MIAMI VALLEY, Ohio (WKEF) — A newly detected synthetic opioid in Ohio is raising alarms among state and local officials who say it can be far more potent than fentanyl and may linger in the body for days, complicating overdose response and drug enforcement.
The drug, cyclorphine, has been detected in Ohio and is reported to be four to ten times more potent than fentanyl. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) says the substance can be deadly and may last two days or longer in someone’s system.
“Because of that potency and how long it lasts in the body. So, we’ve seen some instances in overdoses where additional Narcan had to be administered,” said Jessica Toms, lab manager of the Drug Chemistry Section of BCI. “We are seeing it with fentanyl. I think a majority of the time it is in combination with fentanyl or samples we wouldn’t expect to see.”…