ABSTRACT
From 2019, in the United States and Europe, the synthetic opioid market has diversified with the appearance of the 2-benzylbenzimidazole family, commonly named "nitazenes". In vitro studies show that these synthetic opioids have much higher affinities on µ-opioid receptors: 100 times more than morphine, and slightly higher than fentanyl for isotonitazene, increasing the risk of overdose. In south of France, isotonitazene (IZN) was identified for the first time in March 2023. In this context, there were 9 reports concerning the use of IZN in the south of France over a short period (March-April 2023), with identification of IZN in 4 cases and suspicion in others. They concerned 6 men and 3 women, with a mean age of 44.9±2 years. When available (2 cases), the product had been purchased from a dealer. IZN was identified on sample in 2 cases of overdose. Isotonitazene was also identified in biological samples in 2 cases: 1 case of overdose and coma requiring hospitalization with a favorable outcome (urinary analysis), and a death with post-mortem identification. This was the first identification of this product in France. The immediate broadcast of the alert limited the risks for users and made it possible to quickly inform regional and national health authorities. IZN is under intensive surveillance by the EMCDDA and classified as a narcotic in France since 2021. The analysis of the literature made it possible to identify cases of overdoses requiring very high doses of naloxone and deaths. The emergence of these synthetic opioids constitutes an important signal, due to their superior effects to heroin, their incomplete response to naloxone and the current difficulty in identifying them (devices for analyzing products in the reduction of risks, toxicology laboratories).
ABSTRACT
Mayotte Island, a French department located in the Mozambique Channel, has for several years been faced with the consumption of "La Chimique" (LC), reputed (but extremely poorly documented) to be a mixture of tobacco and synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs). One of the objectives of the CHASSE-MAREE protocol is to assess the composition and heterogeneity of LC products through successive LC sample collection campaigns among users. Currently underway, we present here the first analytical results (samples collected in 2022). Between September and December 2022, 80 samples were collected throughout the island over three periods: 70 in the usual form of LC (small folded papers containing a plant-like sample, mostly tobacco), 6 powders, and 4 cigarettes. Analysis was performed using liquid chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry. The detected substances (number of detections) included SCRAs (MDMB-4en-PINACA [35], ADB-FUBIATA [25], MDMB-INACA [16], ADB-BUTINACA [15], AFUBIATA [11], 4F-MDMD-BICA [7], CH-PIATA [14], 5C-APINACA [3], BZO-HEXOXIZID [2], and 4F-ABINACA [1]), nicotine (68), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabinol (CBN), and cannabidiol (CBD) (2), medications (amantadine [11], cyamemazine [6], and acetaminophen [3]), and a designer benzodiazepine (bromazolam [4]). The SCRAs currently in use are varied, and the market for "cooks" (those who prepare LC) is dispersed according to where and when samples are collected. These preliminary results will be supplemented by analysis of samples collected in the first half of 2023 and by an improved description of the current panorama of consumption of LC in Mayotte (mapping, effects felt and dependence, etc.).
