A new, deadly drug is spreading through American cities, sparking a crisis not of addiction – but of withdrawal.
Medetomidine is a veterinary sedative, and if used by humans, it causes almost instant blackouts and life-threatening withdrawals.
Those who consume medetomidine often aren’t aware it’s in their drug supply – but increasingly, in US cities, it’s being used alongside fentanyl.
When used in animals, the drug can have negative effects on the cardiovascular system – blood pressure and heartbeat often reach very low levels after consuming it.
But after the drug wears off, the real danger begins – withdrawal symptoms of medetomidine are so extreme, it’s placed many in intensive care.
After experiencing low blood pressure and heartbeat while taking the drug, these symptoms suddenly skyrocket, and can be paired with seizures, going mute, and even lead to brain damage.
The effects of the withdrawals aren’t just hurting those unwillingly taking medetomidine, but the cities they live in.
Hospitals in Philadelphia have seen a major uptick in patients coming in with withdrawal from the drug, and it can be difficult to diagnose.
The extreme tremors patients present are mixed up with seizures. The high blood pressure and heart rate are mistaken for panic attacks.
Dr Daniel del Portal, an emergency room doctor at Temple Health, told the New York Times: ‘Our I.C.U.s have been overwhelmed.’
The US Drug Enforcement Administration said medetomidine first appeared in the US drug supply in 2021.
They attribute the rise in medetomidine, alongside fentanyl, to changes in the way traffickers choose and use other drugs to cut harder ones, like cocaine and fentanyl.
The countries found to be exporting medetomidine include China, India and the United States.
A drug similar to medetomidine, known as xylazine, swept through the UK in 2024, worrying local health services.
Even more worrying, xyalazine, considered 300 times less potent than medetomidine, caused overdose deaths in some southern US states to jump by 1,127% in just one year.
Xylazine is a sedative drug also known as Tranq, or Tranq dope. The drug puts humans in a coma-like state, with many either lying on the floor unable to move or bent over like zombies.
Prolonged usage also causes large, open skin ulcers.
These can get infected and start to rot. Some victims need their limbs amputated.
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