Fentanyl Health Dictionary

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Fentanyl: From 2 Different Sources

An opioid analgesic drug that is given by injection for pain relief during surgery and also to enhance general anaesthesia (see anaesthesia, general). Fentanyl is also used in the form of a skin patch to control the severe chronic pain of conditions such as cancer. In common with other opioid drugs, fentanyl has side effects that include depressed breathing, constipation, nausea, and vomiting. The administration of patches may be associated with local irritation of the skin.
Health Source: BMA Medical Dictionary
Author: The British Medical Association
n. a potent opioid analgesic (see opiate) used for the relief of severe pain (for example in cancer patients already receiving other opioids) and for pain relief during surgery.
Health Source: Oxford | Concise Colour Medical Dictionary
Author: Jonathan Law, Elizabeth Martin

Designer Drugs

A group of illegally produced chemicals that mimic the effects of specific drugs of abuse. They can cause drug dependence and drug poisoning. Made in illicit laboratories, they are cheap to produce and undercut the street prices of drugs.

There are 3 major groups: drugs derived from opioid analgesic drugs such as fentanyl; drugs similar to amfetamines, such as ecstasy; and variants of phencyclidine (PCP), a hallucinogenic drug. These highly potent drugs are not tested for adverse effects or for the strength of the tablets or capsules, making their use hazardous. For example, some derivatives of fentanyl are 20–2,000 times more powerful than morphine. Amfetamine derivatives can cause brain damage at doses only slightly higher than those required for a stimulant effect. Many designer drugs contain impurities that can cause permanent damage.... designer drugs


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