Emerging Illicit Substances: What Clinicians Need to Know

Saturday, April 26, 2025

4:15 PM – 5:30 PM

Presenter(s)

AS

Alaina R. Steck, MD

Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine
Emory University
Atlanta, Georgia
Jeanmarie Perrone, MD

Director, Center for Addiction Medicine and Policy
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rachel S. Wightman, MD, FACMT, FASAM

Associate Professor
Brown University
Providence, Rhode Island
daniel J. Sessions, MD

Emergency Medicine
Ochsner Medical center
New Orleans, Louisiana

Non-presenting author(s)

JoAn Laes, MD

Addiction Physician
Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
Roseville, Minnesota
Robert Cole Pueringer, MD

Medical Toxicologist, Addiction Medicine Specialist, Hospitalist
Essentia Health
Duluth, Minnesota
Lewis S. Nelson, MD

Professor of Emergency Medicine/Medical Toxicology
Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, Florida

This presentation will describe epidemiological trends in emerging substances of misuse, highlighting novel benzodiazepines, NMDA antagonists, antidepressants, synthetic opioids, and novel stimulants among others. We will describe the pharmacology of these substances and extrapolate the expected clinical signs and symptoms of intoxication and withdrawal. Clinical identification and treatment of patients intoxicated or in withdrawal from these substances will be discussed as will the available methods of drug testing and test data dissemination.

Learning Objectives:

Learners will be able to:

Describe epidemiological changes in the emerging illicit and unregulated drug supply: tianeptine, synthetic opioids, kratom, benzodiazepines, ketamine and other NMDA antagonists, additives and alpha-2 agonists.
Understand the pharmacology of emerging substances: tianeptine, synthetic opioids, kratom, bromazolam and other benzodiazepines, ketamine and other NMDA antagonists and medetomidine and other alpha-2 agonists.
Identify strategies for bedside clinical and laboratory diagnosis of patients presenting intoxicated or withdrawing from in the context of an evolving drug supply

Disclosure(s):

Alaina R. Steck, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Jeanmarie Perrone, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Rachel S. Wightman, MD, FACMT FASAM: No financial relationships to disclose

JoAn Laes, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Robert Cole Pueringer, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Lewis S. Nelson, MD: No financial relationships to disclose