Betahydroxythiofentanyl (β-hydroxythiofentanyl) is an

opioid Opioids are substances that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects. Medically they are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Other medical uses include suppression of diarrhea, replacement therapy for opioid us ...

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

that is an analogue of

fentanyl Fentanyl, also spelled fentanil, is a very potent synthetic opioid used as a pain medication. Together with other drugs, fentanyl is used for anesthesia. It is also used illicitly as a recreational drug, sometimes mixed with heroin, cocaine ...

. Beginning as early as 2008, clandestine labs in China began to manufacture synthetic opioids on an industrial scale. Initially, these opioids were distributed in Eastern European markets such as Ukraine and Estonia. Beginning in 2015, fentanyl had replaced heroin as the opioid of choice due to its cheap cost of production and astronomical potency. Utilizing lax regulation in the ports of western Mexico, Mexican and Chinese criminal organizations began to traffic the drug en masse along the US/Mexico border. Betahydroxythiofentanyl was sold briefly on the black market from around 1985, before the introduction of the Federal Analog Act in 1986 which for the first time attempted to control entire families of drugs based on their structural similarity rather than scheduling each drug individually as they appeared. β-hydroxythiofentanyl was anecdotally said to be one of the more favored fentanyl analogues by opiate addicts, but nevertheless its brief career as a street drug did not survive the introduction of the Analogues Act. Betahydroxythiofentanyl has similar effects to fentanyl. Side effects of

analogs are similar to those of fentanyl itself, which include

itching Itch (also known as pruritus) is a sensation that causes the desire or reflex to scratch. Itch has resisted many attempts to be classified as any one type of sensory experience. Itch has many similarities to pain, and while both are unpleasan ...

nausea Nausea is a diffuse sensation of unease and discomfort, sometimes perceived as an urge to vomit. While not painful, it can be a debilitating symptom if prolonged and has been described as placing discomfort on the chest, abdomen, or back of the ...

and potentially serious

respiratory depression Hypoventilation (also known as respiratory depression) occurs when ventilation is inadequate (''hypo'' meaning "below") to perform needed respiratory gas exchange. By definition it causes an increased concentration of carbon dioxide (hypercapnia ...

, which can be life-threatening. Fentanyl analogs have killed hundreds of people throughout Europe and the former Soviet republics since the most recent resurgence in use began in Estonia in the early 2000s, and novel derivatives continue to appear.

Legal status

As of October 2015, betahydroxythiofentanyl is a controlled substance in China. As of May 2016, betahydroxythiofentanyl is a Schedule I controlled substance in the United States.

References

{{Opioidergics Synthetic opioids Thiophenes Piperidines Secondary alcohols Propionamides Anilides Mu-opioid receptor agonists

Legal status

See also

References