Recreational drug

PURPOSE: Basic science data indicate potential neuroprotective effects of cannabinoids in traumatic brain injury (TBI). We aimed to evaluate the effects of pre-TBI recreational cannabis use on TBI outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We used i2b2 (a scalable informatics framework; www.i2b2.org) to identify all patients presenting with acute TBI between 1/1/2014 and 12/31/2016, then conducted a double-abstraction medical chart review to compile basic demographic, urine drug screen (UDS), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), and available outcomes data (mortality, modified Rankin Scale (mRS), duration of stay, disposition (home, skilled nursing facility, inpatient rehabilitation, other)) at discharge and at specific time points thereafter...

There remains a paucity of evidence on the early predictors of long-term Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) outcomes post-burn in hospitalised adults. The overall aim of this study was to identify the factors (personal, environmental, burn injury and burn treatment factors) that may predict long-term HRQoL outcomes among adult survivors of hospitalised burn injuries at 12 months post-burn. A total of 274 participants, aged 18 years or over, admitted to a single state-wide burn centre with a burn injury were recruited...

OBJECTIVES: Smartphones have become everyday objects on which the accumulation of fingerprints is significant. In addition, a large proportion of the population regularly uses a smartphone, especially younger people. The objective of this study was to evaluate smartphones as a new matrix for toxico-epidemiology. METHODS: This study was conducted during two separate events (techno and trance) at an electronic music nightclub in Grenoble, France. Data on reported drug use and whether drugs were snorted directly from the surface of the smartphone were collected using an anonymous questionnaire completed voluntarily by drug users...

BACKGROUND: Serum level of microRNA-122 (miR-122) has been reported as a sensitive diagnostic biomarker for detecting liver injury, comparable to the aminotransferases. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities are increased in other conditions, such as acute skeletal muscle injury (ASMI). We determined whether miR-122 is nonspecifically increased in patients suffering from ASMI. METHODS: We measured ALT, AST, creatine kinase (CK), and miR-122 in 3 groups: healthy controls (n = 24), patients with ASMI (total n = 29, 11 with recreational drug use and 18 without recreational drug use), and patients with acute liver injury (ALI; n = 14)...

1-Acetyl-N,N-diethyllysergamide (1A-LSD, ALD-52) was first synthesized in the 1950s and found to produce psychedelic effects similar to those of LSD. Evidence suggests that ALD-52 serves as a prodrug in vivo and hydrolysis to LSD is likely responsible for its activity. Extension of the N1 -alkylcarbonyl chain gives rise to novel lysergamides, which spurred further investigations into their structure-activity relationships. At the same time, ALD-52 and numerous homologues have emerged as recreational drugs ("research chemicals") that are available from online vendors...

Motor disturbances predominantly characterize hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). Among its intervention methods, Environmental Enrichment (EE) is strictly considered a form of sensory intervention. However, limited research employs EE as a single sensory input intervention to validate outcomes post-intervention. A Sprague-Dawley rat model subjected to left common carotid artery ligation and exposure to oxygen-hypoxic conditions use in this study. EE was achieved by enhancing the recreational and stress-relief items within the cage, increasing the duration of sunlight, colorful items exposure, and introducing background music...

Post vaccine immunity following COVID-19 mRNA vaccination may be driven by extrinsic, or controllable and intrinsic, or inherent health factors. Thus, we investigated the effects of extrinsic and intrinsic on the peak antibody response following COVID-19 primary vaccination and on the trajectory of peak antibody magnitude and durability over time. Participants in a longitudinal cohort attended visits every 3 months for up to 2 years following enrollment. At baseline, participants provided information on their demographics, recreational behaviors, and comorbid health conditions which guided our model selection process...

BACKGROUND: In recent years, stimulant use has increased among persons who use opioids in the rural U.S., leading to high rates of overdose and death. We sought to understand motivations and contexts for stimulant use among persons who use opioids in a large, geographically diverse sample of persons who use drugs (PWUD) in the rural settings. METHODS: We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with PWUD at 8 U.S. sites spanning 10 states and 65 counties...

BACKGROUND: Recreational cannabis laws (RCL) in the United States (US) can have important implications for people who are non-citizens, including those with and without formal documentation, and those who are refugees or seeking asylum. For these groups, committing a cannabis-related infraction, even a misdemeanor, can constitute grounds for status ineligibility, including arrest and deportation under federal immigration policy-regardless of state law. Despite interconnections between immigration and drug policy, the potential impacts of increasing state cannabis legalization on immigration enforcement are unexplored...

Recreational use of synthetic cannabinoid agonists (i.e., "Spice" compounds) that target the Cannabinoid Type 1 receptor (CB 1 ) can cause respiratory depression in humans. However, Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the major psychoactive phytocannabinoid in cannabis, is not traditionally thought to interact with CNS control of respiration, based largely upon sparse labeling of CB1 receptors in the medulla and few reports of clinically significant respiratory depression following cannabis overdose. The respiratory effects of CB 1 agonists have rarely been studied in vivo , suggesting that additional inquiry is required to reconcile the conflict between conventional wisdom and human data...

BACKGROUND: Methamphetamine is a commonly used illicit substance. The route of administration is usually parenteral, oral ingestion, or snorting. A less common route of administration is placing in the rectum. CASE REPORT: A 28-year-old man presented to the emergency department with acute methamphetamine toxicity within 30 min after intentional rectal administration of methamphetamine for recreational purposes. The patient had hypertension, tachycardia, drug-induced psychosis, elevated creatine kinase, and required rapid sequence intubation and admission to the intensive care unit...

BACKGROUND: Following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, derived psychoactive cannabis products containing delta 8 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) have become increasingly popular across the US, particularly in states that lack medical or recreational cannabis programs. Despite this, little is known about patterns of delta 8 THC use. METHODS: A sample of Nebraska residents (a state without legal medical or recreational cannabis) were surveyed to gather data on substance use, including delta 8 THC and cannabis, across the state...

Monitoring cannabis consumption holds great interest due to the increasing trend towards its legalization for both medicinal and recreational purposes, despite the potential risks and harms involved. Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) offers a valuable tool for assessing shifts and patterns in drug consumption and to evaluate law enforcement strategies and harm reduction programs. However, WBS-derived cannabis use estimates have been linked to greater uncertainties compared to other drugs, in part due to the many different routes of administration and a substantial excretion of metabolites in faecal matter...

Novel psychoactive substances (NPSs) are new psychotropic drugs designed to evade substance regulatory policies. 25E-NBOMe (2-(4-ethyl-2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-N-(2-methoxybenzyl)ethanamine) has recently been identified as an NPS, and its recreational misuse has been reported to be rapidly increasing. However, the psychopharmacological effects and mechanisms of 25E-NBOMe have not been studied. We examined the abuse potential of 25E-NBOMe using the conditioned place preference in male mice and self-administration paradigms in male rats...

First developed in the 1960s in Europe and approved briefly for use in the United States, fenethylline (sold as Captagon, one of its early trade names) is now a prominent drug of abuse in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. The drug was withdrawn from the United States market because of side effects that included hallucinations, visual distortions, and psychosis; it has also been linked to rare cases of myocardial infarction, seizures, and delusions. The chemical synthesis of fenethylline is straightforward and inexpensive...

Methemoglobinemia is a potentially life-threatening condition caused by the formation of methemoglobin, a form of hemoglobin that cannot bind oxygen. While there are some rare congenital causes of methemoglobinemia, most cases are acquired from the effects of specific drugs or environmental exposures. In this retrospective study, we analyzed a large data set of whole blood samples analyzed for methemoglobin at an academic medical center in Midwestern United States that provides both pediatric and adult services...

Cannabis sativa is one of the oldest plants utilized by humans for both economic and medical purposes. Although the use of cannabis started millennia ago in the Eastern hemisphere, its use has moved and flourished in the Western nations in more recent centuries. C. sativa is the source of psychoactive cannabinoids that are consumed as recreational drugs worldwide. The C21 aromatic hydrocarbons are restricted in their natural occurrence to cannabis (with a few exceptions). Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9 -THC) is the main psychoactive component in cannabis, with many pharmacological effects and various approved medical applications...

Ketamine is one of the most commonly abused drugs globally, posing a severe risk to social stability and human health, not only it is being used for recreational purposes, but this tasteless, odourless, and colourless drug also facilitates sexual assaults when it is mixed with drinks. Ketamine abuse is a threat for safety, and this misuse is one of the main uses of the drug. The crucial role of ketamine detection is evident in its contributions to forensic investigations, law enforcement, drug control, workplace integrity, and public health...

Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) infection is a common, preventable, sexually transmitted disease with oncogenic potential and increasing incidence. This study aimed to gain an understanding of the knowledge and awareness of HPV, the HPV vaccine, and HPV-related cancers, and to evaluate the relationship between participant factors and HPV knowledge, vaccination uptake, and high-risk HPV (16/18) infection, among Indigenous Australians. Data from the 12-month follow-up of a longitudinal cohort study were utilized, involving 763 Indigenous Australian adults in South Australia...

Introduction: Synthetic cathinones are a group of novel psychoactive substances used as an alternative to classical recreational drugs. As a result of legal prohibitions on older generations of these compounds, new formulations appeared on the drug market. One of them is metaphedrone (3-methylmethcathinone, 3-MMC), a structural isomer of 4-methylmethcathinone and a psychostimulant drug. Metaphedrone became popular in a large number of countries in a short period of time. The aim: The collection, analysis, and review of relevant research on the subject of metaphedrone in order to present information about the pharmacological, clinical, and toxicological profile of this compound...