A substance, crowding emergency rooms in some states, is appearing in North Carolina\u2019s street drug supply, according to scientists at the University of North Carolina\u2019s Street Drug Analysis Lab.<\/p>\n
The substance, called medetomidine, has become a growing concern for public health officials and addiction experts who warn that its withdrawal symptoms can be life-threatening. <\/p>\n
Street drug scientists say medetomidine has already overwhelmed emergency rooms in cities like Chicago, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and while North Carolina has not reached that point, they are watching it closely. <\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA survivor’s warning: Woman says she nearly lost her hand to drug addiction\u00a0<\/p>\n
The issue is deeply personal for people like Alexis West, whose struggles with addiction left lasting physical reminders.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’ve gone through a lot in my life,\u201d West said. There are good parts, of course, but it’s just been a lot of bad. And I used the drugs to numb everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
West said nearly losing her hand became the turning point that pushed her toward recovery through Edgecombe County\u2019s Emergency Paramedic Program. The experience also introduced her to street drug testing programs that revealed what was actually in the substances she was using.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think you’re doing one thing, and really, you’re doing another,\u201d West said.<\/p>\n
Edgecombe County sends drug samples to UNC\u2019s Street Drug Analysis Lab, where scientists test substances circulating in local communities and return the results to health officials and outreach programs.<\/p>\n
West said the fentanyl she believed she was taking was often mixed with several other substances.<\/p>\n
\u201cHalf of the names you can’t even pronounce. It’s not good that you’re putting drugs in your body. But then again, it’s scary, because it’s like these things; you don’t even know what they are,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat is medetomidine?<\/p>\n
Among the substances identified by the lab is medetomidine, which scientists say first appeared in North Carolina\u2019s drug supply in 2022. One sample collected in Tarboro in April showed the substance mixed with multiple drugs in what researchers described as a \u201cmessy brew.\u201d<\/p>\n