Doctors and drug experts are warning young people not to binge on ketamine over the festive period as alarming national figures reveal a sharp rise in use - with hospital consultants now treating children as young as 12 for serious, sometimes irreversible damage.
New data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales shows illegal drug use remains widespread, with nearly three million adults admitting taking an illicit substance in the past year.
According to the survey, 8.7 per cent of people aged 16 to 59 used an illegal drug in the last 12 months, with around 1.1 million reporting use of a Class A drug.
Ketamine, once viewed by some as a “party drug”, is emerging as one of the fastest-growing threats - particularly among younger age groups.
Analysis of the survey shows reported lifetime ketamine use among 16- to 59-year-olds has risen sharply since the Covid pandemic, climbing from 1,010 respondents in 2019/20 to 1,369 last year. That represents a rise of around 25 per cent since before lockdowns, and an increase of eight per cent in just one year.
Among 16- to 24-year-olds, ketamine use has risen from 5.6 per cent in 2019/20 to 6.5 per cent in 2024/25 - reinforcing fears that the drug is becoming increasingly normalised among teenagers and young adults.
Hospital doctors say the consequences are now being seen across the NHS.
Consultant urologist Alison Downey, who treats patients with severe bladder problems in Yorkshire, says there has been a “sharp rise” in young people arriving at accident and emergency departments after taking ketamine.
Doctors have warned against drug use
| GETTYShe said in a previous interview: “The majority of patients we see are in their late teens or early 20s, but all of them have told me that they've started using a lot earlier, often in school.”
Miss Downey added: “And, while I manage patients over the age of 16, I am aware of colleagues treating patients as young as 12 or 13.
“It is shocking. And it's very frightening, both from the point of view of a urologist that's going to manage these patients later in life and also as a parent myself.”
Ketamine is a powerful anaesthetic with legitimate medical uses, but illicit use carries serious risks.
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Doctors have warned against recreational drug use over the festive period
| GETTYDoctors warn it can increase heart rate and blood pressure, cause confusion and detachment from reality, damage memory, worsen mental health problems and - in extreme cases - prove fatal, particularly when mixed with other drugs.
In one high profile case medical examiners blamed the death of American/Canadian actor Matthew Perry on the “acute effects of ketamine” after he was found dead in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home in October 2023.
One of the most devastating effects is on the bladder. Regular use can cause severe inflammation, intense pain and incontinence, sometimes progressing to kidney damage. In the worst cases, patients are forced to undergo major surgery - including bladder removal.
Drug experts say the surge in ketamine use cannot be separated from the Covid years, when isolation, anxiety and disrupted education hit young people particularly hard.
Harry Shapiro, Director of the support group DrugWise, said: “Ketamine use has been on the rise for some years - it is a drug that detaches people from reality and I'm not surprised its surged during Covid lockdowns - especially among students who found themselves shut away after thinking they expecting to go to university and have a good experience.”
He warned: “Ketamine is also a depressant. It is highly addictive and has physical problems which lead to thickening of the bladder and incontinence as well as psychological problems. It is bad news for chronic users and can depress the central nervous system to the extent that it is deadly.”
The Crime Survey suggests ketamine use is particularly common among young, urban populations living in privately rented accommodation - groups often targeted by nightlife and party culture in the run-up to Christmas.
Treatment providers say they are already seeing the seasonal impact. The UKAT Group, which runs nine drug rehabilitation centres across the UK, says it has admitted more people for ketamine addiction this year than ever before, with the majority under the age of 30.
Zaheen Ahmed, Director of Therapy at The UKAT Group, said: “Right now, UKAT’s treatment centres have ketamine clients - some as young as 18 - who’ll be spending their Christmas in rehab instead of with their family.”
“Unfortunately, we believe that this drug will be binged on over Christmas by party-goers, but what they won’t think about is the long-term damage their usage can cause and that this binge could lead to addiction.”
In October, the Government launched a public health campaign warning young people about the dangers of ketamine. Health minister Ashley Dalton said: “Young people don’t always realise the decision to take drugs such as ketamine can have profound effects. It can destroy your bladder and even end your life.”