The United States has classified a veterinary tranquilizer as an “emerging threat” when mixed with the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl in an effort to stop the spread of xylazine.
Rahul Gupta, director of the office of national drug control policy, noted that xylazine has become increasingly common in all regions of the United States, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
This drug was detected in about 800 drug-related deaths in the US in 2020, mostly in the Northeast.
In 2021, it was present in more than 3,000 deaths, the majority in the South, according to a report released last year by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“We cannot ignore what we are seeing. We must act and act now,” Gupta stressed.
Xylazine was approved for veterinary use in 1971. Sometimes known as “tranq,” it has turned up in recent years in large quantities of illicit drugs used by humans.
It is believed that it is added to other drugs to increase profits. Authorities are trying to understand how much is diverted from veterinary uses and how much is made illegally.
The drug slows breathing and heart rate, sometimes to deadly levels, and causes abscesses and ulcers on the skin that may require amputation. Hangovers are also painful.
Although it is often used in conjunction with opioids, including fentanyl and related illicit drugs manufactured in a laboratory, this medication is not an opioid and there are no known antidotes.
Gupta pointed out that his office is requesting 11 million dollars (about 10 million euros) as part of its budget to develop a strategy to combat the spread of the drug.
Plans include developing an antidote, learning more about how the drug gets into the illicit drug supply so it can be stopped, and investigating whether Congress should classify it as a controlled substance.
Gupta stressed that this drug must be made available for veterinary use, despite the crackdown on human use.
He also warned that it is necessary to improve detection systems for the drug and data on where it is being used.
This drug is part of an overdose crisis plaguing the United States.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that more than 107,000 people have died from overdose between November 2021 and November 2022.
Before 2020, the number of deaths from overdose it had never exceeded a hundred thousand.
Most of the deaths are associated with fentanyl and other synthetic opioids.
Like xylazine, these are often added to other drugs and users don’t always know they are taking them.
Source: TSF
