Drug interactions
Ketamine + Meperidine
Severity: Moderate
Ketamine and Meperidine: moderate interaction.
Last updated
For healthcare professionals — reference only. This page is a brief summary, not medical advice and not a substitute for official labeling or clinical judgement. Always verify before prescribing or dispensing.
Summary
Ketamine and meperidine together can deepen sedation and depress respiration and blood pressure. This is commonly seen in procedural sedation, where combined use needs careful dosing.
What this interaction means in plain words
Ketamine and Meperidine can affect each other. The combination is often manageable, but it may need a change of dose, a change of timing, or extra checks while both are taken.
Ketamine belongs to Central Nervous System; Meperidine belongs to Musculoskeletal.
Why it happens
Additive CNS and respiratory depression via NMDA antagonism and opioid receptor agonism.
What to do
Titrate each drug slowly with continuous monitoring of oxygen saturation, respiration and blood pressure; have airway support available.
What to ask your pharmacist
- Should I take them at different times of day?
- Does the dose of either medicine need to change?
- Is there anything I should avoid, such as alcohol or certain foods, while on both?
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Other interactions of Meperidine
- Alvimopan + Meperidine Contraindicated
- Isocarboxazid + Meperidine Contraindicated
- Meperidine + Methylene blue Contraindicated
- Meperidine + Olanzapine / samidorphan Contraindicated
- Meperidine + Phenelzine Contraindicated
- Meperidine + Procarbazine Contraindicated
Other interactions of Ketamine
Frequently asked questions
Can I take Ketamine with Meperidine?
MediHelp rates the interaction as moderate. Ketamine and Meperidine can affect each other. The combination is often manageable, but it may need a change of dose, a change of timing, or extra checks while both are taken. Ketamine and meperidine together can deepen sedation and depress respiration and blood pressure. This is commonly seen in procedural sedation, where combined use needs careful dosing.
How serious is the interaction between Ketamine and Meperidine?
MediHelp rates it moderate, on a four-level scale (minor, moderate, major, contraindicated) based on published labels and references. What to do, in brief: Titrate each drug slowly with continuous monitoring of oxygen saturation, respiration and blood pressure; have airway support available.
What other medicines interact with Meperidine?
MediHelp also lists interactions of Meperidine with, for example, Alvimopan, Isocarboxazid, Methylene blue. The full list is on the Meperidine page.
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