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>xylazine
Xylazine is a pharmaceutical drug used for sedation, anesthesia, muscle relaxation, and analgesia in animals such as horses, cattle, and other non-human mammals.[1] Veterinarians also use xylazine as an emetic, especially in cats.[2] It is an analog of clonidine and an agonist at the α2 class of adrenergic receptor.[3] In veterinary anesthesia, xylazine is often used in combination with ketamine. Xylazine has become a drug of abuse in the United States, where it is known by the street name "tranq", and particularly in Puerto Rico.[8] The drug is being diverted from stocks used by equine veterinarians and used as a cutting agent for heroin, causing skin sores and infections at injection sites, as well as other health issues.[9]
Medical uses
Xylazine is often used as a sedative, muscle relaxant, and analgesic.[3] It is frequently used in the treatment of tetanus.[3] Xylazine is very similar to drugs such as phenothiazine, tricyclic antidepressants, and clonidine.[4] As an anesthetic, it is typically used in conjunction with ketamine.[10] Xylazine appears to reduce sensitivity to insulin and glucose uptake in humans.[10] Yohimbine, an α2 adrenergic receptor antagonist, has been used to decrease glucose levels to a healthy level.[10] In clinical settings, yohimbine can reverse the adverse effects of xylazine if administered intravenously shortly after xylazine administration.[citation needed]
Side effects
Xylazine overdose is usually fatal in humans.[3] Because it is used as a drug adulterant, the symptoms caused by the drugs accompanying xylazine administration vary between individuals.[9] The most common side effects in humans associated with xylazine administration include bradycardia, respiratory depression, hypotension, transient hypertension secondary to alpha-1 stimulation, and other central and hemodynamic changes.[3][9] Xylazine significantly decreases heart rate in animals that are not premedicated with medications that have anticholinergic effects.[3] Xylazine administration can lead to diabetes mellitus and hyperglycemia.[10] Other possible side effects that can occur are areflexia, asthenia, ataxia, blurred vision, disorientation, dizziness, drowsiness, dysarthria, dysmetria, fainting, hyporeflexia, slurred speech, somnolence, staggering, coma, apnea, shallow breathing, sleepiness, premature ventricular contraction, tachycardia, miosis, and dry mouth.[4] Rarely, hypotonia, dry mouth, urinary incontinence and nonspecific electrocardiographic ST segment changes occur.[4] It has been reported that the duration of symptoms after human overdose is 8–72 hours.[4] Further research is necessary to categorize the side effects that occur when xylazine is used in conjunction with heroin and cocaine.[3] Chronic use is reported to be associated with physical deterioration, dependence, abscesses, and skin ulceration, which can be physically debilitating and painful.[4][10] Hypertension followed by hypotension, bradycardia, and respiratory depression lower tissue oxygenation in the skin.[9] Thus, chronic use of xylazine can progress the skin oxygenation deficit, leading to severe skin ulceration.[9] Lower skin oxygenation is associated with impaired healing of wounds and a higher chance of infection.[9] The ulcers may ooze pus and have a characteristic odor.[8] In severe cases, amputations must be performed on the affected extremities.[8]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylazine