AUDIO TRANSCRIPT
Katarina Pawlak: At the Upstate New York Poison Center, medical researchers are preparing the next generation of toxicology professionals. At the same time, a new wave of dangerously laced illicit drugs is circling the nation. Cychlorphine is an opioid ten times more potent than fentanyl. It’s contributed to at least 55 deaths in the last year, according to the White House. But Upstate Medical Toxicologist Michael Keenan says what’s most worrying is that it doesn’t always show up in routine drug screening.
Michael Keenan: “It just makes it a little bit trickier from like, a surveillance perspective because you don’t have easy testing right now for them. You kind of do special sendout testing. But the actual management of the individual patients and the actual treatment of the patients is still the same,” said Upstate Poison Center Toxicologist Michael Keenan.
Pawlak: While Keenan emphasizes that there are currently no known cases of cychlorphine in the upstate area, organizations on college campuses are still preparing for the worst case scenario. Syracuse University junior James Penneger and member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity says his chapter is just trying to keep everyone safe.
James Penneger: “I know our sober monitors are, like, buying extra narcan now. They didn’t carry that much before but we always had some in the house. Our sober monitors are actually carrying it,” said Penneger.
Pawlak: Keenan says that any illicit drug is at risk for being laced, so a novel opioid is only a reminder to stay vigilant and educated on what to do in case of an overdose.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — A recent wave of dangerously laced illicit drugs is circling the nation, impacting college campuses across the country. Cychlorphine is an opioid 10 times more potent than fentanyl and has contributed to more than 55 deaths in the last year, according to data from the White House.
Upstate New York Poison Center toxicologist Michael Keenan said that cychlorphine poses a severe threat because of its difficulty to be tested.
Keenan said that cychlorphine does not show up on fentanyl test strips and can be laced into illicit drugs such as cocaine, heroin and less commonly in marijuana.
“It just makes it a little bit easier from a surveillance perspective because you don’t have easy testing right now for them, you kind of do special sendout testing,” Keenan said.
Keenan emphasized that the actual management of patients and their treatment remains the same. Treatment includes naloxone, colloquially known as Narcan, a medicine that rapidly reverses opioid overdose and is often administered as a nasal spray.
There are no currently known cases of cychlorphine in upstate New York, but college campuses across the region are still prepared for the worst-case scenario.
“I know our sober monitors are buying extra Narcan now,” Syracuse University junior and member of its Delta Upsilon fraternity James Penneger said. “They didn’t carry that much before, but we always had some in the house. Our sober monitors are actually carrying it.”
Keenan said the rise of cychlorphine concerns is something medical professionals have dealt with before. A novel opioid, he said, is only a reminder to stay vigilant and avoid illicit drugs.
The Syracuse Police Department spokesperson said they are working with public safety and health department officials and emphasized calling 911 in case of any emergency.