PainRelief.com Interview with:
[caption id="attachment_70727" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Durbhakula[/caption]
Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology,
Division of Pain Medicine
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Medical Director, Comprehensive Pain Service
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
PainRelief.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Our study highlights the rapid rise of nitazenes—extremely potent and dangerous synthetic opioids—silently driving the current overdose crisis. Developed in the 1950s by a pharmaceutical company and never approved for clinical use, nitazenes are up to 20 times more potent than fentanyl and are undetectable with standard drug tests available in emergency rooms.
These opioids are often mixed into counterfeit pills or other street drugs, posing an unseen threat. Furthermore, nitazenes interact with opioid receptors in a unique way, increasing overdose risk, heightening respiratory depression, and accelerating tolerance development, which makes them even more dangerous for users.
Dr. Durbhakula[/caption]
Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology,
Division of Pain Medicine
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Medical Director, Comprehensive Pain Service
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
PainRelief.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Our study highlights the rapid rise of nitazenes—extremely potent and dangerous synthetic opioids—silently driving the current overdose crisis. Developed in the 1950s by a pharmaceutical company and never approved for clinical use, nitazenes are up to 20 times more potent than fentanyl and are undetectable with standard drug tests available in emergency rooms.
These opioids are often mixed into counterfeit pills or other street drugs, posing an unseen threat. Furthermore, nitazenes interact with opioid receptors in a unique way, increasing overdose risk, heightening respiratory depression, and accelerating tolerance development, which makes them even more dangerous for users.