Just now, the fight against fentanyl has taken an unsettling turn. High concentrations of BTMPS, an industrial chemical used in the manufacture of plastic, have been found by researchers in illegal fentanyl in several American locations.
Experts are shocked by the discovery, which poses major health risks to anybody who may have been unintentionally exposed to this harmful material.
Bis(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidyl) sebacate, or BTMPS, is commonly used to shield plastics from ultraviolet rays. However, its presence in fentanyl, which can occasionally make up more than half of the drug’s composition, has left researchers baffled.
How did it arrive? Is it being added on purpose, or was it an unintentional contamination?
Lead UCLA researcher Dr. Chelsea Shover speculates that it might be the consequence of novel synthesis techniques or an effort to dilute fentanyl.
The repercussions could be fatal in any case. BTMPS has been linked in animal studies to pulmonary problems, cardiotoxicity, reproductive harm, and even death.
Even worse, people who take fentanyl laced with BTMPS can unintentionally reduce their tolerance, increasing the risk of overdoses in the future.
The emergence of unanticipated additions indicates that the opioid epidemic is far from ending, even though the number of drug samples that tested positive for fentanyl has slightly decreased.
According to experts, the unregulated drug industry will keep changing in hazardous ways, endangering even more lives.
