Contributor: Don Stader, MD

Educational Pearls:

• Xylazine, referred to as tranq dope colloquially, is an FDA approved animal tranquilizer that is circulating in the illicit drug markets of the northeastern United states
• It is a powerful alpha-2 agonist, similar to clonidine, and patients with xylazine overdose may present similarly to opioid overdose
• Naloxone will not reverse the effects of xylazine and management is supportive care
• Withdrawal symptoms from xylazine use can be treated with clonidine

References

https://www.acep.org/tacticalem/newsroom/oct-2021/xylazine-an-emerging-adulterant/

Nunez J, DeJoseph ME, Gill JR. Xylazine, a Veterinary Tranquilizer, Detected in 42 Accidental Fentanyl Intoxication Deaths. Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 2021 Mar 1;42(1):9-11. doi: 10.1097/PAF.0000000000000622. PMID: 33031124.

Summarized by John Spartz, MS4 | Edited by Erik Verzemnieks, MD

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