Scotland opens clinic for bladder damage as ketamine use surges

A specialist ketamine bladder clinic has opened in Scotland to tackle the growing health problems caused by the drug.

The clinic will provide patients with acute care for the “life-changing” harm caused by the Class B drug, with serious cases needing major surgery to remove the bladder entirely.

The centre was launched alongside a social media campaign warning of the serious health risks caused by regular use of ketamine, including “severe abdominal pain” and “serious bladder damage”.

‘Stop using it’

Justine Royle, a consultant urologist, explained that the new clinic is “pulling together all our knowledge and expertise to help address this increasing problem”.

She called the effects of ketamine “hugely damaging” and “life-changing”, advising: “The best thing you can do to help yourself if you have been using ketamine is stop using.”

‘At death’s door’

A specialist ketamine clinic in Liverpool reported a dramatic rise in the number of referrals from GPs and A&E in recent years.

Urology Consultant Emma Fishleigh at Aintree University Hospital reported that the use of the Class B drug is “skyrocketing” in the region, leaving many chronic users with excruciating pain and irreversible organ damage.

Megan, a recovering user and patient at the clinic, explained that the side-effects of the drug left her terrified yet unable to quit. It left her, mum Angela recalled, “at death’s door”.

Social Worker James Mawhinney, who works with users across the City, added: “There’s a lot of suicidal ideation. They find it really difficult to leave the house sometimes because of the bladder problems they’re experiencing.”