Experiences with mephedrone pre- and post-legislative controls: Perceptions of safety and sources of supply

McElrath, Karen; O’Neill, Christina

doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2010.11.001

Cited by 119 publications

(103 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…This differs from the European experience where mephedrone was most commonly detected in these substances [1,9,16]. This difference has an unknown clinical significance, as reports of β-keto phenylalkylamine use in the USA describe similar sympathomimetic effects of both mephedrone and MDPV, including agitation, hypertension, palpitations, hallucinations, and violent behavior; however, the US reports have differed in part from those from Europe by the increased prevalence of MDPV, as well as an increase in cases involving rhabdomyolysis.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 64%

Death Following Recreational Use of Designer Drug “Bath Salts” Containing 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)

Murray

Murphy

Beuhler³

2012

J. Med. Toxicol.

246

122

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Introduction 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a designer stimulant drug that has gained popularity in the USA. Although adverse effects of MDPV have been described, to our knowledge, this is the first reported death. Case Report We report the case of a 40-year-old male who injected and snorted "bath salts" containing MDPV and subsequently became agitated, aggressive, and experienced a cardiac arrest. He was resuscitated after his initial arrest; however, he developed hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis, coagulopathy, acidosis, anoxic brain injury, and subsequently died. Discussion This is the first case in the medical literature to report death due to isolated confirmed MDPV intoxication. The manner of death is also consistent with excited delirium syndrome.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 64%

Death Following Recreational Use of Designer Drug “Bath Salts” Containing 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)

Murray

Murphy

Beuhler³

2012

J. Med. Toxicol.

246

122

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“…A limited understanding and information on the addiction potential and withdrawal in human beings are available, and only a few animal studies have investigated the effects of these drugs. However, mephedrone is believed to have comparable abuse potential to cocaine and ecstasy [20]. In a Web-based survey, mephedrone users considered the drug effects to be more MDMA-like than cocaine-like and that the most prevalent negative effects were anxiety and panic.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Mephedrone, Methylone and 3,4‐Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) Induce Conditioned Place Preference in Mice

Karlsson

Andersson

Kronstrand

et al. 2014

Basic Clin Pharma Tox

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During the last decade, there has been a worldwide increase in popularity and abuse of synthetic cathinones. Common ingredients of the so-called bath salts include mephedrone, methylone and 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV). Relatively little information about the pharmacology and addiction potential of these drugs is available. We used the conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm to explore the reinforcing effects of three different synthetic cathinones. The primary aim of this study was to investigate whether mephedrone, methylone and MDPV induce CPP in mice. The secondary aims were to investigate a possible dose-response CPP and whether the synthetic cathinones induce higher CPP than amphetamine at equal dose. C57BL/6 mice were conditioned to mephedrone, methylone, MDPV and amphetamine at doses of 0.5, 2, 5, 10 or 20 mg/kg (i.p.). During the conditioning, the mice received two training sessions per day for 4 days. All four tested drugs showed a significant place preference compared with controls. Mice conditioned with MDPV (5 and 10 mg/kg) displayed a greater preference score compared to mice conditioned with amphetamine (5 and 10 mg/kg). Our findings show that mephedrone, methylone and MDPV produce CPP equal or higher than amphetamine strongly suggesting addictive properties. Given the public health concern of abuse, future pharmacological studies are necessary to fully understand the effects of these drugs.Synthetic cathinones, sold as 'bath salts', are becoming a growing global problem [1,2]. The expanding family of substances, analogues of naturally occurring cathinone found in khat (Catha edulis) [3], include the b-keto phenylethylamines mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone), methylone (3,4-methylenedioxymethcathinone) and MDPV (3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone) [4]. Many psychoactive drugs modify the monoamine neurotransmission systems, including the dopaminergic, serotoninergic and noradrenergic nervous systems [5]. It is widely accepted that the dopamine system is crucial for addiction and rewarding effects of drugs of abuse [6,7]. Based on the chemical structures of mephedrone, methylone and MDPV, it can be suggested that they act as psychoactive compounds with similar effects to amphetamine [8]. However, the in vivo pharmacology of these drugs is little investigated and poorly understood. In vitro studies of methylone have shown that the mechanism of action is similar to amphetamine [9]. Methylone was able to bind to noradrenaline (NA), dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) transporters and inhibit the reuptake of these three monoamines [10]. Mephedrone [11-13], methylone [11] and MDPV [14] have been shown to increase levels of monoamines in the brain by the use of microdialysis in rats. Further, mephedrone interacts with 5-HT and DA transporters and receptors in vitro [15]. Another in vitro study of methylone and mephedrone showed that they act as nonselective monoamine reuptake inhibitors (similar to cocaine) and that they induce the release of 5-HT similar to MDMA [16]. MDPV is thought t...

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“…Laying aside this interesting but under-developed final point, which has played a contributory factor in some Member States challenging the proposal, the fundamental problem here is that it is by no means certain that bringing substances under control has any significant effect on their market, and, in contrast, many have suggested that it may in fact increase overall harm (van Hout & Brennan, 2011;McElrath & O'Neill, 2011;Measham, Moore, Newcombe & Welch, 2010;Perrone, Hegelson & Fischer, 2013;). For example, Wood, Measham & Dargan (2012, p. 95) studied mephedrone use amongst gay clubbers in the UK after it had been banned and found that use "may be increasing" and Birdwell et al (2011, p. 19) found that once the ban had been implemented "other seemingly more dangerous substances emerged, including NRG-1, Ivory Wave and Benzo Fury".…”

Section: Existing Legislation Lacks Options For Regulatory and Contromentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the ‘added value’ of European policy on new psychoactive substances

Chatwin

2017

International Journal of Drug Policy

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Abstract:New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) are reported to be on the rise throughout Europe, and are often presented as the latest challenge facing drug-policy makers. At the European level, legislation on NPS has existed since 1998. Several evaluations, however, have suggested that this legislation is not effective and the European Commission has submitted a new proposal on NPS seeking to extend its powers in this area. This article critically evaluates the new proposal against its predecessor's three main criticisms: (i) being unable to tackle the large number of NPS because of lengthy European legislative approaches, (ii) being reactive rather than proactive, and (iii) lacking options for regulatory and control measures. In determining whether or not European interventions can bring added value to what is being done at the national level, it finds that, while the new proposal is more efficient, it is not necessarily more effective, and that there is a disappointing focus on legal frameworks at the expense of research and harm reduction.

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Experiences with mephedrone pre- and post-legislative controls: Perceptions of safety and sources of supply

Cited by 119 publications

References 11 publications

Death Following Recreational Use of Designer Drug “Bath Salts” Containing 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)

Death Following Recreational Use of Designer Drug “Bath Salts” Containing 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)

Mephedrone, Methylone and 3,4‐Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) Induce Conditioned Place Preference in Mice

Assessing the ‘added value’ of European policy on new psychoactive substances

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