Thomas Hoather

• MBBS
• Fits and Reduced Conciousness with “Not-So-Legal Highs”

Introduction: The rates of fits and reduced consciousness in ,patients exposed to Synthetic Cannabinoid Receptor Agonists (SCRAs) and Synthetic Cathinones (SCs) are unknown.

Methods: The Identification of Novel psychoActives (IONA) study database contains demographic, clinical and analytical details of adults presenting to UK emergency departments with
severe toxicity following suspected use of New Recreational Drugs (NRDs). We analysed the database for the rates of fits and reduced consciousness in those with SCRA and SC
exposure.

Results: Patients with SCRA exposure had 8.9% more fits than other IONA patients and 17.4% more reduced consciousness than other NRD users. SC exposure was associated with
20.1% less reduced consciousness than exposure to other NRDs and 21.6% less than other IONA patients, but there was no difference in the rate of fits.

Conclusions: Clinicians should be aware of these patterns of toxicity to guide diagnosis and treatment, when assessing adults with suspected NRD exposure.

Funding source: Newcastle University

Supervisor: Dr Simon Hill