the patient in a conscious but trance-like state (catalepsy) where the patient is dissociated or uncoupled from sensory, motor, memory and emotional functions in the brain but cardiac function is not affected and there is minimal respiratory depression. read more
Ketamine also carries a number of serious health risks including overdose, coma, and death so it is a wonder that people still use it recreationally. It makes you wonder why ketamine is still so popular despite the risks and legalities of using it. read more
At anesthetic doses – under-dosaged from a medical point of view – ketamine produces a dissociative state, characterised by a sense of detachment from one's physical body and the external world which is known as depersonalization and derealization. read more