Another Veterinary Tranquilizer Makes An Appearance In Pennsylvania’s Drug Supply

Yes, fentanyl causes more fatal overdoses than any other drug, and it is plenty scary, but by some measures, it is not the worst drug out there.  Some other synthetic opioids, especially those that have the word “nitazene” as a component of their names, are even stronger than fentanyl.  Naloxone is a game changer, though; it can reverse the effects of opioid overdose quickly, even if the patient took potent opioids like fentanyl or worse.  Naloxone only works if the cause of drug-induced respiratory depression is an opioid, though.  There are other central nervous system depressants out there in the illegal drug supply, and while they are not as sought-after as fentanyl and other opioids, they are becoming more prevalent, especially in Pennsylvania.  Veterinary tranquilizers are turning up with increasing frequency in crime lab analyses of drug mixtures confiscated off the street.  If you are being accused of possession of a veterinary tranquilizer such as medetomidine, contact a Pittsburgh drug crime lawyer.

Who’s Afraid of Medetomidine?

You have probably heard the fuss about xylazine, a veterinary tranquilizer used to anesthetize animals that range in size from mice to elephants.  Xylazine has made its presence known in the human drug supply in the past few years.  More recently, law enforcement has noticed an increasing prevalence of another veterinary drug, known as medetomidine.  In a veterinary setting, medetomidine is given to dogs and cats either for pain relief or for anesthesia, depending on the dose.  Medetomidine is a relatively new drug; it was first synthesized in 2007.

In the News

Medetomidine is the newest scary, mysterious substance in the illegal drug supply in Pennsylvania.  Crime labs first detected it in drug samples in 2022, and since then, it has only become more common.  Medical personnel who have treated patients who overdosed on medetomidine have noted that the patients tend to have heart rates as low as 20 beats per minute; a normal resting heart rate is around 60 beats per minute.  As with xylazine, people who buy drug mixtures containing medetomidine usually do not know it.  It is possible for consumers to buy test strips to detect fentanyl in drug powders, but no consumer-level tests are available for tranquilizers like medetomidine.

The good news is that it is possible to reverse the effects of medetomidine if someone who has overdosed receives prompt medical attention.  Antisedan and yohimbine are both effective against medetomidine overdose; both are used in veterinary medicine to awaken animals that have been anesthetized.

It is unclear how medetomidine has entered the illegal drug supply in the United States.  In some of the samples tested, it may have formed accidentally from a combination of precursor chemicals.

Contact Gary E. Gerson About Criminal Defense Cases

A criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for possession of a drug mixture that contains medetomidine.  Contact the law offices of Gary E. Gerson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania about your case.

Source:

npr.org/2024/05/31/nx-s1-4974959/medetomidine-overdose-fentanyl-sedative