Pubdate: Thu, 12 Mar 2015
Source: National Post (Canada)
Copyright: 2015 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/wEtbT4yU
Website: http://www.nationalpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/286
Author: Steven Dain
Page: A9
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v15/n150/a06.html

HANDS OFF KETAMINE

Re: The UN Vs. 'Special K,' Jesse Kline, March 11.

Ketamine is an invaluable anesthetic agent and severe painkiller in 
human and animal medical practice. It is the only anesthetic that 
maintains blood pressure for trauma, battlefield and burn use, and 
can be used easily and safely in developing countries and in places 
with limited infrastructure to support modern anesthetic technology. 
It can be easily administered to domestic and wild animals, which are 
a potential risk to health-care workers attempting to providing their 
safe care. (Try giving an anesthetic to a lion or tiger without ketamine.)

Drug diversion is a serious problem, but making ketamine unavailable 
for legitimate medical use will not solve the problem of its illegal 
use. Criminals will always have the means to manufacture and 
distribute the drug. Banning ketamine, with its unique and valuable 
anesthetic and pain-relieving properties, not duplicated by other 
medications, will severely limit medical and veterinarian practice 
and be a detriment to safe patient and animal care around the world.

Steven Dain, London, Ont.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom