These NPS drugs are generally classified as Schedule I controlled substances with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse and addiction. As alpha-PVP is a stimulant, a state of hyper-stimulation, hallucinations and paranoia that could result in self-injury and violent aggression are possible. This drug has the combined effects of methamphetamine and cocaine without the price tag. Cocaine and methamphetamine have similar modes of action in the brain, but the chemicals in flakka have longer-lasting effects, Hall said. In some of the documented delusions, individuals’ experiences are of a typical paranoia, where the drug users feel they are being chased by a large group of people trying to kill them.
There are news stories indicating the irrational behavior of people high on Flakka. In combinations with other drugs, A-PVP has been linked to overdoses and suicides. It was reported that the drug in combination with pentedrone, caused heart failure that led to death. Agitated patients can go into a state called “excited delirium,” which is a medical emergency. In the excited delirium state, restrained patients struggle to free themselves, scream, flail, and can even have seizures.
Treatment Options for Flakka Addiction
This struggle causes a high core body temperature called hyperthermia. The combination of a high body temperature and extreme muscle overactivity can cause other metabolic problems to happen in the body. Muscle tissue begins to break down, releasing proteins and other cellular products into the bloodstream, in a process called rhabdomyolysis. The result of the cellular products and proteins released during rhabdomyolysis and dehydration can impair the filtering function of the kidneys, leading to renal failure and death.
Flakka or A-PVP is a synthetic cathinone, a category under which the natural, mild, stimulant khat belong. Chemical-wise, this chemical is a more powerful, next generation bath salts. However, since Flakka mimics methamphetamine and cocaine, its long term effects may rival the two mentioned illicit drugs. The United States Code (USC) Controlled Substance Act is the system followed and implemented by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
In the worst cases, Flakka use can cause kidney failure, heart attacks, and a dangerous spike in body temperature. Flakka, which is also called gravel in some parts of the country, is the street name for a chemical called alpha-PVP, or alpha-pyrrolidinovalerophenone. The chemical is a synthetic cathinone, a category that includes the mild natural stimulant khat, which people in Somalia and the Middle East have chewed for centuries. Chemically, Flakka is a next-generation, more powerful version of bath salts.
Psychosis
However, there are now quantitative testing for primary chemicals such as A-PVP, MDPV, DMAA, Methylone, Mephedrone and Pentedrone. These urine drug tests are called a bath salt drug test kit or Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) urine drug test. But like “bath salts,” a group of related synthetic drugs that were banned in 2012, flakka has the potential to be much more dangerous than cocaine. High doses deliver a similar high to cocaine or methamphetamine, which can cause paranoid delusions and involuntary muscle jerks. In small doses, Flakka can give users an immediate sense of euphoria, boost confidence, lessen inhibitions and increase libido.
How can Delamere help with Flakka addiction?
The FSU fraternity brother grunted like an animal as police tried to subdue him during the Monday night attack, officials said. Flakka only arrived on the drug market in the mid-2000s and has since become a significant threat to public health in many areas of Florida, and Broward County in particular. According to Forbes contributor Robert Glatter, the US Drug Enforcement Administration has seen a nearly 780% increase in the number of reported cases in the last three years.
It is an ongoing challenge, as each time one type of bath salt is made illegal, the drug labs change the chemical structure slightly and a new drug that is technically not illegal is created. In the case of flakka, the new chemical is called alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone or alpha-PVP. Drug users take flakka to get a feeling of euphoria, a heightened sense of awareness, stimulation, and energy. It is also known as “gravel” due to its white, crystal-like appearance. Flakka is a highly potent drug that can be snorted, injected, eaten, smoked, or vaporized in e-cigarettes. When heated up, it gives off a foul-smelling smoke characterized as smelling like dirty socks.
Is Flakka addictive?
There are five schedules of controlled substances labeled from 1-V, with the classification based on the pertaining drug’s medical applications, safety, and abuse potential. Law enforcement and community activists were instrumental in limiting the damage done by the drug’s dangerous effects. Most reports of flakka after 2016 turned out to be other similar chemicals in the bath salt family. Flakka is a dangerous drug, and seeking help is crucial if you suspect someone is using it. If you or someone you know needs assistance, consider reaching out to a professional or a helpline.
Although a typical flakka high can last one to several hours, it is possible that the neurological effects can be permanent. Not only does the drug sit on neurons, it could also destroy them, Hall said. And because flakka, like bath salts, hang around in the brain for longer than cocaine, the extent of the destruction could be greater. This caused people most at risk, poor desperate drug addicts and homeless people, to use it instead of more expensive drugs like cocaine or methamphetamines. Flakka was added to the Schedule I list in 2014 by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Is Weed a Depressant, Stimulant, or Hallucinogen?
Because Flakka is a synthetic, lab-made drug, its effects are unpredictable. On one side of the spectrum, use of the drug can lead to euphoria, dancing, and spastic movements. On the other end, users will experience delusions, hallucinations, seizures, muscle cramps and spasms.
Short-Term Flakka Effects
- Unfortunately, Flakka abuse and addiction are difficult to treat because the lingering effects can take an uncertain period of time to recover from, if at all.
- “Even a mild overdose can cause heart-related problems, or agitation, or severe aggression and psychosis.”
- Substituted cathinones are derivatives of the naturally occurring substance cathinone, which is one of the psychoactive principles in khat (Catha edullis).
- Known as the poor man’s cocaine, Flakka is both cheap and accessible, further increasing the potential for abuse, especially among young people.
- Considered a new psychoactive substance (NPS), Flakka is part of a collection of black-market, lab-made drugs imported to the United States from China.
Like bath salts, the substance is packaged in plastic bags or vials and labeled “not for human consumption” or “plant food.” You can buy it online or off the street. Flakka has the tendency to increase a user’s body temperature to 104 degrees Celsius or higher. Spiked temperature can lead to kidney damage or failure which could ultimately lead to death. Flakka also elevates blood pressure which could lead to stroke, heart attack or heart failure, and aneurysm.
It is strongly recommended that one use harm reduction practices when using this substance. The toxicity and long-term health effects of recreational α-PVP use do not appear to have been studied in any scientific context and the exact toxic dosage is unknown. Because of this affordability, the drug is appealing to economically vulnerable groups, flakka drug wikipedia contributing to pockets of higher usage despite overall modest national prevalence. While flakka may not be as widespread as opioids or methamphetamine, it has made substantial inroads in specific regions, particularly in pockets of the Southeastern United States. Because flakka’s potency can spark life-threatening complications (high fever, heart issues), using this drug can lead to emergency room overcrowding. BetterHelp can connect you to an addiction and mental health counselor.
These additives rarely affect the psychoactive strength of the drug but can further complicate health risks. Flakka is a synthetic substance that has earned sensational nicknames like the “zombie drug.” However, there’s a lot more to it regarding its chemistry, effects, and impact on the community. A man in South Florida who broke down the hurricane-proof doors of a police department admitted to being on flakka. A girl in Melbourne, Florida, ran through the street screaming that she was Satan while on a flakka trip.
Like bath salts, flakka simulates the effects of cocaine and methamphetamine without the price tag. That’s why the designer drug has become so popular among college-age adults – since it’s 10 times more powerful than coke. A standard urine drug test kit does not detect synthetic cathinones found in alpha- pyrrolidinopentiophenone and in other bath salts.
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