Spice, K2, Other Synthetic Cannabinoids Can Cause Death
A report from the American College of Emergency Physicians provides evidence to support claims that Spice, K2 and other synthetic cannabinoids are bad for the health – and that they may prove to be fatal.
The results of a research, published online on May 8 in Annals of Emergency Medicine, indicated that based on information from the National Poison Data System, there were 1,898 reports of poisonings after inhalation of synthetic cannabinoids during a nine-month period in 2010.
Lead study author Dr. Christopher Hoyte of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center in Denver shared the following insights: “Users reported racing thoughts, palpitations, anxiety, paranoia and psychosis… Although the drug is legal, it obviously has potential to cause harm, and one patient in our group actually died.”
The poison control centers also reported such effects as agitation, vomiting, confusion, and hallucinations.
The most common reported effect of synthetic cannabinoid use was irregular heartbeat, with a 58-year-old man succumbing to cardiac arrest. In addition, 52 patients were reported to have experienced seizures, which included two cases of status epilepticus.
Managing synthetic drug abuse has proved to be a challenge, due to the number of varieties of synthetic marijuana that are available, as well as the number of chemicals in its ingredient list. Manufacturers also continuously make changes to their formula in order to sidestep the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which has issued a temporary ban on the five main chemicals used in the manufacture of synthetic marijuana.
Tags: dangers of synthetic cannabinoids, dangers of synthetic marijuana, synthetic cannabinoids
